Happy Friday!
If you're reading this, you survived part one of the holiday season, and that is awesome. Go get yourself something for making it this far.
Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Happy Kwanzaa! Happy Boxing Day! Happy what ever you celebrate, if you celebrate this time of the year!
This is my last blog post of 2015. So, I would briefly like to reflect about what this blog has done for me, what I learned, what this writing means to me and for other people. Kerra (my current roommate and future housemate!) sort of inspired me with her own blog to create my own. It took awhile to get the general layout and sometimes the topics were a little hard for me. This blog taught me that the "best way to cure writer's block is to keeping on writing even if you end rambling about how your cat likes to meow at random objects." Okay, so that never happened to me (at least, not yet...), but the point still stands. Keep on writing even if it doesn't make much sense. Recently, a friend from high school and who I talk to on a semi-regularly basis in collage pointed something out to me about my last post. He sent me the actual quote I was referring to, and he thanked me for writing my posts. Starting out (and for the future), I didn't care how much my posts were read; all I cared about is being able to write what happens to be on my mind that week. Thank you from my heart for reading! It means so much to me.
Yes, as the title suggests, I turned 20 on Monday. When friends and family ask me what I want for Christmas and my birthday, I never know what to say because I have everything I need/want: supportive, loving, sarcastic family and friends. The rest is replaceable if lost or destroyed, but the wonderful people in my life are not. From birth, to age 10, to age 20 (respectively), there have been many people coming and going from my life and there are many people in my life consistently and there are many people in my life currently. I'm grateful for each and everyone of them because they have knowingly or unknowingly shaped who I am today. Thank you, everyone.
With 2015 coming to a close and 2016 looming around the corner, many people are split: reminiscing all the good and bad about the year and looking ahead to the new year for all the changes we wish to implement. I don't think we think how much we do this. Perhaps you realized you aren't happy with the way you look, so you decide you want to eat better or walk 20 minutes in the morning. Perhaps you realized you haven't enjoyed the smaller and often go unnoticed moments, so you decide to slow down and take a deep breath of everyday life.
Reminiscing and looking ahead is in itself a paradox. Usually we do either one or another. For some, we live our lives always looking ahead or always looking behind or some even live their lives looking ahead to keep up and only looking back for guidance or past experience when we need advice. No matter how you live your life, it's almost impossible to not think about the past and look forward around the holidays.
My challenge for you is to stick to your resolutions for more than just 2 weeks and incorporate the change into your day-to-day life.
Until next time,
Thought of the day
Happy Friday!
Well, it's once again Friday. After the long week we have all had, we deserve a treat.
I, as well as all other college students, definitely deserve a break after finishing finals and surviving the week from hell. Granted, there are many other students who had way worse week with tests, presentations, projects, speeches, etc.
FINALLY. I'm home with my kitty, my family (Rachel comes home tomorrow! EEK), the holiday decorations are up, holiday food will soon be made. There really is nothing else like coming home especially during the holidays. No classes, no homework, no studying. Or in other words, no stress.
Here's the link to my latest Odyssey article: An Open Letter to My Future Children. There is an error, but it's already been published.
I can't remember where I saw this quote but it touched me in a way that it opened my way of thinking. So of course, I needed to find the quote, but I couldn't find it to my disappointment. It went a little like this: "Save someone. Just save one person. It does not matter if that one person is yourself." We often underestimate our actions when it comes to helping out others. We love to try to save everyone when in reality we are the ones drowning and needed saving. Family and friends try their best to help us, but we need to save ourselves. It's easy to become reliant on others to save us. If the only person you end up saving is yourself, then you succeed.
Some say that to save others, you must first save yourself. This is not true. Far from it actually. By doing the little things, saying the right set of words at the right time, etc., we don't always realize the effect that can have on someone's day, mood, life, and so on. And sometimes it's through saving someone else that we save ourselves or figure out a way to save ourselves.
Until next week,
Thought of the day
Happy Friday!
It's Friday, which means....the weekend! You made it! Treat yourself! (You probably deserve it, anyway.)
A brief update on my life: I have been feeling a little sluggish for a while, but I'm really trying to just get through each day. What helps are great co-workers, great roommate and/or friends, and naps. And the thought I'm almost done with the semester and I can enjoy some time away.
Here's the link to my latest Odyssey article: 10 Movies To Get You in the Holiday Spirit.
Countdown to Christmas break: 7 days: 2 tests, 1 project, ? hours of work.
I GOT THIS.
Speaking of the dreaded finals week. There's something I think it's important and especially relevant this point in the semester to talk about. I came about this topic while I was having lunch with a friend. All semester she's struggled with a class and the terrible (and totally unhelpful) professor, and I listened to her vent (totally don't mind doing it). Without going into too much detail to be respectful, I said, "This will sound preachy, but your grade does not define who you are." It's true. I know how much work she did. I know how much effort she's made to learn the material. The grade she should get for all the time, effort, work she put into the semester is definitely (and significantly) higher than the one she's told me that she'll likely get.
The grades we get on projects, the grades we get on tests, the grades we get on assignments DO NOT define us.
This is so important that I will say it again: the grades we get in a class do not define us and who we are.
Grades do not define who we are as human beings. They do not define us, and we shouldn't let them. They do not know what a beautiful human you are.
What matters isn't the grade, even though I will not deny the fact it's nice to see an 'A' on a quiz, you got; it's what you got out of the experience, what you learned is what matters. Now, I realize this is a hard concept to accept and enforce in your life.
Why we put so much emphasis on grades is something that bugs me to no end. If someone, who worked really hard (and learned a lot), received a 'C+' then they deserve the same positive attention given to the person who, might not have worked as hard, received a 'A'. I believe it goes back to how our society today seems to love to judge by first glance and that's that. While I might not have proof to back this opinion up, this something that needs to be changed about our society.
Until next week,
Thought of the day
Happy Friday!
It's Friday once again, readers! And I'm just going to say it. FINALLY. This week seemed long, and I'm glad it's over...for the most part. I hope everyone had a good week, and if they didn't, I hope you have a relaxing weekend.
A quick update on my life. It's been stressful this past week, and next week and the following week will be the same way. But after my last final on Thursday, I will be officially done with the semester! THEN CHRISTMAS BREAK.
Here's the latest articles I've published on The Odyssey Online: 10 Things College Students Are Thankful For and Life Lessons In How The Grinch Stole Christmas.
Countdown until Christmas break: 14 days.
Onto today's post topic. There is a couple of things I wanted to talk about but with they sort of overlap so I will just combine them in one big monster post.
A past professor posted a status about one of her students receiving some terrible news and asking for prayers. This status made me stop to rethink my week. While I was on the struggle bus all week with allergies and stressing over projects and tests, this student received the worst news so close to Christmas. As college students nearing finals week, we often get caught up between studying, procrastinating, complaining about our finals, worrying and stressing over tests, and other things. And we forget that others around us are facing bigger challenges than a test or project. I'm not saying that's a bad thing; I know all too well of just trying to get myself through the days and not thinking about others and their struggles.
This is the season of giving and being thankful. My mom always told me that classic line "it's better to give than to receive". As a wee child, I didn't understand it, but as I have grown over the years, I realize it's true. Giving someone a gift, whether it's homemade or bought from a store, and seeing their eyes light up because they are surprised and overcome with joy is one of the most amazing feelings, in my opinion. It's one of the reasons why I love giving people gifts because when I get the chance to make someone's day with something they really wanted or always wanted (and maybe couldn't afford to buy it) or something they need, I love when their eyes light up, they have a huge grin on their face, and generally look like they are on cloud nine.
To tie back into the first paragraph, I have only recently understood that "it's better to give than to receive" doesn't only apply to physical items but also to non-tangible items like praying for someone who needs it or listening to someone vent if they had a bad day or giving someone a hug if they look like need one and so on. So instead of worrying about my problems, I will take the time to pray for anyone needs it, listen to anyone who needs a listening ear, and give anyone a hug who needs one.
Until next week,
Thought of the day
