Identity
Webster's defines identity as, "sameness of essential or generic character in different instances; or oneness." But what makes us who we are?As we walked into Hubbard Park, as we did every Sunday, my father would ask, "Do you think they know we're coming?" Of course he was asking about the Mallards that used the pond as their summer home. It was a little running joke my father and I had, as we would sneak like spies from tree to tree, to the lake to see how close we could get without our little friends noticing us. In the fairly small-at that time-little Connecticut town I lived in until I was seven, you would know summer was right on your heel when you heard the Mallards sounding off their rank and file flying in from wherever they migrated to all winter. They had become dependant on the grain Mr. & Mrs. Warring, the nice old couple who used to live on the lake, would feed them. Mr. Warring passed away during the winter of '75 and his widow moved away to live with her son and his family. My father told me it was our responsibility to make sure they were fat and healthy for their trip home, he promised Mrs. Warring he would do his best to help the ducks after she left. When I said the couple wouldn't know
She told us how much she appreciated the job we had done and told us, "One of the most important things you can do in your life is to help those who can't help themselves. Identity just stops being yours in the end and becomes a part of others whose lives you've touched. I still think it was the most important. I would even let him win once in a while. Civali, a nice old Italian immigrant, owned a couple of restaurants and a produce market as well as the biggest garden I am yet to see. I'll take all of these memories, lessons if you will, with me when I'm gone; except for the parts that I've passed on to my son, nieces, nephews, friends, family, and everyone else who has gotten to know me well. Whenever I have tried something new I recall her encouraging words, "You never know where your talents are hidden or when they will jump out and require your time and attention. He also said something I never forgot, " You have to combine being a conscientious worker with being an intelligent worker. I made seven dollars the first day and my brother made four. She would read to me every night before I could read myself. Civali ended up paying us each $50 at the end of the week and thanked us for our help. You are the best at something and if you don't try everything you are not being fair to yourself. This trend continued for a few days and my brother started to resent the fact that his little brother was making more than him. Every new experience is a learning experience.
Common topics in this essay:
Boy Scouts,
Hubbard Park,
,
Civali I'm,
getting paid,
you're getting,
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