Reayanul Haque

Alyssa Yankwit

Writing For Social Science 

Personal Artifact Final Draft

18th February 2020.

                                  Every person has something very precious in their life, for me, it is a cricket bat. When I was 13 years old my grandfather handed it to me. I was too young back then to understand the value of the bat. But as I grew up, I started understanding the fact that is why it is important to me. My grandfather was the captain of the cricket team and his father gave it to him when he first started playing cricket in the local team. I have seen my grandfather playing cricket for so many years and therefore that is why I am a very big fan of the sport but mostly cricket. In my life, it is the sole object that I own, and it is symbolic in my life.

                   I belong to the subculture of sports cricket and my artifact is my cricket bat. I was always into sports, but cricket excites me more than any other sports. After I moved to the USA, I felt like I had lost the opportunity to practice cricket because it is not very famous around here. People do not pay much attention to cricket or practice it as much as they do soccer. But when I got into high school my whole perspective changed about it because there was a cricket team in my high school. So, I decided to get into the team so that I can keep on playing it. I have many memorable memories with that bat that helped me in my hard times in the field. This bat was my last memory of my grandfather who motivated me to play cricket. So, I always cherish it. Whenever I had to practice or need to attend any tournament I would always take the bat with me. It was very old fashioned and was not very expensive but it reminds me of my grandfather whenever I play with it. That bat was the first bat that I ever played cricket with. My grandfather taught me to play cricket for the first time. He was my mentor who taught me about cricket, and everything started with that bat. I have a very different sentiment with that bat. Even though I have faced many criticisms from people because they think it is very childish and stereotypical using the bat that belongs to my grandfather. But I never let those thoughts get to me because that bat always gave strength, and confidence whenever I faced hardship or criticisms on the field. This bat represents my grandfather and now it represents me as a good cricket player.

             My artifact brings me the strength to continue pushing as my grandfather did whenever he faced hardship in the field. That bat kept motivating me to play cricket since my grandfather passed away. That bat always reminded me of him whenever I played with it and inspired me. I remember how that bat gave me power and strength when I was very nervous to play my first tournament as a captain of the team. But as soon as I took the bat in my hand it reminded me and how much my grandfather worked on me to get to this level and passed his passion to me. It is not just a bat to me, it is my grandfather’s love that I carried to all my matches. I want people to pursue that we should adore the things our loved ones handed to us because we are capable of taking care of it the right way and using it properly. The significance of this artifact reminds me of my grandfather whenever I play and pushes me every time to do better in the future. 

         In conclusion, the bat that was given by my grandfather kept me motivated to play cricket. I still have that bat with me, and I still follow the rules my grandfather taught me from holding the bat to how to toss it in the right way. Some people really admire it when I tell them how I use my grandfather’s cricket bat and I feel good that I could carry it and took good care of my grandfather’s last symbol that still has with me. I will always cherish and take care of it.