Have you ever been inspired to write something from a book you’re reading? Well, I’m reading The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo (which is great by the way!) and in it, Xiomara’s teacher gives her a few writing assignments that we, as readers, get to see. In the book, Xiomara (the poet) writes the rough draft as a poem, saying the truth, but ends up turning in an essay that is more in line with what she thinks is acceptable. Assignment number two, which was to write the last paragraphs of your biography, caught my attention. With a mixture of excitement and fear, it made me wonder…what would they say about me, about the life I’ve lived? I mean, really, What would they say?
Here’s Xiomara’s rough draft of her assignment:
And here’s her final draft:
Here goes…my rough draft of the Last Paragraphs of My Biography:
Jennifer loved with her whole heart and
treated her friends like family.
While she never married or had children of her own,
she developed strong relationships with her nieces and nephew,
and they came to visit her often,
wherever she happened to be.
During her lifetime, she lived
on six continents, traveling to the
far reaches of the world, in search of
adventure and understanding.
Her dream of someday living in Paris
came true. She spent her days wandering,
writing, and wondering. (Oh, and eating lots of croissants!)
She didn’t always get it right,
and she made lots of mistakes,
some she’d rather not share,
but one thing remained the same,
she always learned from her mistakes
and tried to do better the next time.
Despite all of her fear and worry and doubt
that she wouldn’t be good enough,
she finally authored and published a book
and then another and another.
Jennifer was also a sought-after
speaker and workshop leader,
sharing her passion for writing and the PYP.
Jennifer may be remembered
as many things: a friend,
an educator, a writer, a sister,
an aunt, a daughter, a reader,
a traveler,
but most importantly,
she should be remembered
as always following her passions,
standing up for what she believed in,
and for loving with her whole heart.
I think I’ll save the final draft for another slice. 😉
