Hello!! I’m Celina. I’m a second year student majoring in English Studies here at Chico State. I’m from Oroville, so I commute everyday to and from school. I’m an introvert, I really like spending time alone, you know, personal time. I’m a Mormon, the second oldest of eight kids and yes, I’m Hmong. Within this large family of mine, the only way I feel like I could escape was to read. I also rely on photography to free my mind. I’m very bad at keeping diaries or daily journal entries, so I do this by taking pictures (and uploading them onto Facebook, Instagram) as often as I can.

I got interested in reading due to an Accelerated Reading Contest in grade school. At first, my target was to get the highest AR points and be on the highest reading level. Eventually, I gradually got myself into several books that sparked my interest (Babysitters Club, Nancy Drew, Boxcar Children, Magic Tree House, etc.) in reading for my own pleasure. As old as I am now, I enjoy reading a variety of genres ranging from thrillers to the cheesiest romance novels. I love books. I read all the time! I had a neat size collection that I’ve compiled over the years, but I had to give them up as I was running out of room for new books.

From reading Szwed’s article, I found a lot of interesting statements that I do agree with. One of the many was the fact that literacy cannot be judged on a single standard. I find that every individual has their own way of approaching reading. For example, I like reading books whereas my brother likes to research and watch documentaries. Several people has told him that he’s never going to succeed if all he does is surf the internet on his iPhone all day. The first thing that came to my mind was that it’s wrong. Again, literacy cannot be based on a single standard. I’m confident that my brother is intelligent enough to know how to read in the first place, navigate his phone and understand whatever it is that he researches.

One thing that I was really offended by while I was growing up was receiving a certificate for passing or excelling the state standardized english proficiency test in third grade. I felt proud, but at the same time mad that such an award was given. I felt that it wasn’t fair that I wasn’t treated as an equal to my fellow classmates. I attended pre-school, went to kindergarten, and had a childhood like everyone else, why pick or make it that apparent just because I am Hmong? I really dislike all these standards several think that can determine one’s abilities…

We also discussed ‘code switching’ in class. I can relate to this. I feel that a lot of people who are bilingual often are told that they are either fluent or they’re not. Growing up learning and speaking two languages never bothered as I am fluent in both Hmong and English, reading and writing. I do sometimes mix English and Hmong together when I speak a majority of the time, and when I do so, some people think that I have a hard time speaking one language. Please, I aced my English classes growing up! I even took senior AP English Literature as a Junior in highschool!  I would feel better if it was acknowledged that I have the abilities to speak two languages, not counting conversational Spanish and a little Japanese. ;)

 

Thank you for taking the time, if you’ve made it this far, to read my rants and what-not. Bye!!

 

~~Celina.