Natalie Harpe

WRDS 1104

Malcolm Campbell

23 January 2023

Literacy Narrative

When I was in first grade, I was diagnosed with ADD and ADHD. Therefore, learning

did not always come so easy to me. When teachers would assign something to read, I remember

reading it but never understanding anything the text said. My brain was constantly wandering off

into anything else besides my schoolwork. No matter how hard I tried to pay attention…I

couldn’t. During elementary school I was pulled out of class each day in order to go get

additional one on one help with my schooling. I always found this embarrassing because no one

else in my class ever had to do this. The main subjects I struggled with were reading and writing.

Quite frankly still to this day I struggle with writing. Anytime I have been assigned a paper, I

have procrastinated it until the very last minute. Whenever I sit down to write a paper, I seem to

lose focus of what I should be doing, my mind wanders off in space. I guess you could call this

“writer's block.” For example, before starting this paper I sat here and stared at the computer

screen for a solid hour. It’s a free-write about writing and I still couldn’t find the words to begin

this paper! Personally, for some odd reason working under pressure seems to help generate ideas

to come to mind faster than doing the assignment days before the due date.

I remember when I was a senior in high-school about to begin writing my college essays.

My anxiety began to consume me because writing most definitely is not my strong suit. Knowing

that this essay would factor in on whether or not I got into my dream colleges horrified me. I

remember sitting at my kitchen table staring at the writing prompt for what felt like forever. No
matter how hard I tried to find the words to write, it was as if my mind was completely blank. If I

am being honest, I didn’t even start the essay until a day or two before it was due. I remember

having a panic attack over this essay just because I couldn’t find the right words to say. This is

something that I still find very difficult. Another time I recall struggling to find the motivation to

write a paper was last semester. I was taking an Ethical Issues class and I was assigned a five-

page paper on how teachers shape students' understanding of politics. I strongly remember

thinking about how I thought this paper would be the absolute death of me. I had absolutely no

idea of where to start writing this paper. I had no idea how to not make this paper seem biased

due to my own political beliefs. I remember procrastinating until the very last day to begin this

assignment. I recall sitting alone in the library in one of the small cubbies located on the second

floor staring at my computer screen with not a single thought in mind. After doing some research

and getting an idea of what to write about, I began to type my paper. Once I began typing up this

paper it seemed as if a million ideas of topics to write about came to mind. Needless to say, I

believe I finished this paper in about two and a half hours, and made an A on it. I will never

understand why I struggle so much with finding ideas to write about but once I get started, I’m

set.

Over the past couple months, I have begun to find some sort of love for writing. Well,

when it isn’t for school. I have learned that I have a terrible tendency to bottle things up

emotionally and let emotions build until I snap. Many would say the life I have lived is a

nightmare, which is partially correct but I also have lived an amazing fulfilling life. I lost my dad

several years ago and now my mother is sick with only a few short months left. I have learned

that writing about these experiences and putting into words how I feel emotionally has helped me

mentally. I write about how I feel. I write about the types of emotions I may be experiencing at
that moment. I write about how my past experiences have shaped me into the person I am today.

I write about the goals I have set for myself in the future. I write about the types of grades I want

to get in school. I write about the huge farmhouse I want to build one day. I write about how

thankful I am for all that I do have in life. Lastly, I write about how I plan to keep myself going

each and every day. Although I may not love writing (especially when it’s for an assignment), I

am slowly finding some sort of love for it.

I wish I loved writing as much as I love reading. Ever since I was a young child I have

loved to read. I remember my mother would bring home random books for me to read. She never

really brought home any fiction books, which could possibly be why I hate reading fictional

stories. I have always loved to read anything that was furthering my knowledge on a certain

topic. I believe that reading is like free knowledge. No one has to teach it to you or explain it to

you. Any time I have been assigned reading for an assignment, more times than not I will find

some sort of information that I didn’t know or that I found interesting. That’s the value of

reading, you can always find something you didn’t know before. I remember as a child getting so

excited when I was assigned reading. Crazy right? But it’s the truth! Starting from a young age I

loved to read, this wasn’t something that I just randomly started to like as I got older. Hopefully

in the future I learn to love writing as much as I love reading. I mean after all, whatever job I end

up pursuing, writing will always play a crucial role in it.