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Ben Osterhaus Professor Young Cornerstone 17 September 2013 Importance of Meals with Others Even though I am 18 years old,

I am forever doomed to the kids table at my grandparents house., Bbeing the youngest of 8 grand children will do that to you. No matter how old I become I always am sitting on that aged oak table that gets pulled out of the basement for holidays. It also doesnt help that I am a bookend grandson. My eldest cousin Tony is 15 years older thaen I am, which meant I was usually forced to sit down there with my sister Sam, and my cousins Morgan and Ashley. Dont get me wrong I love my family, but 15 years into my life at Easter lunch, the seating arrangement was starting to get old. I always got the typical questions about what girls I liked, and my cousins giving me relationship advice. I was beginning to wonder if I could ever go join my grandpa and dad near the head of the table. But I would soon come to realize how much I would miss the seating arrangement and the affect that these extended family meals would have on me. I have always been fortunate to have great people in my lives to share meals with and to help me through struggles, and everyday problems in my life. My support system is one of the most important things in my life. I dont know what kind of person I would be today without them. The meals I have shared with these people of been some of the greatest and most important experiences of my life. I came strolling into my house on a humid August night; I had just finished a typical football practice. It was almost 3 hours of hitting, running, and technique work.
Comment [J8]: This would be a great spot for you to show your action. How excruciating was the practice? What was it like to run the drills? Comment [J7]: Who are these people? Be specific and try to use some details. Comment [J6]: Double check that this is the correct use of this spelling. These are hard to determine for me. I will usually try a different wording if I cant remember. Comment [J5]: Read through this and see if you can split this up into two sentences. Comment [J1]: Spell out numbers lower than 10. Comment [J2]: Rephrase. This was confusing when I first read it. Comment [J3]: What do you mean by this? Comment [J4]: This can be spelled out too.

After I made the 20-minute drive home all I wanted to do was throw something into the microwave for dinner and head immediately to bed. When I looked into the kitchen and saw my mom and dad working away on a meal I was actually disappointed. I didnt want to have to wait around for an hour to eat. I just wanted to lie down. But then I realized that this was the last family meal we would have for a while. This was the last night before my sister, Sam, went off to college at the University of Iowa. So I immediately changed my outlook and embraced the family meal that was about to begin. Sam got to pick what we would eat because it was her last night at home. She chose my moms homemade chicken nuggets, oven potatoes with an abundance of herbs, and a Hostess dinner rolls, of course loaded with butter. This was also one of my favorite meals. My mother yelled into my room, Ben, time for dinner. I wasnt going to reluctantly head to the table tonight because this meal was important. I would no longer be regularly seeing my sister and my only sibling. During the prayer before we ate my dad added an extra line, Keep our amazing daughter safe and let her know that we are always here for her. No matter what she needs. My mom got very emotional but eventually recovered when the food began to be passed around. We kept a festive mood at the table. We were all asking my sister if she was excited and if she could think of anything else she needed. I sat there for a second and began to think of everything that we had done at this table. My sister and I used to be forced to sit here for what seemed like hours if we refused to eat our peas. We also had the occasionally disastrous spill of a glass of milk or dropping a plate. There were also positive memories., Wwe would talk about games we had won, tests we got good scores on, or just any family conversation.
Comment [J12]: How did this make you feel? In what way did your mom get emotional? Comment [J13]: Describe. Comment [J9]: Describe this meal to your audience? How do the potatoes taste? How does everything smell? Does this meal give you a feeling that you will always remember? Comment [J10]: Check your tenses in this sentence. Comment [J11]: Not necessarily needed. If you would like to keep it, reword it differently.

Having nights like these with my family was such a wonderful experience and it would take some getting used to with her not being around all the time anymore. But my family was able to overcome that and we still remain very close to this day. I also was blessed to have been given wonderful friends and teammates. I played football at Iowa City Regina. Our team has been very successful with 3 consecutive state championships. I accredit this to the brotherhood we formed in the weight room, on the field, and on team dinner nights. Team dinner worked for the football team like this; the night before a game various groups of guys from the team would take off after practice to the multitude of restaurants in the Iowa City area. Some places we frequented were The Vine, Blackstone, Pizza Ranch, Hu Hot, and Okoboji grill, but there were also other places we enjoyed. We all liked Texas Roadhouse but that restaurant was always busy. However, this team dinner was a special occasion. This was our very last team dinner. It was the night before we were to play in the state championship in the UNI-Dome. So we decided to call ahead and goet on the waiting list. I was with some of my best friends that night. They included Mark, our quarterback, Matt and Alex our receivers, Kenyon another lineman like myself, Mikey and Riley our running backs, and another Riley, one of our friends who was cursed with back injuries. We were all very excited for this meal. It began with the famous rolls and cinnamon butter. I think we had nearly 8 baskets of rolls brought out for all of us. Those things could feed me for weeks. For my main course I ordered a 12 oz. New York Strip,
Comment [J14]: Why is this? Why do you love these so much?

medium-well. I added a side of homemade fries and applesauce with glorious chunks of apples in it. I was going to enjoy this. We were all living in the moment and not really thinking that for most of us there this was our last team dinner. We were all cutting into our juicy steaks and shoving more rolls into our mouths. We were making jokes and enjoying our brotherhood. The meal was beginning to come to an end when the manager came over with a telephone. Riley? Your dad is on the phone is has something to tell you guys. Riley replied, Put it on speaker. She placed the phone down and stepped back. Mike, Rileys dad, began with, You boys are some of the best kids I have ever met and you are all like sons to me. All of us parents are so proud of you guys and what you will be doing tomorrow. As a show of my personal support I would like to pay for your meals tonight. I think our combined bill was reaching around $200. We were all so thankful and surprised. Riley just had to read her his dads credit card number and sign the check. We all made sure to thank him by yelling into the phone. After that moment we looked around at each other and realized what was happening. This was near the end of a wonderful journey for us. Sitting at that restaurant table with my only brothers would be one of our last times as teammates together. I had some great memories and experiences with these guys. Getting to share that last meal with all of them was something very special and I miss that moment to this day. However, every meal that I have with important people in my life is not always a joyful situation. I was about to regret a change in the seating arrangement at my grandparents house that I had once wanted.

My grandfather had been battling pancreatic cancer for years. He struggled and became weaker in his final years. He passed away on October 22, 2010. The entire family was called back to Dyersville, Iowa for the funeral, aunts and uncles from Florida, cousins from Texas, Georgia, and Wisconsin, and the rest of the family from various parts of Iowa. We were all gathered for the various ceremonies of his funeral. The day after we buried him we all gathered for a final family meal before people had to catch planes and drive long distances. However, the seating arrangement was different for the first time when the whole family was there. The head of the table was left empty with a chair still sitting there. The old oak table was once again pulled out for a family gathering. The table clothes were laid down, dishes and glasses set, and food began to be brought down to the table. Beef that we had canned in that house, fresh corn and plump potatoes from the garden that were mashed, pasta salad, along with fruit and vegetable trays. Along with the butterscotch dessert my aunt always makes and the best pumpkin pie in the world, my grandmas recipe. Some members of my family were still crying after the prayer we said for my grandfather. Somehow my grandma was the strongest person there. She tried to not cry in front of us because that would just make us feel even worse. Sam, who was still in her freshman year and Morgan, who was a junior at UNI, were some of the ones crying. My grandma immediately moved herself down to the kids table, where we were sitting. We made room for her so she could comfort us. The seating arrangement now had another change, but this one was a positive one. My entire family made sure we were there for each other, especially at this family meal. We comforted each other, and by the end of the
Comment [J15]: What about the prayer made it so emotional?

afternoon we were all beginning to become cheerful. Our family would survive this situation. The seating arrangement has since become more relaxed. My grandma actually prefers to sit down at the kids table and my grandpas spot is now used by whoever wants it for that specific meal or celebration. We make sure to say a prayer for him whenever we are at that table. All of these meals have helped to show me the importance of others in my life. I need all of these people and they have molded me into the man I am today. It is something that every person should have, a support system. You dont need to be at a fancy restaurant, a giant dining table, or have a 5 course homemade meal. It may seem difficult to find time, but you just need to spend time with people that you care for, and that you know will always have your back.
Comment [J16]: You have some amazing stories here! You really have 3-4 papers in this one! Rework your intro. If you have time to come see me during my office hours I can try to explain why better. Basically, you dont have a thesis statement. Your intro is meant to give your audience and overview of what you will be talking about in your paper. You have so many different stories that you dont set us up for in your intro. I would suggest that you pick one story for your paper. If you feel one would be too short, go through and focus on showing your actions. Describe to your audience what you were feeling, smelling, hearing, etc. Another thing I want you to do is go through and take out words or sentences that you dont need. (50+) You have a lot of extra words in your sentences. Words such as also, too, always, etc. you dont need.

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