Stil Learning from My Mother
Gayle D. Romine
Patricia Wrangler
Writing 110
December 14, 2010 The essay “Still Learning from My Mother,” by Cliff Schneider is a personal tribute to his seventy-nine-year old mother. In the essay Schneider shares his fondest memory as a young boy growing up in the 1950’s. During this time it was common for a young boy to “have a catch” with his father. This was a time to toss around the baseball and to talk about life. Schneider shared he had many catches with his father, but his most memorable were with his mother. Schneider’s mother was a fierce competitor. She loved the opportunity to grab a glove and fire a fast one at him. Schneider’s mother was a female jock ahead of her time. She lettered in field hockey and basketball while attending Hofstra University in the 1930’s. This was a time when it was not fashionable for women to chase after a ball and get sweaty. Over the years Schneider’s mother’s physical abilities faded. Although she occasionally complained about minor aches, her biggest compromise to the aging process was reducing the weight of her bowling ball and accepting her declining bowling game score. Schneider would continually remind his mother to be satisfied with her level of play, but she was still determined to bowl a game of 200. Therefore, she bought a heavier bowling ball. Schneider called his mother shortly after she began bowling with her new ball. He could tell in her voice that something really big happened, and it had. To his surprise, Schneider’s mother bowled a game of 220; her highest score ever. Schneider was amazed of his mother’s perseverance and peaking at age 79. He realized one is never too old to dream and realize those dreams. More importantly, he recognized he is still learning from his mother. Cliff Schneider’s essay, “Still Learning from My Mother”, flowed clearly and engaged the reader’s senses, as he painted a vivid picture of his mother. Schneider’s organization of the essay flowed with
Patricia Wrangler
Writing 110
December 14, 2010 The essay “Still Learning from My Mother,” by Cliff Schneider is a personal tribute to his seventy-nine-year old mother. In the essay Schneider shares his fondest memory as a young boy growing up in the 1950’s. During this time it was common for a young boy to “have a catch” with his father. This was a time to toss around the baseball and to talk about life. Schneider shared he had many catches with his father, but his most memorable were with his mother. Schneider’s mother was a fierce competitor. She loved the opportunity to grab a glove and fire a fast one at him. Schneider’s mother was a female jock ahead of her time. She lettered in field hockey and basketball while attending Hofstra University in the 1930’s. This was a time when it was not fashionable for women to chase after a ball and get sweaty. Over the years Schneider’s mother’s physical abilities faded. Although she occasionally complained about minor aches, her biggest compromise to the aging process was reducing the weight of her bowling ball and accepting her declining bowling game score. Schneider would continually remind his mother to be satisfied with her level of play, but she was still determined to bowl a game of 200. Therefore, she bought a heavier bowling ball. Schneider called his mother shortly after she began bowling with her new ball. He could tell in her voice that something really big happened, and it had. To his surprise, Schneider’s mother bowled a game of 220; her highest score ever. Schneider was amazed of his mother’s perseverance and peaking at age 79. He realized one is never too old to dream and realize those dreams. More importantly, he recognized he is still learning from his mother. Cliff Schneider’s essay, “Still Learning from My Mother”, flowed clearly and engaged the reader’s senses, as he painted a vivid picture of his mother. Schneider’s organization of the essay flowed with