Given the following sample text, "A meditation on water", please analyze its distinctive stylistic elements in terms of tone, vocabulary, sentence structure, rhetorical devices, and pacing. Then mimic this particular writing style to a different text, "A meditation on being an only child". # "A meditation on water" follows:  "Ready?""  
"Ready! PULL!" I shout from behind the boat,.  
 In the blink of an eye, my body transitioned from floating calmly atop the water like a lily    pad, to upright and vertical like I was strapped to the back of a jet engine. 1 felt like I was God  
Mollick J
 walking on water, a miracle that only lasted about 2 seconds before the nose of my board sank
into the water.
practically did a summersault face-first into, what felt like, concrete. The fall
may have hurt, but nothing was getting me out of the water.
Today is the first day 1 am old enough to try the wakeboard, and 1 am not giving up until I have a successful ride. We have been coming to Lake Wallenpaupack for as long as I can
 remember, and 1 grew up seeing my brothers learn how to ride the wakeboard, watching videos
of people doing insane flips over the wakes. Now, it was my turn.
My dad left the driver S seat and jumped in the water to help talk me through what to do. He said, Keep the rope at your chest, knees bent, and keep your weight back. Let the boat pull your feet, not your hands, and rotate with your pressure on your back foot as you transition". All
 of this was helpful, but as always, it was easier said than done. I took his suggestions and put
them into practice. I took a deep breath and then, "PULL!, The boat followed my command and
shot me out of the water, but this time, I leaned back and kept my weight on my back foot. I
wiped the water from my face and saw my mom's hands shoot up in celebration... I was walking
on water.
never fail to recall the surreal feeling of cutting through the crystal water; at that
moment, nothing could wipe the smile from my face.
Throughout my whole life, water has always been there; the pool, the lake, the beach, and
the bath. We all have had experiences with the water, but what about my experiences cultivated a
place of such peace? I 
For some people, the water terrifies them, and they can't even stand the thought of jumping into the ocean. Fot me it is almost impossible to get me out. I am always the first one in, and the last one out. Growing up, my parents would always call me "the fish" because of how much 1 loved to swim, the water was where I thrived. So, if there is such a polarizing aura around
 the water, whether you love it or hate it, what makes it so special to me?
For as long as I can remember, the water has been my safe place and the focus of many of my childhood memories. It is the spark that has helped me connect with my brothers but was simultaneously the source of many arguments. Whether it is laughter as we toss each other off the wave runner or the bickering back and forth after an elbow to the face in pool basketball, the
 water is the place that gives me peace:
My favorite water sports were never the complicated ones, like skiing, wakeboarding, or
knee boarding. It was the easiest of them all - tubing. Although 1 liked a good challenge, I found
that the experience of the water was more memorable when shared with others. The tube
provided that opportunity, as some tubes were big enough to fit me and my 3 older brothers.
Some of my fondest memories on the water come from playing "King of the Tube"
The
boat would be puling us all as we fought on the big platform to knock each other off, while my
dad would simultaneously be turning sharp to try to knock us off himself. This was something
we did every time we took a trip to the lake, and it became a sort of tradition. The water helped
to bring me and my brothers closer together, but even more so me and my dad,
My dad had been coming to this same lake since he was a kid, and his family even had a
house on the lake when he was growing up. He made it a tradition for us to come up to the lake
in an attempt to foster the same memories he had of the lake as a kid, the same memories that IMollick 4
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 reminisce on now as a yotng adult. There are many moments I wish I could go back and live I npain. Bach time we come back; it is like 1 am chasing those same memories I had as a kid. I guess it's "something in the water",
 My dad takes life very seriously and takes pride in his ability to provide for my family. Yet, the water gave him a sense of serenity... a heritable trait, I guess. Whether it was waking up early to go see the sunrise as it reflects off the water or going out to hit the skies himself, you couldn't .get him offthe water. The myth ofthe fountain of youth may have had some truth. The water has this special ability to make us feel like kids again, with no worries, no aches, and no stress. It provides the nostalgic urge to "play" again. This is an experience that was passed down
 to me and will be passed down to my children.
The water has taught me many lessons. It has taught me the fluidity of life and the ability for one place to be the source of so many emotions. It taught me how to persevere, to fall on my face, and get back up to try again. Enjoy the process of failure and see it as an opportunity to try again. My mom often likes to recite the famous words of Dori, reminding me to &just keep swimming". It taught me to be weightless and the ability to let go. Let go of the traumas of the past, let go of the pressures of the day, and let go of the weight of the future. It also taught me that when life tries to push you off the tube, you have to be ready to push right back. Despite all
 of this, the most important thing the water has taught me is the significance of family and to
cherish the moments that are shared in the vulnerable presence of water.
As sit here now at my desk in college stressing over the tests and papers surrounding
finals, I stare at my photo board behind my laptop and see the snapshots of my family on the
water. Photos that can only tell half the story of the memories they bear. The beautiful blue
mosaic provides my mind the liberty to wander back to the tranquil company of loved ones and the water.
 The innate sensation of freedom the water bears and the relationships it can foster is what
makes this simple thing so special. We all want to be a kid again, "*the simpler days` as I like to call them. The water provides me with that nostalgic feeling of ignorance and brings me back to
 the times I felt invincible, The stressful thoughts of work, adulting, or employment all seem to
drift out of my head as I sit afloat in my own fountain of youth

# "A meditation on being an only child" follows: On the carpeted ground of my house, my life was filled with Barbie dolls, stuffed animals, and action figures. Make-believe storylines would take over my life. My companions were the characters I crafted in my mind, and I learned early on to entertain myself and live independently. As an only child, my parents' love and care cocooned me. I relished my parents' undivided attention, and their unwavering love gave me a sense of security and self-worth. The absence of siblings meant I was alone in my thoughts and often turned to the fruits of my imagination to fill the spaces. I have been a daydreamer and storyteller for as long as I can remember. 

The question  “Don’t you want any siblings?” would always pop up at every family gathering. “The conversation would end awkwardly. “How nice would it be to have a little brother or sister?” “If you have siblings, they will take care of your parents when they are old.” These conversations would make me feel guilty about being an only child. Am I losing out on great experiences with a sibling? Am I stripping away opportunities from my parents? If I had siblings, would things have been different?


I started to learn about the sibling dynamics among my friends. I felt the drastic differences in experiences between myself and others. I felt my life differences were different and lesser than those with siblings. I didn’t have any older siblings to ask for advice, nor did I have anyone to give advice to. I never had to squabble with anyone on a daily basis over the TV remote, a toy, or places where to eat.  Some of these experiences I only saw on television or heard through friends’ stories, and I wished to experience what it would be like. If I had siblings, would things have been different?


It started in middle school when stereotypes of only children started to emerge. I heard it coined as “Only child syndrome,” This label carried stereotypes and misconceptions that would implant itself the moment I introduced myself as an only child. Words like “spoiled,” “lonely,” and “self-centered” were commonly talked about and sometimes thrown my way. Sometimes, misconceptions would be that “only children don't think of others. They don't have the same consideration or selflessness as people with siblings. They've never had to share, think of others, and only think of themselves.” These misconceptions would haunt me in every interaction and pollute people’s perceptions before they’d even gotten to know me. From then on, I stopped revealing my status as an only child. However, that label would always find a way to squeeze into conversations when I was forced to admit that I had no siblings. In those interactions, I tried my best to present myself in the least “spoiled,” “lonely,” and “self-centered” way possible. I attempted to carve out my true self from underneath the weight of labels. At this point in my life, I wanted to dismantle these stereotypes, not just for myself but in the eyes of my peers. Each time, I would try to demonstrate the likeness of my personality, the good qualities I had, and my empathetic nature. I felt like I had to reshape my personality to mold into the exact opposite of people’s perceptions of an only child. If I had siblings, would things have been different?


As an only child, some experiences in solitude have shaped my family dynamics and relationships. For example, dinners would often be quiet, and sometimes short conversations would be sprinkled in. Dinners start and end almost immediately, with barely any idle chitchat in between. Sometimes, there was no need to initiate a conversation because we all lived together and knew what everyone’s day was like. The presence of siblings did not dilute our conversations nor was it needed to check up on each other. Since we spent so much time together, it nurtured a deep bond between us that we didn’t need words to express ourselves. I am my parent’s only child, and I am my grandparent’s only granddaughter. Being an only child felt burdensome at times. I constantly reminded myself that I am my parent's and grandparent’s only chance at passing down the lineage. Carrying the weight of these familial hopes alone has molded me into a person who lives with a balance between fulfilling my own ambitions and also upholding the wishes of my family. If I had siblings, would things have been different?


Welcome Weekend at Notre Dame transformed my dorm into what felt like a busy rush hour. Stirring inside my sleep, I woke up in the middle of the night and sat abruptly upright on my bed. This was the second time this had happened in a week. I looked toward my door to make sure it was firmly closed and that noises weren’t accidentally leaking through the door. I tried to decipher the strange noises that came from outside. The rustling of trash bags, people giggling, bathroom doors closing. After the long days during Welcome Weekend, all I wanted was a good night's rest. But at this point, I didn’t think it was possible. Living in a dorm with thirty people on a floor was a drastic change from living in a house with three people. Back home, I wouldn’t have to worry about sharing a room, a sink, or a bathroom. Gone were the days of not having to share my living space. However, I learned to appreciate the small moments of peace and quietat college, something I took for granted back at home. I lived with a roommate for the first time in my life, and I discovered close and meaningful connections while living with another person. I could confide and lean on people close to my age at all hours of the day. I felt like I got a slight glimpse into what it would be like to grow up with a sibling. College was a complicated blend of finding independence in living away from home as well as interdependence in living with others. College was a place of many “firsts,” but I embraced the journey and learned that the journey is made richer by the people that I connect with along the way. If I had siblings, would things have been different?