English IV: Writer’s Notebook (September)
To the editor:
I am William McGonagle, a current teacher at La Grange High School. I teach Senior English and due to the threat of AI, I am forcing all of my students to write their papers in-class and on pencil and paper. The students are truly thinking for themselves, so I figured I would share their perspectives throughout the school year from their Writer’s Notebooks.
The following essay was written by Sterling Walla in a 30 minute time-frame in class. He was excited for me to share his thoughts with the community concerning the prompt below that he chose from a list of various topics.
Essay Prompt: Given a list of 15 quotes, choose ONE or TWO of the following about which to write.
“It’s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then,” by Lewis Carroll is the quote that I chose. I believe this quote is crucial to people who overthink about the past. As people live their lives, day to day, things change. They don’t just change over the course of five to ten years.
The quote explains that it is a waste of time to dwell on things that have happened in the past. With that being said there is a difference in dwelling on it and reflecting. For example, if you bettered yourself as a person because you realized your mistake, that is okay. Since people change every single day, they tend to end up different in a short amount of time. This supports the idea that people evolve constantly.
The quote can also be used in the sense that other people may judge someone’s past. With the idea that people change, something may have been a mistake, or someone just made a bad decision. That decision could have been just one time. Part of being a better person is to not make the same mistake twice. The first time is almost always a lesson you learn from. In my life the way I apply it is contradicting. I use film for sports to see the mistakes and work so that I don’t make the same mistake twice. I see it as more of a reflection. It makes me consider what and why I did what I did. It also can be watched multiple times.
Another quote to go by is, “Think like a man of action, act like a man of thought,” by Henri Louis Bergson. With that, it is important to use your mind as a tool for getting things done. To work smarter and not harder. It is difficult to conserve yourself when hard work is really required. It also explains how to use your actions like someone who is very wise. This keeps you motivated, while also doing smart things to help yourself.