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Tommy Vo

Mrs. Burgess
15 September 2014
Literacy Narrative

What Made Me
What is writing? The official definition of this word is the activity or skill of marking
coherent words on paper and composing text. Honestly, I was not the strongest or the most
interesting writer out there. I think that I am born an engineer with the build of drafting skills,
mathematics skills, and mechanical skills. My goal is to earn a double degree in Electrical
Engineering and Computer Engineering. My father inspired me to follow this path. He is an
Electrical Engineer who graduated from NC State. I feel that these fields have many
opportunities for well-paying jobs, but to receive these degrees I have to complete courses that
deal with writing and reading. I know that I have to improve my literacy and writing skills so I
am not bothered by these extra courses. I will give it my best and excel in these courses.
In the real world, there are such things as stereotypes and racism everywhere. If you
dont encounter this, than you probably live in a utopian nonexistent world. The stereotype that
bothers me the most is the ones about Asians. Why? Its because I am Asian. I am Vietnamese.
Most people when they see or run into Asians, they think we probably have a funny accent and
all we do is speak ching chong. Along with the accents, we probably arent literate. Honestly
that infuriates me. Not every Asian has this problem, but because of the stereotypes in todays
society that is the immediate assumption of every Asian. I want to rise above this offensive

stereotype and prove everyone ignorance. This was part of my motivation to be fluent in
literacy.
My journey begins in the small town of Hickory, North Carolina where I was born. My
parents were born in Vietnam, but traveled over here by boat during the Vietnam War. The
conditions during that time were unbearable and unlivable for families. My parents left the
country with their families to better living conditions. My father and his family were sponsored
to Hickory by a local church. My father was about sixteen at the time, so he went straight into
high school. With little knowledge of English or the American culture, my father worked harder
than most to learn. My father told me stories of him being made fun of because his accent and
how he was Asian. He provided all those people wrong. He graduated with one of the highest
GPAs in his class. He read and studied every night, teaching himself how to read and write in
English. Of course, my fathers math game was on point because in Vietnam the curriculum is at
a faster pace. Now that I wrote that, Im pretty sure theres a stereotype about Asians being
really good at math. Im offended by that because Im pretty sure thats true. Back on topic, my
father has done a lot and I believe that I can excel like he did. He has acted as a role model and I
hope to be as successful as him.
Growing up as kid, I was taught strictly Vietnamese and only Vietnamese. Everywhere I
went I would speak Vietnamese and my parents would take care of the rest. At first, I looked
back and I appreciated that my parents did that. They kept the culture with me, so it can be
passed down. Now, my Vietnamese is very rusty and I regret not always practicing it. In
kindergarten, I was put in ESL classes to help me learn English. From the alphabet to
pronouncing words, they taught me the basics of English. I did not graduate from that extra class
until I was in the first grade. This was only the beginning of my literacy and writing skills. I

studied and read a lot of books at the library. Although my reading level wasnt high, I enjoyed
reading books and freewriting. These activities made me the writer and reader I am now.
Throughout elementary school, I had a thing for reading and writing which help me grow out of
the Asian stereotype. I became more fluent and as the years progressed.
The situation is very similar to one of the pieces we read for class. The Mothers
Tongue, was a piece written in a perspective of an Asian woman. In her case, her mother didnt
have the best English skills and was not fluent. This Chinese authors name was Amy Tan.
Amy wrote about her embarrassment of her mother and her literacy skills. She was tired of
hearing that her friends could not understand her mother when she speaks, but her mothers
accent to her was fine. Asian people like us seem to have an ear to Asian accents. It is like
second nature, but of course we do not catch on and speak like that. Mrs. Tans embarrassment
of her mother led her to study and excel far in the English literacy. She learned from her
mothers mistakes and went on to do bigger things. I can definitely relate to her. I have an
Asian mother whose English is not the best. My friends always make fun of me when my
mother call out for my name. Now my name is Tommy, but TOMMAYY. I cant help it and I
still love my mother to death. I just feel embarrassed and bad for her, but it still doesnt motivate
me to become a writer for my profession.
Another big role that played in my life and English literacy was my familys wealth. My
parents are not the richest nor the poorest, but we are kind of in the middle. My dad is Electrical
Engineer working at Commscope, which a company in Claremont, North Carolina. Commscope
is a company who makes fiber optic cables and wires. Being an engineer, he makes quite a bit of
money. When I was a kid, my parents put me in all sorts of programs and preschools. This gave
me a head start on learning English, letters, and other stuff. Without my parents support and

programs, I would not be where Im at today. Through preschool, I only learned my alphabet
and the ways of Christianity. My parents took care of me pretty well and I am very thankful for
what theyve done to fit me in and teach me English.
I come from family of six members. My family consists of two parents and four children.
I have three younger brothers and Im the oldest. I try to act as the best role model for them.
Lee is eleven years old, Kevin is ten years old, and Brian is nine years old. As a big brother, I
feel there is lots of stress on my shoulder. I am the first born which means I have to set the bar
for the rest of the brothers. At home, everything I did was mirrored and copied by my brothers.
If I farted, then they would fart too. From farting to playing soccer, if I were to be studious and
work hard, then hopefully they will follow my footsteps. Unfortunately, Brian had the same
problem as me. He was put in the ESL class and had to go through the process. This youngest
brother had a hard time reading and comprehending. He found himself reading books and
articles, but not processing and retaining the information. Lucky for him, he had three older
brothers who could help. I did not want my brother to go through what I went through, so I
tutored him. We read books and I tested him, wrote stories together, and did tons of reading
exercises. Slowly, but surely he progressed and improved his reading scores. Now, he is on his
own and doing well. In my life, I not only motivated myself to read and write, but I wanted to
teach and give back. I kept the stereotype not only away from me, but my family. I want my
brothers to be successful and I support them with all my heart. I knew and I fought through life
without that older sibling. I know how hard it is to be independent and motivate yourself.
Having an older brother wouldve made things a lot easier and smoother for me, but sometimes
having it hard can build character.

Ever watched the movie, Pay it forward? The movie is about a kid who creates a
system where people do random acts of kindness. An easy example of paying it forward in the
movie, a man messes up his car and a random old man gives him his car in replacement. An act
of kindness out of the blue right? You are supposed to do an act of kindness to random person. I
paid it forward, but instead of a random person it is my brothers. I want to give back to my
brothers and watch them succeed. If it means that I need to teach English and writing, then I am
all for it. I not only am motivated to learn, but also to teach. There is definitely many influences
that have made me the person I am now.

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