Advanced Composition Portfolio
The Awakening
Lewis and I removing the contaminated soil.
At seven in the morning I wake up to the loud cacophony of my friend banging on the door. I roll over and finally open my eyes.
“Yo Lewis, what are we doing today?” I scream while still in bed.
“I think we’re gardening today, probably we’ll just put in plants or something” he replies.
So I get up, get dressed, get breakfast, and get on the bus, with little thought to how early it was. Little did I know there were many life lessons and hard work in store for me that day.
Throughout the bus ride, I sit with my eyes glued to the scenery that is flying by.
I am apprehensive and curious, and left to ponder what “gardening” would entail and how we would help those in need. As I observe my surroundings I am interrupted by the bus driver saying, “This is the lower 9th ward, one of the places that was most affected by Hurricane Katrina.” I am in utter amazement at how desolate it is despite the fact that the hurricane hit over three years ago. I am able to count the number of remaining houses, ten, in this area that once was a large neighborhood. All that is left on most of the barren plots of land is the cement front steps and pillars that supported the house. It is like a desert, uninhabited and desolate, or Hiroshima the day after the bomb, complete devastation. Questions were racing through my head, where had all of these homes gone? And, what has happened to the people who lived there? What would happen if I were put into such a situation? It dumbfounded me. The thought of losing everything in an instant left me in shock. I began to take stock of the many aspects of my daily life that I take for granted, having a nice home-cooked meal every night, a warm bed to sleep in, and what it would mean for them to be taken away. Speechless, there were no words that could describe the catastrophe my life would become if I had to leave my town and begin going to school somewhere else, which was the situation many of these people were faced with.
I snap out of my deep thoughts when we arrive at the house where we would be working. I step off the bus with a group of kids anxiously awaiting the instructions from the woman who would be leading us that day. She explains, “The soil in this front lawn is filled with lead, so we need to dig out 16 inches of soil everywhere.” This left me searching for links that would explain the significance of the work we would be doing today. However, she then continued, “We will then fill it with new soil so that it can become an organic garden for this neighborhood. They will open a restaurant, and a market down the street where these products will be sold.” This got me excited because not only do I enjoy digging, but this would have implications benefitting the lives of not a single family but an entire community.
I became exhausted, as the day progressed. By lunch it had felt like I completed an entire day in a coal mine, my back ached like an 80 year old man’s, and my arms were as sore as if I had just finished sixteen rounds with the heavy weight champion. Despite the intensity of the work we were doing, I pushed on because I knew the long lasting effects that my work would have on the many people in this community. The lesson was reinforced by the countless people who lived in the neighborhood whom had thanked us. Most of the people that walked by were very polite. Each one graciously thanked us and engaged in conversation with us. One man even picked up a shovel and joined us in our tedious and daunting task. It astonished me, how so many people who have so much to complain about could be positive and optimistic. Despite all of the tough times that they have been through and after all of the things that they lost, there were all very upbeat. Meeting these people really helped me put my life into perspective. Now whenever something minor does not go according to plan I will take a second to think about how this miniscule thing compares to those who were displaced for months and came back home, to find that there was no home left.
This trip became a major revelation for me. It opened my eyes to what was outside Long Island’s affluent population. No longer do I take for granted the little things in life that are subtle, yet entirely necessary. This experience made me more conscience of the insignificant imperfections in my life that I complain about. It led me to reflect on how something like a bad test grade can put me in a bad mood for hours. I felt remorse for this too. I thought to myself, “What gives me the right to be so pessimistic over such a trivial event, when these people who have had so many things go wrong, remain positive.” This day, and this trip, will remain a vivid memory in my mind forever. It has taught me to value what I have, and how such a small trip with a few kids can make such a significant impact on so many lives. I have learned more from these people then they will ever know, and they have encouraged me, without knowing it, to make helping others more of a priority in my life.
“Yo Lewis, what are we doing today?” I scream while still in bed.
“I think we’re gardening today, probably we’ll just put in plants or something” he replies.
So I get up, get dressed, get breakfast, and get on the bus, with little thought to how early it was. Little did I know there were many life lessons and hard work in store for me that day.
Throughout the bus ride, I sit with my eyes glued to the scenery that is flying by.
I am apprehensive and curious, and left to ponder what “gardening” would entail and how we would help those in need. As I observe my surroundings I am interrupted by the bus driver saying, “This is the lower 9th ward, one of the places that was most affected by Hurricane Katrina.” I am in utter amazement at how desolate it is despite the fact that the hurricane hit over three years ago. I am able to count the number of remaining houses, ten, in this area that once was a large neighborhood. All that is left on most of the barren plots of land is the cement front steps and pillars that supported the house. It is like a desert, uninhabited and desolate, or Hiroshima the day after the bomb, complete devastation. Questions were racing through my head, where had all of these homes gone? And, what has happened to the people who lived there? What would happen if I were put into such a situation? It dumbfounded me. The thought of losing everything in an instant left me in shock. I began to take stock of the many aspects of my daily life that I take for granted, having a nice home-cooked meal every night, a warm bed to sleep in, and what it would mean for them to be taken away. Speechless, there were no words that could describe the catastrophe my life would become if I had to leave my town and begin going to school somewhere else, which was the situation many of these people were faced with.
I snap out of my deep thoughts when we arrive at the house where we would be working. I step off the bus with a group of kids anxiously awaiting the instructions from the woman who would be leading us that day. She explains, “The soil in this front lawn is filled with lead, so we need to dig out 16 inches of soil everywhere.” This left me searching for links that would explain the significance of the work we would be doing today. However, she then continued, “We will then fill it with new soil so that it can become an organic garden for this neighborhood. They will open a restaurant, and a market down the street where these products will be sold.” This got me excited because not only do I enjoy digging, but this would have implications benefitting the lives of not a single family but an entire community.
I became exhausted, as the day progressed. By lunch it had felt like I completed an entire day in a coal mine, my back ached like an 80 year old man’s, and my arms were as sore as if I had just finished sixteen rounds with the heavy weight champion. Despite the intensity of the work we were doing, I pushed on because I knew the long lasting effects that my work would have on the many people in this community. The lesson was reinforced by the countless people who lived in the neighborhood whom had thanked us. Most of the people that walked by were very polite. Each one graciously thanked us and engaged in conversation with us. One man even picked up a shovel and joined us in our tedious and daunting task. It astonished me, how so many people who have so much to complain about could be positive and optimistic. Despite all of the tough times that they have been through and after all of the things that they lost, there were all very upbeat. Meeting these people really helped me put my life into perspective. Now whenever something minor does not go according to plan I will take a second to think about how this miniscule thing compares to those who were displaced for months and came back home, to find that there was no home left.
This trip became a major revelation for me. It opened my eyes to what was outside Long Island’s affluent population. No longer do I take for granted the little things in life that are subtle, yet entirely necessary. This experience made me more conscience of the insignificant imperfections in my life that I complain about. It led me to reflect on how something like a bad test grade can put me in a bad mood for hours. I felt remorse for this too. I thought to myself, “What gives me the right to be so pessimistic over such a trivial event, when these people who have had so many things go wrong, remain positive.” This day, and this trip, will remain a vivid memory in my mind forever. It has taught me to value what I have, and how such a small trip with a few kids can make such a significant impact on so many lives. I have learned more from these people then they will ever know, and they have encouraged me, without knowing it, to make helping others more of a priority in my life.
I decided to choose this topic because I went on the trip this past February break, so it was fresh in my min. Also the trip had a profound impact on me. I was trying to convey how this trip impacted me and I felt that I was fairly successful. I felt that my thoughts and ideas were easily put onto paper because, as I said, it was still fresh in my mind. Also the events that I described are and will stay a vivid memory for years to come. Therefore I found it easy to write. I think that my piece is pretty complete. However the only thing that i would change is to add another body or simply more vivid examples of New Orleans, However I feel that the two body paragraphs that I had were significant enough to get my point across. Therefore I am happy with the outcome of this piece.
