The Camera

The crowd roars, screaming and cheering. The clock runs down. The crowd counts down with the clock… 10, 9, 8.  The point guard dribbles the ball and then passes it down to the bottom of the key to the post player.  He fake-pumps, tricking the defensive opponent and passes the ball out to a guard on the perimeter of the court.

The three point shot goes up.  The buzzer rings as the time runs out.  The shot falls in hardly moving the net.  The crowd lets out a cry.  Looking through the lens the emotion is immense.  As the lens focuses in on the team, their emotions burst from every pore and tears of joy flow from the victorious champions. 

           

I need to focus now, focus.  My finger placed on the trigger is ready to snap the shot at any moment.  Ready, set, now!  Pushing down on the shutter release, the flash showers the team with light.  I am able to capture both the memory and emotion in one single picture. 

           

Shifting positions through the lens, I find myself glued on the crowd.  The lens focuses as team spirit flows like a flash flood over the stands.  Snap!  The excitement is captured in this picture.  I grip the silver casing switching from picture mode to gallery mode.  Pushing the silver arrow keys, listening to the click, click, click as I switch from picture to picture.  The photos are unbelievable!  They contain memories that will often be retraced from these precious photos. 

           

After viewing the pictures I have taken, I push the power button located at the top of the electronic box.  The lens closes, folding carefully into the tiny box.  The camera powers down to a music box style tune.  I unlatch the velcro on the case, carefully placing the camera into its soft, protective shield. 

           

What would it be like if we didn’t have cameras to capture the moments?  Would a memory be wasted or remembered?  Without a camera, my life’s memories would fade.  My camera makes up a big part of my life – I snap photos at every event, both big and small.  As I look at the pictures, my mind goes back to the moment captured.  My camera keeps my memories alive.

Me As a Writer

As we grow up, we all become writers at one time or another. It all depends on our influences which can be from experiences, family, or anything else that could influence. I had several influences that affected me as a writer. My family influenced me, I have had several experiences, and I have felt confident and comfortable with my writing.

My family was a big influence in my writing as I grew up. My mom and sister would teach me how to write. I would always watch my brothers and sister do their homework, but I wanted to do it too. Thus, I would pretend I was doing homework with them by drawing scribbles, pictures, numbers and letters. Growing up I always noticed how my mom, dad, and sister wrote. My mom’s neat handwriting rubbed off on me along with my sister’s cute handwriting. My dad always wrote in cursive and I liked how it looked. Such being, my cursive handwriting looks like his. A big influence on me as a writer was, and still is, my family.

I have had several experiences that have affected me as a writer. In elementary we would always compare to see who had the best handwriting. I would win most of the time. I have done several writing contests. I won first place in the Farm Bureau writing contest. I wrote about our farm, what goes on at a farm, and about being my dad’s little farm girl. Also, when my brother was shipped to Iraq, we would write back and forth. It made me develop more in writing letters. I once wrote a letter to the President of the United States. What was the outcome? He actually wrote me back and sending pictures too! It was an awesome experience. In junior high I wrote several poems that were very good. I wrote poems on the military, myself, my horse, the ocean, and several others. At the end of my ninth grade year I applied for the Female Athlete Award at my school. This required me to write an essay on why I should win the award. Everything on my application was what they were looking for and I received the award. My high school experience involves several writing assignments in my English class. Such as, persuasive essays, research papers, bibliographies, and I participate in the UBSCT writing test. These are just some of the experiences that have affected me as a writer.

Another thing that affected me as a writer is that I have always felt confident and comfortable with my writing. I write in a journal and have for a while. I am so comfortable with it that I can write whatever I am feeling and the details of my day. When I was little, I started writing in a journal type of manner. At my old house we had a big blank wall in our garage with no mud, texture, or anything on it. It was just drywall with nails and screws. Every time I was upset, bored, or just had something on my mind I would go out and write or draw about it on the wall. I would write with markers, chalk, crayons, construction pencils, and even paint markers. Basically, I would use whatever I could find. I would practice writing words, write how I felt about anything, and practice peoples’ names. I would draw a variety of pictures also. I always was comfortable with this and didn’t care about what people thought. It was my way of expressing my thoughts and emotions while using my freedom as a writer. This confidence and sense of comfort helped me develop into the writer I am.

I have had several influences on my writing skills. My family was a big influence. I also faced several life experiences that made me a more confident and comfortable writer.