Essay #8

Mild In America:
     An Essay About Mildness In My Life and To Kill A Mockingbird
An Essay By Mia Perry
    January 24, 2012

Mild is my favorite flavor of salsa. Although I eat this type of salsa all the time, I never thought about what the word mild truly means. In fact, mild isn’t just a word used to describe the spiciness of the dip, but is also a word that is not used often in today’s American dialogue.  There are many people in my life that I know of or have heard of that are mild.
(TS) The word mild means gentle or not easily provoked. (SD) One of To Kill A Mockingbird’s characters, Atticus Finch, is an example of a gentle father. (CM) He is always kind to his children and others with his good manners, and he never purposefully wants to offend anyone. (CM) Atticus has good morals and standards that he sets for himself to help maintain his calmness. (SD) In addition, Atticus isn’t just a well mannered father, but he acts the same way in the courtroom as a lawyer. (CM) Atticus isn’t intolerant in court, but instead, hearing and listening, he openly wants to hear what the opposing side has to say. (CM) He could be rude and interrupt every time he disagrees, but he stays aware of how others think. (CS) Atticus Finch is an all around good-natured person, who seems to care about others even if they don’t care about him.
(TS) Aside from book characters, I have also seen and heard of some mild people in my life. (SD) A few years ago, there was a story in the news about a man at his favorite baseball team’s game, and he caught a ball that was hit out of the field. (CM) He handed the ball to his young daughter, who not knowing what to do with it, threw it back and everyone watching gasped in horror. (CM) After she 

Father With Daughter Who Threw Back The Foul Ball

threw the ball away, smiling and laughing, he gave her a huge hug, which is without question a good example of a warm-hearted father who doesn’t care about material items more than his family. (SD) Another peaceable person is my grandma on my mother’s side. (CM) Even though she likes to sleep often, she always wants to help in any way she can by cleaning or cooking. (CM) She loves occasional jokes, and she never raises her voice. (CS) From fictional characters to real life people, there are mild living beings in places you don’t know about or expect.
One animal that I think of when I think of mild creatures are giraffes. Giraffes don’t seem to bother anyone at all, and they care about themselves and their herd. Like Atticus Finch, they are protective and loving towards their children. Everyone seems to have a mild characteristic, but some people are able to show it more than others.