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Showing posts with label Week 8. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Week 8. Show all posts
Saturday, October 15, 2016
Famous Last Words: Singing
On the third floor of the Conoco Phillips Student Leadership Center, there is a wide-open space with tall, vaulted ceilings, and at 11:00pm on most weekday nights, there also aren't usually students. The absence of people, combined with the acoustic nature of the space, makes it a great place to sing full-voice, which isn't something that I'm able to do too often. This week, I've found myself on the third floor almost every evening, belting out Sam Smith, Adele, and old-school Latin songs that I remember from high school. Singing is something that I find to be incredibly cathartic... there is really no substitute for the high that I get when I hit a powerhouse note in a song or when I create a really beautiful harmony with someone else. Unfortunately, this year, I had to quit my a cappella group because my Student Government Association position requires me to attend meetings the same evening as rehearsal. If there's anything that I regret from this year, it is absolutely that I had to quit. I didn't have much of a voice... I have to pay rent, after all, but I miss being able to sing with other people. It is honestly one of the greatest joys that I have in life. I've lately been thinking about starting a student organization with other people in my situation so that we can at least get together every so often to hang out and create beautiful music together. So far, I've found quite a few people, but I still don't know what that will look like. Do we buy sheet music? Do we hire an accompanist? I don't know, but I'm really excited to see where this all ends up. Even if it doesn't work out, I still have the third floor.
Tuesday, October 11, 2016
Week 8 Growth Mindset
This class has enabled me to do a lot of self-reflection, which I've found to be incredibly valuable. Adopting a "growth mindset" isn't my default; I was raised to be highly competitive, to value success more than anything else. Those values were integral to my development and aren't so easily thrown aside. That being said, they did teach me some very important skills, skills which I would consider my strengths. Firstly, I am very self-motivated. I schedule with precision, ask questions when needed, and am able to take feedback if it makes me better at something. On the flipside, I need to work on being more of a risk-taker and not letting established standards determine what I do. I have a scholarship that depends on me keeping a 4.0, so when I say that I can't afford to fail, I mean it quite literally. That being said, I'm going to make a concerted effort to create more nuanced and non-traditional arguments in papers I'm writing for other classes. I'm looking forward to expanding my growth mindset as the semester comes to a close!
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Monday, October 10, 2016
Week 8 Reflections
Reading
I have really enjoyed the readings thus far, though sometimes the PDE versions of the Epics that I chose to read seemed to be a little muddled. That is to be expected, however, when there are so many different authors writing their own interpretations of a series of epic events. My favorite reading that I've done so far was Nagpal's Sita, as I found it to be the most engaging. It also answered the question "Why does Sita let Rama treat her like this?" by proving that she is more than able to end an abusive relationship when needed. I wish I could read without doing a reading notes post, but it is certainly helpful in terms of story writing.
Writing
I love the freedom that I have to create stories and narratives that I find to be personally compelling. So much of the writing that I do is academic in nature; I'm far more focused on citations and counterarguments than prose and polishing. I don't often have any immediate questions or problems when writing, but very much appreciate the feedback that I get from both the instructor and my classmates.
Connecting
I'm constantly impressed by how people are able to weave their own interests and stories into their writings. It provides an excellent window into their experiences that I find to be both edifying and fascinating. However, I think that many of my classmates can lack clarity in their writing; I've read many pieces that leave me more confused at the end than when I started. In order to avoid this, I intend to focus on making my exposition clear and concise in order to create a more realistic piece of writing.
I have really enjoyed the readings thus far, though sometimes the PDE versions of the Epics that I chose to read seemed to be a little muddled. That is to be expected, however, when there are so many different authors writing their own interpretations of a series of epic events. My favorite reading that I've done so far was Nagpal's Sita, as I found it to be the most engaging. It also answered the question "Why does Sita let Rama treat her like this?" by proving that she is more than able to end an abusive relationship when needed. I wish I could read without doing a reading notes post, but it is certainly helpful in terms of story writing.
Writing
I love the freedom that I have to create stories and narratives that I find to be personally compelling. So much of the writing that I do is academic in nature; I'm far more focused on citations and counterarguments than prose and polishing. I don't often have any immediate questions or problems when writing, but very much appreciate the feedback that I get from both the instructor and my classmates.
Connecting
I'm constantly impressed by how people are able to weave their own interests and stories into their writings. It provides an excellent window into their experiences that I find to be both edifying and fascinating. However, I think that many of my classmates can lack clarity in their writing; I've read many pieces that leave me more confused at the end than when I started. In order to avoid this, I intend to focus on making my exposition clear and concise in order to create a more realistic piece of writing.
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