A Literacy Memoir

Literacy is a very common word in the society of today. Its definition varies from one
body of people to the next. The level of literacy actually determines how it is defined. For
example, an uneducated farmer may define it as simply having the ability to read and write,
whereas a professor could define it as understanding writings at numerous different levels as well
as communicating with an audience at those different levels through writing. Just as every person
has a different definition of literacy, everyone has taken a different path to achieve it. Some
individuals pathway to literacy may be pockmarked with trials and setbacks, while others may
have had it come naturally. My story is somewhat like that. I do not say that arrogantly or
condescendingly, I just simply have not struggled with achieving my level of literacy.
Though this is not a narrative, I will give background and start at the earliest encounter I
had with becoming literate. My mother is a college graduate and studied English and education,
so as you can imagine she was eager to educate me about the things she knew so much about.
From my earliest memories she had those little magnetic letters stuck to the refrigerator door for
me to play with. She taught me the phonics of each one and soon I could piece them together.
And that put me on my way to reading. Now, speaking of reading, reading my first book was
obviously a very important step in my journey to literacy. The first book I read was Are you my
mother? By P.D. Eastman. I read it to my mother and my uncle at the age of two. Although that
may not be the most impressive reading selection, and I am positive some child genius out there

makes my accomplishment pale in comparison to theirs, I am still proud of it. It gave me the
jumpstart into reading that made me as knowledgeable as I am now.
Now, about being knowledgeable, I pride myself on knowing information on many
different topics. This is a necessity in todays society. I feel that to be successful and to get the
most out of life, one must be very well rounded and well versed in different subjects and topics
of study. This diversity of knowledge contributes to ones literacy. For example, in my own life, I
have read over fifty books concerning military engagements, tactics, equipment, and leaders.
These books span the gambit of human history. My favorite genre of these military books are
focused on American special operations forces from World War Two through the present day.
The love for these books was kick started by an assignment from my sixth grade teacher, Mrs.
Harrelson. We were assigned a biographical report and we were allowed to select the book. I
chose Eyes behind the Lines by Gary A. Linderer. The book opened the Pandoras Box that
would become my military obsession. You may ask how this pertains to my personal literacy, the
military has its own dialect strewn with technical nonsensical jargon. Some phrases have
absolutely no significant meaning to those who are not well versed in them. Therefore I believe
that by reading such books I have become a more literate person.
As I have tried to make clear above, reading has never been a struggle for me. I
genuinely enjoy doing it. The other aspect of literacy, however, is a different story. Writing is
one of those skills that is typically detested by the general population, but is one of the most
stressed and valued in the classroom or workplace. To be clear, I have no disdain for writing, nor

have I an ignorant opinion of writing. It is just a very mentally taxing ordeal that I prefer to not
do. There are exceptions to that attitude though. I actually do enjoy writing about the things I
enjoy or feel very strongly about. For example if I was asked to write a paper concerning politics
and the current state of our nation I could churn out as much information as the assignment
required, and reversely I would balk at a paper assignment to explain a certain authors writing
style. All of that said, I have had occasions that writing has enhanced my literacy. Once again I
will reach back into Mrs Harrelsons sixth grade classroom. That was also the first time I had
been assigned a research paper. By my standards today, the paper was unpolished and rough, but
for my sixth grade self it was the culmination of weeks of work. Although I hated to do them, I
will admit that all of the research papers I was assigned throughout high school did actually
make me a more literate person. The one that sticks out most distinctly in my mind is the
research paper from my junior year of high school. That assignment was a part of the graduation
requirement for our county. It was also very strictly regulated. I believe these regulations forced
me to argue my points to a higher level as well as to convey my points in a more academic
fashion. I actually had a much easier time with the paper than the majority of my peers did. I
think this was because I had done research papers in the past. I went to a private school up until
the eleventh grade, so my education was slightly different from theirs.
I also believe I have gained a tremendous amount of knowledge, which has transmitted
into literacy, from more technical sources. Technical manuals have always been exceedingly
interesting for me to read (hence why I put myself into the mechanical engineering program). I

have always been that way, but one specific memory of reading a more technical book is on my
mind. A few years back (I will not give a specific year as I am not exactly certain of it), my
father gave me a good size blue book. It was a United States Navy Machinists mate first class
handbook. Inside that book there was information about almost any mechanical doohickey one
could imagine. Everything from air conditioning units to bolt torque specifications to water pipe
repairs and beyond. The major downside to reading this book was how it was written. It was a
professionals book, and I as a younger teen couldnt quite comprehend all of the uber technical,
confusing military jargon (which is far worse than regular technical jargon). The obscenely
overcomplicated nature of the book is why it is in this memoir now though. Had it not been so
utterly confusing at first I would not have had to look up the strange terms which it contained
and been so curious about figuring out what this thing was trying to tell me. Since then I have
read many different more technical books for my own enjoyment. Books on topics such as cars
and engines, or machining and welding, or even one time a limited slip differential gearbox
(exhilarating, yes I know).
The last major component to shape my personal literacy is with-out a doubt the most
important. I will also add that it is not chronologically the last thing with an effect on my
literacy. The book I am talking about has been read in bits and pieces for over six-thousand
years, but was not a complete book until around the third century Anno Domini. This book has
influenced almost every aspect of human history for around the last seventeen hundred years. It
was the reason Johann Gutenberg invented the printing press (which is arguably the single

greatest driving factor that dragged humanity out of the dark ages). Obviously I am talking about
the Bible. My mother is a devout Christian woman as well as an educator. The combination of
those two made it almost impossible for her to not teach it to me. After I became somewhat
literate and could read fairly well, she always preferred for me to read from the King James
Version. If you have ever read a King James Bible, you understand why I had to master reading
beforehand. That specific translation is the original, in its closest form to the original translations
in the year 1611. The English language of today is slightly *sarcasm* different than it was is
1611. Words have different meanings, the syntax and grammar is different. And everything has
some stupid old English suffix attached to it. BUT, that is what made it such a powerful tool for
literacy! Having to take an older text and make sense of it in modern terms is the quintessential
standard of literacy. If you dont agree with me on that then why do high-school children still
have to read Shakespeare and King Arthur?
In closing, all of these afore mentioned experiences have factored into my learning and
betterment as a person and as a student. I believe this memoir has been successful in making me
evaluate my level of literacy and how I attained it.