'Learning To Write' By Russel Baker

Thinking about what to write for this essay has been a huge challenge because I feel that I cannot relate to any of the excerpts that have been read in class. I’ve never been involved in a dramatic incident like in “Rain of Fire” by Evan Thomas or “Road Work” by Staff Sergeant Jack Lewis, nor have I ever had a definitive experience with being privy to the prejudice of the world as in “Jackie’s Debut: A Unique Day” by Mike Royko. I’ve found the most to relate to in the excerpt “Learning to Write” by Russel Baker, though that most is still relatively little. So, what do I write about? In “Learning to Write”, Baker describes how he was uninspired by the writing prompts given by his teacher, and how he overcomes this by writing about a cherished memory of his. I have no cherished memories about my writing nor I am suddenly inspired by the writing of Baker to describe my own experiences that have nothing to do with the writing …show more content…
Just like Baker in "Learning to Write", I procrastinated on my paper until the last minute, trying to think of a better idea than what was in my head. I could not pinpoint my thoughts on the topic, so I waited and waited for some brilliant inspiration to strike. I waited too long. "Sprawled on the sofa, I finally faced up to the grim task..." (Baker 27). By this point, the paper was due in one week and I had nothing! So began my frantic research into anything about the 1920's; searching for information on how the television changed American homes, how the vacuum cleaner and the microwave revolutionized how people wanted to spend their time, anything that I could get my hands on to try and formulate thoughts on the topic. I remember my panic, sitting on the floor of my bedroom, the rough carpet on my legs, on the verge of salty tears over trying to find the right words to express what I wanted to