Punctuating with purpose!

As someone who struggles with the correct use of punctuation, I found this chapter illuminating.  I've never really thought about using punctuation as a way of communicating anything.  Punctuation, for me, has just been something I know I must follow the rules of or will lose points on a paper.  The only non-rule I have ever heard regarding the use of punctuation was with commas; to use them when I felt like there should be a pause,  or breath. 
This class has really helped me to become aware of what I can do with my writing.  There is more to writing a paper than just putting your thoughts on paper.  The writer, I now see, can take the time to use grammar and punctuation to emphasize or highlight certain content without the reader being able to notice.  Grammar can be used blatantly with punctuation like dashes or more subtly with punctuation like commas.
My favorite part of this chapter was the short section on dashes.  For awhile most of my informal writing was filled with dashes.  I didn't have a grammatical reason for it, I just liked the way it looked and the way it added to my writing.  I was made fun of by my peers for using it so often, and eventually I stopped using it.  Now after reading this chapter, and being in this class, I see that there is a way to use the dash -- as well as other punctuation -- to give purpose and meaning to my writing.