Two posts in a week! AMAZING!
So, just spent the last hour getting my cap and gown! WHAT? CAP AND GOWN? Yes! Cap and Gown...meaning I am ONE step closer to graduation! Woot woot! Happy day!...I think.
I have come to realize over the past few weeks how very lucky I have been to be here at BYU-Idaho. This is such a wonderful school where I've recieved so many opportunities I wouldn't have had anywhere else. The professors here (for the most part) genuinely care about the sucess of their students. I honestly love the smaller class size. I get to know my teachers a lot better this way. I love going to the local grocery store and seeing my professors there! This town is like one big family. There might not be a lot of flashy entertainment here, but we still know how to have a good time.
I feel sad that I'll be leaving soon. I never thought this day would come and I will desperately miss the wonderful people I've grown to know and love. Thank heavens for Facebook and blogs right?
So...inspirtational thought for today: Take advantage of where you are right now. Realize how lucky you are to have the friends that you do as well. Take a minute to think about how blessed your life is. I've been doing a lot of that lately, and kicking myself that I haven't done this sooner!
Love you all so much!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
Sands of Time...
Hey friends again. My customary once-a-month-post is long overdue. I come to you, teetering at the edge of graduation. It only felt real once, for about an hour during Graduation Night. Honestly, by my calculations I've been an enrolled student for the past 17 years. It feels like I will be a student forever. It just doesn't feel real yet. Perhaps when I go and pick up my cap and gown later this week it will.
I love everything I'm doing right now. My projects in class are so fun! My Professional class just finished editing a full length novel and now we're in the middle of preparing the travel book for the upcoming BYU-Idaho British Literary tour. I'm on the research team that gets to look up maps and authors and quotes for the day-to-day activities. (And of course become insanely jealous at those who actually GET to go!)
I've learned some very important lessons over the course of the last few weeks. The most important one is: Put work aside and have fun. It's the only way to keep a good and healthy mental balance.
I'm not going to lie. It's been tough over the past few months. I arrived home from my 18 month mission at the end of August, was home for 10 days (count 'em, 10) and then came back to Rexburg to finish out my education. I put my nose to the grindstone and only focused on homework and class projects. I just obsessed over getting everything done three days before the due date. I almost didn't go to DisneyWorld with my family because I was so stressed out! I just wondered why I was so unhappy when I had plenty of homework to get done. (Duh in retrospect). When I went home for the Christmas break it took me a full week to let go of finals stress. (Poor Mikelle can attest to my precarious mental health!)
However, in stark contrast, these last few weeks of the semester have been the happiest I've ever had. I have put homework on the back burner and been social! (GASP!) I've made some amazing new friends and we all wonder how in the world we all made it to graduation without ever being friends before this. I've learned that you have to make time for YOU if you want to be sane in this life. And surprise surprise, I still have time to get my homework done. I just wish I'd learned this earlier, like back in Septemeber.
So, bottom line is, life is too short to be in a constant state of stress. Time runs out no matter what we're doing. Why not spend that time doing something you enjoy? A good friend once told me that on his mission people would tell him that they just didn't have time to read the scriptures. He realized that they had plenty of time, they just didn't choose to make scripture reading a priority. He told me that we make time for what's important to us.
This is my challenge to myself and to you: Make time for fun in your life. Choose to be social. Choose to make friends. It IS your choice. Have a happy life. It IS up to you.
I love everything I'm doing right now. My projects in class are so fun! My Professional class just finished editing a full length novel and now we're in the middle of preparing the travel book for the upcoming BYU-Idaho British Literary tour. I'm on the research team that gets to look up maps and authors and quotes for the day-to-day activities. (And of course become insanely jealous at those who actually GET to go!)
I've learned some very important lessons over the course of the last few weeks. The most important one is: Put work aside and have fun. It's the only way to keep a good and healthy mental balance.
I'm not going to lie. It's been tough over the past few months. I arrived home from my 18 month mission at the end of August, was home for 10 days (count 'em, 10) and then came back to Rexburg to finish out my education. I put my nose to the grindstone and only focused on homework and class projects. I just obsessed over getting everything done three days before the due date. I almost didn't go to DisneyWorld with my family because I was so stressed out! I just wondered why I was so unhappy when I had plenty of homework to get done. (Duh in retrospect). When I went home for the Christmas break it took me a full week to let go of finals stress. (Poor Mikelle can attest to my precarious mental health!)
However, in stark contrast, these last few weeks of the semester have been the happiest I've ever had. I have put homework on the back burner and been social! (GASP!) I've made some amazing new friends and we all wonder how in the world we all made it to graduation without ever being friends before this. I've learned that you have to make time for YOU if you want to be sane in this life. And surprise surprise, I still have time to get my homework done. I just wish I'd learned this earlier, like back in Septemeber.
So, bottom line is, life is too short to be in a constant state of stress. Time runs out no matter what we're doing. Why not spend that time doing something you enjoy? A good friend once told me that on his mission people would tell him that they just didn't have time to read the scriptures. He realized that they had plenty of time, they just didn't choose to make scripture reading a priority. He told me that we make time for what's important to us.
This is my challenge to myself and to you: Make time for fun in your life. Choose to be social. Choose to make friends. It IS your choice. Have a happy life. It IS up to you.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
A totally AWESOME weekend!
Hey there friends! So today's post is just for funsies, because I feel a little bad that I'm not completely consistent when it comes to blogging. So...here is a little insight to my awesome weekend!
First of all I got to go home for the 3 day weekend! My ride left Thursday afternoon (which meant I TOTALLY skipped my Friday classes. I don't really feel too bad because I never skipped any classes last semester so I thought I could get away with it this one time).
Friday I worked at home for grocery money-thank you mom!-and got a lot of stuff done! THEN I got to meet up with the Immies and we had an India night! Curry and mangoes and Bollywood music! Oh SO fun! And of course we stayed up until the wee hours of the night gabbing and talking. SO MUCH FUN!
Saturday Tuima went through the Provo Temple for herself and her grandpa was the officiator. Dilly and I were able to attend. It was SO neat to see her beaming from ear to ear after wards! Congrats Tuima!
Later that evening my family went to see the Young Ambassador's performance at BYU-Provo. It was charming. One special guest blew me out of the water with his rendition of Les Miserable's Bring Him Home. As he came on stage I kind of slumped back in my chair and thought, "Geez. I have already heard this song 10,000 times already." Then he began to sing. Halfway into the song I noticed I had teardrops on my hands and realized I was crying. He sang with such emotion! I just sat there, in awe and shock as I continued to cry through the rest of the song. His music touched my soul and left a lasting impression. It completely blew me away.
Sunday found me at a mission companion's homecoming talk-Sister Allgaier-. It was GREAT to see her again! She looked awesome and did such a good job! There were two other sisters from THE Mission there. (The Texas Houston East Mission-THE mission of the church! Bwa-ha ha!) Sister Olsen and Sister Hill (now known as Sister Davis). It was so good to see past friends from Texas and be reminded yet again that I really did serve a mission. Sometimes it all seems just like a dream.
Monday came all too soon and I had to return back to school. I crammed all my homework into those few hours before bedtime (because honestly, who does homework over a holiday?) and slept like a rock.
Tuesday I was ready to get back to school until I suddenly lost my breakfast 15 minutes before I was heading out the door. Back to bed for me, where I watched Chuck and Heroes until I got a pounding migraine. It just wasn't my day. I thankfully feel better today, but I'm still being careful with my migraine. It's lurking.
Anyway, like I said, this post is just for fun. I'll try to come up with something a little more enlightening for next time. Keep smiling everyone. Life is good!
Em
First of all I got to go home for the 3 day weekend! My ride left Thursday afternoon (which meant I TOTALLY skipped my Friday classes. I don't really feel too bad because I never skipped any classes last semester so I thought I could get away with it this one time).
Friday I worked at home for grocery money-thank you mom!-and got a lot of stuff done! THEN I got to meet up with the Immies and we had an India night! Curry and mangoes and Bollywood music! Oh SO fun! And of course we stayed up until the wee hours of the night gabbing and talking. SO MUCH FUN!
Saturday Tuima went through the Provo Temple for herself and her grandpa was the officiator. Dilly and I were able to attend. It was SO neat to see her beaming from ear to ear after wards! Congrats Tuima!
Later that evening my family went to see the Young Ambassador's performance at BYU-Provo. It was charming. One special guest blew me out of the water with his rendition of Les Miserable's Bring Him Home. As he came on stage I kind of slumped back in my chair and thought, "Geez. I have already heard this song 10,000 times already." Then he began to sing. Halfway into the song I noticed I had teardrops on my hands and realized I was crying. He sang with such emotion! I just sat there, in awe and shock as I continued to cry through the rest of the song. His music touched my soul and left a lasting impression. It completely blew me away.
Sunday found me at a mission companion's homecoming talk-Sister Allgaier-. It was GREAT to see her again! She looked awesome and did such a good job! There were two other sisters from THE Mission there. (The Texas Houston East Mission-THE mission of the church! Bwa-ha ha!) Sister Olsen and Sister Hill (now known as Sister Davis). It was so good to see past friends from Texas and be reminded yet again that I really did serve a mission. Sometimes it all seems just like a dream.
Monday came all too soon and I had to return back to school. I crammed all my homework into those few hours before bedtime (because honestly, who does homework over a holiday?) and slept like a rock.
Tuesday I was ready to get back to school until I suddenly lost my breakfast 15 minutes before I was heading out the door. Back to bed for me, where I watched Chuck and Heroes until I got a pounding migraine. It just wasn't my day. I thankfully feel better today, but I'm still being careful with my migraine. It's lurking.
Anyway, like I said, this post is just for fun. I'll try to come up with something a little more enlightening for next time. Keep smiling everyone. Life is good!
Em
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Back for Round 2!
Hello again friends! I am back for some updates on the ever-shortening road to graduation. Again, graduation happens this April (And the week after my graduation my WONDERFUL sister Lou comes home from her mission in South Korea! Double reason to celebrate!). Anyway, I’m all signed up for graduation and cap and gown, walking, the whole bit. Now all I have to do is make sure that I pass the rest of my classes. I’m taking British/American Contemporary Literature, Advanced Professional Writing, Senior Seminar Writing, Advanced Literature Theory, and Visual Media. Lots and LOTS of reading, but I’m a nerd and I LOVE it all! But loving it isn’t the same as being perfect at it…I WISH. So there’s a lot of work going into this semester.
But seriously, how did I already become a senior in college? I do NOT feel “old” enough or ready enough to be finished here already! I remember starting school back in 2005 with the idea in mind that I would probably be married by the time I got to this point in my life. In the back of my mind I vaguely pictured myself married and able to stay at home while my husband (whoever he was) went to work to support our family. Imagine my panic when I realized around my third year that it probably wasn’t going to happen that way and that I really needed to make sure I had marketable job skills. Now, I didn’t go to college with my MRS. Degree in the front most of my mind people! But I also didn’t see my future turning out this way either! But now, instead of being scared of stepping out on my own, I’m actually really looking forward to it!
So there’s been a lot of thinking happening in the last few weeks, and some decisions have been reached.
I’ve decided to go to Graduate School.
Nope, haven’t the slightest clue as to where I want to go. I have several ideas-the most fantastic of all being Europe. Oxford anyone? However I will probably have to be a little more realistic. I foresee a LOT of planning for this next step in my life, and for sure more than one leap of faith as I venture out into the unknown. Everyone has been wonderful to share their experiences with me and I welcome any and all advice.
Yesterday’s devotional was really wonderful as well. Elder Russell M. Nelson came to BYU-Idaho to speak and he touched on the subject of education. The link to his whole talk isn’t up yet, but when it is I’ll put it up. He talked about our duty to continue our education when possible. It was really wonderful to hear an apostle of the Lord encourage all of us to do the best that we can and to learn as much as we can. It gave me even further motivation to continue learning my whole life. I’m not just talking about school, but to try and always keep an interest in new things, whether it’s actual knowledge from a textbook, or maybe just a new hobby. The trick is to avoid letting pride be the driving force behind your quest for knowledge. If we neglect our spiritual knowledge then our secular knowledge will avail us nothing. Our Heavenly Father is the source of all light and knowledge and He is more than willing to share with us when we seek it out. Elder Nelson encouraged us to seek wisdom and knowledge from the best books. It’s all there for us. We just have to be willing to seek it out and work for it. Our Heavenly Father loves us so much. He wants to give us everything. We are so blessed here.
But seriously, how did I already become a senior in college? I do NOT feel “old” enough or ready enough to be finished here already! I remember starting school back in 2005 with the idea in mind that I would probably be married by the time I got to this point in my life. In the back of my mind I vaguely pictured myself married and able to stay at home while my husband (whoever he was) went to work to support our family. Imagine my panic when I realized around my third year that it probably wasn’t going to happen that way and that I really needed to make sure I had marketable job skills. Now, I didn’t go to college with my MRS. Degree in the front most of my mind people! But I also didn’t see my future turning out this way either! But now, instead of being scared of stepping out on my own, I’m actually really looking forward to it!
So there’s been a lot of thinking happening in the last few weeks, and some decisions have been reached.
I’ve decided to go to Graduate School.
Nope, haven’t the slightest clue as to where I want to go. I have several ideas-the most fantastic of all being Europe. Oxford anyone? However I will probably have to be a little more realistic. I foresee a LOT of planning for this next step in my life, and for sure more than one leap of faith as I venture out into the unknown. Everyone has been wonderful to share their experiences with me and I welcome any and all advice.
Yesterday’s devotional was really wonderful as well. Elder Russell M. Nelson came to BYU-Idaho to speak and he touched on the subject of education. The link to his whole talk isn’t up yet, but when it is I’ll put it up. He talked about our duty to continue our education when possible. It was really wonderful to hear an apostle of the Lord encourage all of us to do the best that we can and to learn as much as we can. It gave me even further motivation to continue learning my whole life. I’m not just talking about school, but to try and always keep an interest in new things, whether it’s actual knowledge from a textbook, or maybe just a new hobby. The trick is to avoid letting pride be the driving force behind your quest for knowledge. If we neglect our spiritual knowledge then our secular knowledge will avail us nothing. Our Heavenly Father is the source of all light and knowledge and He is more than willing to share with us when we seek it out. Elder Nelson encouraged us to seek wisdom and knowledge from the best books. It’s all there for us. We just have to be willing to seek it out and work for it. Our Heavenly Father loves us so much. He wants to give us everything. We are so blessed here.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
A Confession...
Ok. So here I am. A brand-new blog. A brand-new year. And…I guess it’s time to confess to the world something that I should have always been up front and honest about.
I…
I…am…
I…am…a…
Wow. This is a little harder than I thought. No, wait, I can do this. Whew. Here goes.
I am an English Major.
*peeks out* You’re still here? We’re still friends? Hey now! That wasn’t too bad.
I started thinking about this yesterday during my first day of my LAST SEMESTER IN COLLEGE! Mwa-ha-ha. Erm, yeah. Anyhow. In one of my classes we discussed the kinds of responses we tend to get when we tell people we’re English majors. The most popular one is, “Are you going to teach?” which is usually followed by, “Uh-oh! I’d better watch my grammar around you!” Or my personal favorites, “What can you do with that?” and “Oh. I am so sorry.” (“And you are?” “Oh, I’m a political-science micro-nuclear degenerative nano major with a minor in thermo-dynamic chemistry” “….Oh. Lovely.”)
Another question was answered by my awesome friend Kim which was, “So are you going to write a novel or something?” with a very enthusiastic, “Heck yes! And it’s going to be awesome and amazing! But, until I get it published and everyone else out there sees how awesome and amazing it is I’ll be supporting myself with the other awesome English skills I’ve got.”
And in case you’ve ever wondered just what in the world we learn in English classes besides grammar let me enlighten you! We discuss politics, and science, philosophy, psychology, history, and a myriad of other topics. You’ve got to know background information before you can make any kind of accurate assessment about the piece you’re reading. You’ve also got to know about the biographical information of the author, what the politics were at the time they wrote their poem, or their novel. We usually bring in some kind of psychological analysis of the characters, trying to understand their deepest desires and what motivates them. We have to know the history of the time period. Is the writer a man or woman? If it’s a woman, no big deal right? WRONG! Women writers were few and far between up until the modern and post-modern era. If she is a woman writer published before and during the Victorian era then pay attention! It’s probably a big deal.
…And that’s why you shouldn’t let an English major try and explain any of that. We tend to get fairly excited about the whole thing. But I’m a nerd. It’s ok.
So really though, are you still wondering what I’ll do with an English degree? Well, for starters I could teach school (which is definitely a direction that I’m thinking about). I could even help write and edit the textbooks they use in the schools. English majors have the option of working in publishing for newspapers, magazines, and books. I could even decide to work at home if I so chose.
Which is why you might be confused as to why I’m so nervous if there are so many options. I just want to be sure that I’m going the right way, the way that Heavenly Father wants me to be going. Even if my first job after college isn’t what I do for the rest of my life, it’s going to be the first step which hopefully will lead me in the right direction.
So friends, until the next time…wait a second! Aw man…I just realized that I’ve got to be consistent now and blog on a regular basis! Wish me luck!
I…
I…am…
I…am…a…
Wow. This is a little harder than I thought. No, wait, I can do this. Whew. Here goes.
I am an English Major.
*peeks out* You’re still here? We’re still friends? Hey now! That wasn’t too bad.
I started thinking about this yesterday during my first day of my LAST SEMESTER IN COLLEGE! Mwa-ha-ha. Erm, yeah. Anyhow. In one of my classes we discussed the kinds of responses we tend to get when we tell people we’re English majors. The most popular one is, “Are you going to teach?” which is usually followed by, “Uh-oh! I’d better watch my grammar around you!” Or my personal favorites, “What can you do with that?” and “Oh. I am so sorry.” (“And you are?” “Oh, I’m a political-science micro-nuclear degenerative nano major with a minor in thermo-dynamic chemistry” “….Oh. Lovely.”)
Another question was answered by my awesome friend Kim which was, “So are you going to write a novel or something?” with a very enthusiastic, “Heck yes! And it’s going to be awesome and amazing! But, until I get it published and everyone else out there sees how awesome and amazing it is I’ll be supporting myself with the other awesome English skills I’ve got.”
And in case you’ve ever wondered just what in the world we learn in English classes besides grammar let me enlighten you! We discuss politics, and science, philosophy, psychology, history, and a myriad of other topics. You’ve got to know background information before you can make any kind of accurate assessment about the piece you’re reading. You’ve also got to know about the biographical information of the author, what the politics were at the time they wrote their poem, or their novel. We usually bring in some kind of psychological analysis of the characters, trying to understand their deepest desires and what motivates them. We have to know the history of the time period. Is the writer a man or woman? If it’s a woman, no big deal right? WRONG! Women writers were few and far between up until the modern and post-modern era. If she is a woman writer published before and during the Victorian era then pay attention! It’s probably a big deal.
…And that’s why you shouldn’t let an English major try and explain any of that. We tend to get fairly excited about the whole thing. But I’m a nerd. It’s ok.
So really though, are you still wondering what I’ll do with an English degree? Well, for starters I could teach school (which is definitely a direction that I’m thinking about). I could even help write and edit the textbooks they use in the schools. English majors have the option of working in publishing for newspapers, magazines, and books. I could even decide to work at home if I so chose.
Which is why you might be confused as to why I’m so nervous if there are so many options. I just want to be sure that I’m going the right way, the way that Heavenly Father wants me to be going. Even if my first job after college isn’t what I do for the rest of my life, it’s going to be the first step which hopefully will lead me in the right direction.
So friends, until the next time…wait a second! Aw man…I just realized that I’ve got to be consistent now and blog on a regular basis! Wish me luck!
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