Annie built a positive relationship with literacy by building literacy through positive relationships. As a child learning to read, she got to choose books that seemed interesting to her as opposed to being told what to read, which was an empowering beginning to her literacy journey. Annie mainly remembers learning to read outside of the academic realm. Her education in reading was a loving family affair. She would cozily sit with her mom, dad, and twin brother when her parents would let either her or her brother pick a picture book. She would then read the book of her choice to her family. This introduction to reading made it feel like a fun activity that she could experience alongside her brother—her best friend and companion in literacy.
In elementary school she did a book report which she will never forget—it was on a fairy chapter book that she simply adored. Getting to explain what she liked about this book in her report made her like the book even more and introduced her to the pleasure of discussing literature. It was another seminal writing assignment in Mrs. Radon’s 3rd grade class, however, which illuminated to Annie the creative aspect of writing. She was asked to write a fictional story of a leprechaun for St. Patrick’s Day. This story enveloped her imagination and sparked her inspiration to write; to tell stories. In 10th grade, however, she was constricted by the structure of a five paragraph, eight sentence per paragraph essay. It was a cold form that conflicted with her previously warm relationship with writing. No matter how much the enforced structure of writing has been imposed on her throughout her schooling since this tale of the leprechaun, though, she has never lost that initial positive association with writing.
Her parents always encouraged and exemplified reading as a non-pressured, fun activity to enjoy in free time. Both of her parents always had a book that they would be reading as they relaxed. A young Annie saw her parents constantly consume books for pleasure, and this modeled how she still reads to this day. While her parents gave this good example for reading, Annie’s 3rd grade teacher Mrs. Radon gave her the priceless opportunity to explore writing in a way that proved its capacity to be a fun and exciting form of expression.
This pure, enjoyable, empowering capacity of literacy which captured Annie so early was inevitably tainted by the pressures placed by the tyrannical aspects of the education system. At one point, Annie’s twin brother was placed in reading group above her. While the momentary disappointment of this moment could have discouraged her and made her feel less-than, instead, it sparked her competitive nature. She wanted to be like him, and she worked to be so. Education would once again act as an obstacle in her literacy journey when she was modeled the rigid argumentative essay structure as a 10th grader but, once again, Annie refused to be repulsed by literacy just because of education’s constrictions. Her constant efforts seemed to culminate in a challenge she faced her junior year of college: her honor’s thesis. When she was asked to collect a vast expanse of information and synthesize it into a paper of length unprecedented until that point in her education, her literacy was challenged and enhanced like never before. With tireless work, she was able to complete a 30 plus page paper. She proved to herself what she is capable of.
At this point in her life, Annie reads every day for pleasure and relaxation. She is committed to the tried-and-true hard copy because there in nothing like holding a book in her hands and turning page after page until the very last. This is in addition to the other reading which is focused on self-edification. The reading she does for her personal edification is usually sourced from her classes and interesting articles which expand her knowledge of the world—a process that, like her other reading, grants her great pleasure. She always tries to get her books from the libraries, as she will take any chance to support the places that gave her the gift of literature.
After she began taking college English classes that not only allowed her but encouraged her to break out of the model given to her in high school, Annie now approaches writing in a way that conforms to her thought process. When she is posed with an academic writing assignment, she always starts by quickly jotting down body paragraphs which are a mix of her initial thoughts and quotes that sparked her inspiration and will be used to back her argument. She will then write a conclusion which encapsulates her argument into a larger idea that answers the question, “Why?” Lastly, she will write her introduction including her thesis. This method has proved to allow her to use writing to not only express her thoughts but to refine them, unlike the structure she was given in 10th grade.
Throughout the process of writing an academic paper, her professors are her main resource for guidance. They have helped her expand upon ideas which are inspiring but not always clear, and then they continue to help her sharpen her arguments by giving her feedback on her drafts. Other sources of productive input are her housemates, as they can give her the perspective of an audience who has no background knowledge of the subject. It is always important to her that an audience broader than English professors can understand her argument, for only then does she know she has truly achieved clarity. The main form of writing in which she engages outside of academia is journaling, an activity she wishes she was more consistent with. She does not often find herself in situations where she must speak formally but, although she finds it difficult, she always enjoys the process of managing to translate the complexity of her thoughts into words.
She always does her reading in her home. She will read at a desk for academia, but when reading for herself she is always in a chair, on the couch, or wherever she might find most comfortable at any given time. Since she writes mostly for school, Annie is usually typing when she is writing. When she gets the chance to write at her leisure, however, she prefers to write by hand.
Annie gets a rush from writing when she feels she has achieved understanding—when she has conveyed herself in way that others understand and that shows she, herself, understands. Annie’s favorite experience when reading may, at first, seem antithetical to pleasure. Annie knows she loved something she read when she is sad when it ends. This sadness, to her, is proof of the joy the reading brought her while she had the opportunity to experience it.
The thoughts that Annie strives to convey in her writing are often complex and involved. It is the struggle to find ways to convey these thoughts in a simple and understandable way that is most challenging. Annie is rigorously intellectual, which can lead her to feel great discontent when she comes across any word with which she is unfamiliar when reading. Yet, Annie accepts each foreign word as a challenge easily conquered with a dictionary.
Her literacy journey has not been without barriers. As an English major at Davis, Annie has often struggled with the ubiquitous monster of imposter syndrome. She knows the anxiety of feeling that she is not following standards or doing something “wrong—” a fear struck by the education of literacy early on. Overall, however, Annie feels fortunate to have had such positive experiences with literacy. From her parents to Mrs. Radon to Professor Matthew Stratton, Annie had inspiring models and guides that encouraged and excited her about literacy. Throughout her life, both reading and writing have been modes expression and tools of achieving new ways of thinking. Literacy, to her, is a gift that, as it is always in progress, keeps on giving.
As I interviewed Annie, she gained an even deeper gratitude for her the role her parents played in developing her literacy. She sees the beauty of their love that led them to invest in her; to read to her, to read with her, to have her read to them. They made literacy fun. They gave her love while they gave her literacy. Love and literacy, because of Annie’s parents, became synonymous.