John Casper
Dr. Freeland
English 101
August 18, 2013
Writer’s Checklist for Writing a Narrative

1. Is my title and introduction enticing?

2. Is my thesis effective?

3. Have I included enough details so the reader can visualize my experience?

4. Are the events presented in a logical sequence?

5. Have I used transitions to help the sequence of events flow smoothly?

6. Have I used dialogue (if appropriate)?

7. Have I used a consistent point of view and verb tense?

8. Is the point of my narrative evident?

9. Have I ended the story satisfactorily?

10. Have I proofread thoroughly?

John Casper
Dr. Freeland
English 101
August 18, 2013
She Changed the Plan! I believe that experience is the sum total of a person’s life. Adversity as well as triumph helps to mold a person’s psychological, emotional and physical being. Having a positive perspective makes for a more positive experience, especially when it is something so monumentally life changing as having a baby. It was a Monday August 11, 2008; to be specific. I had gotten the best sleep that night, than I had in two weeks because my wife was not in the bed with me. The constant rolling over, punching me in the ribs because I was snoring too loud, huffing and puffing because she could barely breath on her back for lack of room in her rib cage. I woke up in a panic to the gentle prod of my wife’s hand. “It’s happening,” she whispered. At that moment I knew my life would never be the same again. I felt it as the fear, anticipation, and overwhelming awe thrummed through my body. My daughter was coming and this woman, this woman gasping in pain while I caressed her hand had just spent the last eight and a half months including me in every single detail I didn’t even know was possible. I did all possible, short of breaking my vehicle to get there, to make it to every appointment because I knew that I could hear her heartbeat again or see her on the sonogram. The fear mounted, I had to get her there but watching her in pain was excruciating. She sat there in the swivel chair crying and writhing in pain while I was on the phone with the hospital asking if it was time to come in. She continued swiveling back and forth, back and forth, gripping my belt buckle harder with each and every contraction getting closer and closer together. Five minutes apart at that moment and we were off to the hospital. She changed the plan! In the twenty minutes it took to drive through rural Alaska to the hospital, she changed the plan, and with it my level of fear and anticipation. We started out bouncing over pot holes with a three page birth plan and natural labor and now a scant few minutes later as the road smoothed and her contractions sped up we were getting an epidural and she was crying and scared. Frankly, I was terrified for her. The feeling of fear left my body when we got in the car to drive through those rural roads. I was terrified that the baby was going bounce out with every pot hole we hit. Then we hit smooth road at about five miles away from the hospital and with the appearance of smooth terrain my fear dissipated and my anticipation heightened. As we road in the elevator up to the third floor, I remember thinking to myself, the plan just went out the window. After the nurses checked that she was really going through labor, she leans over and grabs my hand with a very serious look on her face and says, “ I want the epidural.” This is a woman