My Narrative Essay: My Journey Through Literacy

My Journey Through Literacy Life is like a tree, it grows and develops branches and leaves that come and go as we progress. The environments we live in determine which branches wither and fade and which prosper. Every branch holds some form of learned literacy from the end of the roots to the trunk and highest branch. Literacy encompasses many aspects of life. As a child, my brother knew what I wanted before I could even speak because of my body language. He told my parents whether I was hungry, needed a diaper change, or was just tired. Body language was one of my first learned literacies. Even before I began to learn how to vocalize my thoughts and feelings, I learned to internalize what others were saying. I was able to understand what others wanted and later learned to form words I wanted to say. After learning how to talk, I found that singing was something I really enjoyed. Music has helped me to express myself. I have

I work at a restaurant that has twenty-four tables that are seated during each shift. The other waitresses and I each have a section of tables each shift and we refer to different tables to address which people have food. We have had to memorize the menus and learn a simple way to take peoples order in a way that suits our memory. Some waitresses can abbreviate words and have memorized each abbreviation like a code. I have very small handwriting and can generally write fast so that I can understand the orders I took as I record them into the touch-screen computer to send into the kitchen. From there the line-workers decipher when which orders can be cooked and the ingredients that go into each dish. Waitressing has also allowed me to read patrons facial expressions and mannerisms to tell whether they might be looking for something or how they feel about the food and service. This job has especially helped me learn how to utilize my time appropriately and