Easy Writing

I think some writing is easy for me because I can use my own experiences or experiences of friends.  I've lived in five different cities and have met a lot of people with each one of them having a unique story.  I also have been playing hockey for twenty-seven years and that in it self is a story.  Some of the troubles I have with writing is thinking of new ideas, I think most people that read something funny are much more apt to continue reading.  Would you rather be laughing, questioning, or to be challenged after you read an article?

Changes in Structure

The most significant change in my draft after peer review was taking out quite of bit of information about a specific topic and focused more on a detail that was stated in my draft.  I think it may of taken the "so what" out of my paper, always keeping in mind the genre.

One of the things that I had tried for the first time was cutting and pasting a portion of my conclusion and inserting it into the introduction.  I'm pretty sure it's better read because of it.  My introduction starts right into a story rather than dragging on about the topic itself.  In a short paper, I think jumping right into a story is a way to catch the readers attention rather than dragging on about what your going to write about.

I think the aspect of this essay that makes me proud is that all the events and statements that I wrote about are fact.  It is much easier writing about facts and details when you have lived and experienced it.  I've also learned  that it takes more than just a pen and pad of paper to create a final draft.  For this paper, I have changed the context about ten times and I'm still contemplating whether I'm finished yet. 

Coaching Philosophy

I had to write my coaching philosophy to the hockey board of directors so they could vote on allowing me to coach a travel hockey team.  A quick hockey background:  I've been playing for 27 years, coaching for 7, and reffing for 2.  I knew in the back of my head exactly what to write, but it seemed like I was missing something after I read it.  I handed a copy to each of my assistant coaches and asked them for their opinion.  Please note that when you're dealing with any board of directors, politics is key. (I was once a board member for three years, so I kind of know the system)  The three assistant coaches actually had written down quite a bit of information that I either added or deleted to my document. Some of the information was just a few stories or incidents that they had dealt with in their own lives.  By incorporating their input, I was able to fill the gap that I was missing. The verdict in the end, I was successful.

Old Books

After my first son was born, my mother had brought me the books that she had read to me
when I was younger and learning how to read.  It brought back old memories when I saw those books.  As I read them to my son, I remembered every little detail in those books.  It's pretty amazing that you remember such detail 30 years later.  I hope someday when my son grows up and has a family of his own, he will read to his children and remember the books that were read to him.  Reading books to children is the first step in getting them interested in reading on their own.