The Present
College taught me to incorporate my own unique style into my writing, that essays did not have one traditional way to write a narrative or develop an argument. Specifically, my Human Event class taught me how valuable it was to be engaged with literacy. The first semester of the class really challenged me. You would either get a complete or a complete with distinction if you did exceptionally well. I did not manage to get a complete with distinction on a single essay. But instead of getting upset, I looked at it as an opportunity to grow. I did my best to soak up all the information I learned to apply it to next semester. By applying everything I learned, I was able to get a complete with distinction on all my papers the second semester. Not only did it accomplish that, but it also exposed me to my first productive peer review. I loved helping other writers develop their essays. You not only help the other person when looking at their work, but you also incredibly develop your own writing skills. That was one of the reasons I became a writing mentor: to improve my own skills while improving others. My intended audience for this project is other struggling writers who are making their way through this journey. The main reason was to help other writers who were moving through their literary journey, because it is so important for future generations to have great literacy skills in this technologically evolving world. Having bumps in your literacy journey is a completely normal and surprisingly helpful thing, the most important thing is you keep trying, and one day you will begin to see the benefits.
How Music Inspires Me Now
I picked Oasis here for a couple of reasons. One because I got the opportunity to see them on their reunion tour last year and it was the best concert I have ever seen. But I also picked them because I believe their story directly relates to my point for this project. Oasis was broken up for 20 years and the consensus was that they would never return, it was a foregone conclusion. But out of nowhere, they came back and delivered a wonderful tour across the world. While it may seem initially clear, my point is if Oasis can come back after that and absolutely kill it, then you must not give up on your dreams. Even when there is no hope, when you feel like everyone has written you off, you have to realize there is only one person who controls your narrative: You!
Writing Mentorship
Getting this writing mentor job has given me the opportunity to give back to my community and aid myself simultaneously. I never thought I would have so much fun stepping into the role of editor, but I truly love it. Looking at writing from the outside and being able to give tangible suggestions has been wonderful. Working through this class and looking at other student’s work has made me apply completely new techniques to writing that I would never have thought to use otherwise. It has also been fun to interact with the group of new writing mentors, who are amazingly intelligent and supportive. Through the readings, I have been able to engage in very interesting conversations that challenge me as both a writer and reader. I feel incredibly grateful that I was able to share my story through this project, and I hope I was able to show that whether literacy path you are on is the right one, as long as you stay on it.
Reflection of Today
My journey has been one with many different challenges. This is exactly why I wanted to direct my narrative towards high school and college students. I have been in the same exact situation as many of you, feeling down about myself, feeling inadequate about my skills. I have learned that skills are not the problem, your skills are wonderful, it is about the approach. When I stopped looking at feedback as something bad, I was truly able to level up my literacy skills. I understand it is so hard not to see feedback as a sort of failure, but if you are able to look at it as an opportunity to improve, you will be amazed on how much better your results will be.
Nicolas Drago Digital Literacy Narrative 