Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Bryn Olsen
21 February 2017
As I sat crisscross applesauce on the cold and sleek tile floor in the lunchroom of my
school, my mind wasnt on the fact that there was an assembly happening, but more on the
thought of when I could sit in an upright chair again. The lights dimmed and the projector
revealed just a few hints on what this assembly could possibly be about. As a lady walked on
stage introducing who she was and why she was here, I heard the kid sitting next to me groan.
Oh great, I thought, just as unexcited and unenthusiastic as the kid next to me. Little did I
know that at first what I thought was a dumb assembly would turn into something that still
interests to me today.
If I were to ask 20 of my closests friends and family about their thoughts on fourth grade,
their answers would probably be, a grade in school that I have forgotten about. Maybe this is
because elementary school years were not as memorable as junior high or high school. The
drama, stress, and excitement levels were low, and everything in elementary school was easy
breezy, with little to no homework. But to me, fourth grade was more than that just a grade in
elementary school. Particular moments and memories that stuck out to me, making my fourth
For the first nine years of my life, I had lived in a humble home located in West Valley
City, Utah. Although as a child, what I only remember is very little or next to nothing, I do
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remember that I absolutely loved my house and my neighborhood. My humble home was the
place where my parents brought my brother home for the very first time, where I learned how to
ride a bike without training wheels, and where I learned how to build friendships that have lasted
a lifetime.
Nine years is a long time to live in a house, but as my family friends and my best friends
all decided to move away, my family also decided to join in the moving away parade. Moving
from all that I had grown up with was bittersweet. My dad was eager to move closer to his work,
my mom was ready for a bigger and nicer home, and the kids? Well we were too young to care.
You know how at the beginning I said that there were very few moments that I remember
from fourth grade? Heres a good memory, my first day at a brand new school. Starting a new
school to many people is like riding a bike, once you learn how to do it one time, its not difficult
to pick it back up and do it again. As my mother dropped me off for the first time at my new
school, I remember the brave face she put on as she drove the thirty minutes to get to my school.
Her words before I hopped out of the car were, Now remember, Bryn, youre not going to know
a single person. No grownups, no kids, not one single person. I replied with, I know mom. But
Ill be okay. I was going to a school where I had not yet moved into the neighborhood, where
there would be no familiar faces, not a single friend. I was completely and utterly alone, but it
didnt matter to me because somehow the brave little nine-year-old me knew everything was
going to be alright.
Two weeks after having my very first day at a new school, my family and I finally were
able to move into our new home. As the school year dragged on, nothing excited seemed to be
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happening. Everyday was just turning into a routine, with the same things happening over and
over again. Then one day took an unexpected turn as the principal announced overhead asking
When the assembly first began, just like most of my fellow classmates, I was
uninterested. Recycling and garbage seemed uncool and too grownup for elementary kids.
Seeing our bored facial expressions, the recycling lady resumed her presentation. As she
continued, to my surprise, her topic of trash and recycling was interesting and entertaining to me.
The recycling lady explained more about recycling: what it is, what can be recycled, and
overflowing landfills that recycling can help reduce waste. With each new fact, her presentation
hooked me on the idea and the thought of recycling and saving our planet. That day, I think what
intrigued me the most about this topic was the fact that in 15 to 20 years there could possibly be
no more room for our waste and landfills are overflowing. Although the kid sitting next to me
fell asleep and was totally oblivious to the assembly, my little nine year-old self was eager about
idea of recycling and making our world just a little bit cleaner.
As I walked home that day, I carried the What To Recycle pamphlet with pride. Even
though my friends made fun of me on the walk home from school, I could not have cared less. I
was determined to share my knowledge with my family, to improve the world, make the Earth
Later that night at dinnertime, I shared with my parents that pamphlet the recycling lady
gave to me at an assembly. To my shock and surprise my family had already been recycling right
for a few years, there was only a few items that we were recycling wrong. For the next few years
my parents described me as the Recycling Nazi because if I knew if that plastic bag should be
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recycled, I let my family know. Although it seemed silly and sometimes obnoxious, I realized
that recycling wasnt a huge lifestyle change, but it was the small and simple things made the
world just a little bit better. In the next few years I also realized that recycling wasnt just
throwing my plastic water bottles or metal cans into the recycling bin, but it was, and still is, so
much more. Its turning off the water while brushing your teeth, turning off your car when it is
unnecessarily on, carpooling, walking to school, turning off all of the lights, donating your
clothes to thrift shops, and so much more. I think that is what I loved most about recycling, the
fact that it was the smallest actions that make the biggest difference, and everyone can recycle.