This weekend I was also lucky enough to be able to go for a visit to the South Shore Natural Science Center with my mother. Growing up, my mother would always take my younger brother and I on nature walks around the area, and the Science Center was always one of our favorite places to go. Not only because of all the trails,but because of the different animals you could see, like a Red-tailed Hawk, or an Iguana. There is also a greenhouse with all kinds of exotic plants, like pitcher plants and different cacti.
I always appreciate getting the chance to get out into nature, as it tends to give one a different perspective. In the quiet of nature, there is a total removal from all troubles and concerns that one may be contending with. To share this time with others is even greater, as it helps the two focus on each other, as they are together and away from all others. I haven't really been taking enough time to get into nature, and this is something I hope to continue in the coming semester.
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Trip Home
This weekend, I was lucky enough to get a chance to head home for the Saint Mike's long weekend, something I definitely needed. It had been over two months since I last saw home, and all the sights and activities that accompanied it. To make things better, my younger brother, who has just started his first year at college, was also able to make it home for the weekend, though he had to leave Sunday evening to get back to school.
It was nice to be able to take a break from schoolwork, and focus on rejuvenating, something I struggle to find time for during school. A highlight was definitely getting to see my cats, and it was almost therapeutic. Lying down on the couch, with my cat Tuffy curled up on my chest, was a very calming experience, and lead overall to a calming weekend. I was able to take time to reflect on my position at school and in life, and what I could improve on upon returning to Saint Michael's in a few short days. I realized it is important to take time for myself, and though I enjoy being active, to not spread myself too thin. I haven't figured out what I'm going to do yet, but I know I will attempt to lighten my load in regards to commitments, so that I can stay sane throughout the semester.
It was nice to be able to take a break from schoolwork, and focus on rejuvenating, something I struggle to find time for during school. A highlight was definitely getting to see my cats, and it was almost therapeutic. Lying down on the couch, with my cat Tuffy curled up on my chest, was a very calming experience, and lead overall to a calming weekend. I was able to take time to reflect on my position at school and in life, and what I could improve on upon returning to Saint Michael's in a few short days. I realized it is important to take time for myself, and though I enjoy being active, to not spread myself too thin. I haven't figured out what I'm going to do yet, but I know I will attempt to lighten my load in regards to commitments, so that I can stay sane throughout the semester.
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Impact
While I am at school, I keep myself busy with both my studies and my work, my job being that of working at an afterschool program in the neighboring community. The school I work at is for third through fifth graders, and I greatly enjoy working there. Having gone to an afterschool program myself when I was younger, I know how important this job is, and how much of an impact that the staff have on the children. I remember looking up to all of my afterschool program staff, thinking that they were great, and hoping to one day be like them. I guess that I have made it to that point, as the kids at the afterschool program let me know the impact that I have on them. One in particular, who I occasionally interact with, but he is normally only there two of the days I work, and tends to leave earlier than most, has shown me that I have impacted him. It came in the form of a simple, unprompted message,
"Zach, I wish that you were my older brother."
This has stuck with me ever since, as I was very touched by the sentiment. It really showed me that though my time with someone may be brief, it also can be very meaningful. You might reach people in ways you never know, until somewhere down the line they let you know just how important your actions were. That is something I hope I can continue to do.
Saint Michael's Open House
This weekend I was lucky enough to be able to participate in an open house for prospective students as a representative of the MOVE program. Anyone who knows me knows that MOVE(which stands for Mobilization Of Volunteer Efforts for the uninformed) is a large part of my life and something I take very seriously. Being involved with MOVE is what first gave me the knowledge that I wanted my life to have some form of community outreach, whether it be through my employment or my daily life, but preferably both.
I hadn't truly realized the impact MOVE has had on my life until the open house, when we were handing out these handy temporary tattoos. One of which I received last year, and have kept in my wallet ever since.
These three principles, the head, the heart, and the hand, have guided my actions in a way that I have not realized. They have caused me to examine everything I do. To think about why I am doing something. They cause me to look for the beauty in it all, and to find the passion in what I am doing. They cause me to take action, and to not just sit and let everything pass by. I realized on Saturday that my future needs to be the same. I need to think about what I am doing, if my heart is in it, and if so, I need to set out and do it. It really is something to live by.
I hadn't truly realized the impact MOVE has had on my life until the open house, when we were handing out these handy temporary tattoos. One of which I received last year, and have kept in my wallet ever since.
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Trip to Shelburne Farms
This weekend I was lucky enough to be paid a visit by my entire family, something I did not believe would happen so soon after my brother began his freshman year at a college in Boston. It's always nice to get the entire family together, I'm sure even much more so for my parents now that they are empty nesters. They were only able to make it up for Saturday into Sunday, due to my brother's class schedule, but it was very nice to have some time off campus and with people I have not seen since the end of August.
We decided to take advantage of the nice fall weather and take a trip to Shelburne Farms to enjoy the great outdoors. Though the foliage was not in it's prime yet, it was still a gorgeous view. We climbed to the top of a hill, and the view was breathtaking. My entire family having grown up in Massachusetts and living there ever since, are not used to the mountainous views, and even I agree that they are always something to see.
We decided to take advantage of the nice fall weather and take a trip to Shelburne Farms to enjoy the great outdoors. Though the foliage was not in it's prime yet, it was still a gorgeous view. We climbed to the top of a hill, and the view was breathtaking. My entire family having grown up in Massachusetts and living there ever since, are not used to the mountainous views, and even I agree that they are always something to see.
The view from atop the hill
It's always nice to get back out into nature, and sometimes I forget to take time to appreciate the beauty of where I'm living. I may only be in Vermont until 2017, who knows where I'll go after graduation. Until then, I need to make sure I embrace what's all around me. I can't curl up into a ball and try to sleep through the seasons like this caterpillar does. I need to experience it.
Friday, October 2, 2015
Learning to make a blog
Here are the directions for making a blog.
Interestingly enough, the concept of developing a blog and writing posts has come up a lot recently in my life. First and foremost in this class obviously, as it is one of my assignments. One in which I need to post at least three times a week, twice detailing my endeavors in achieving my professional goals, and once covering my personal goals. This is not a new concept to me, as I had a blog in middle school, but looking back on it, it was much more scattered throughout my life, and there was nothing linking the posts together, other than the fact that all the posts centered around my life. In this case though, this blog will have a deeper meaning, as I will be able to look back on it while I am in this period of determining who I wish to become. This semester definitely has me standing at a crossroads, with many different paths I can go down, both in the short and long term, and this will help me figure it all out.
Additionally, this idea has come up in my placement at Winooski High School, where I visit a class each Monday that is centered around community based outreach. That is, the students have identified various issues that the student body is facing, and they are working to remedy them. This is the pilot for this course, as nothing like it has been taught before at Winooski. For their first year, the students are tackling the issue of unappetizing school lunches, and difficulty accessing the school building during times of need(such as after sports practice or arriving too early on those cold Vermont mornings). Each student is to keep a blog of their progress throughout the year, following a specific format. Mainly that there are three key pieces to a successful blog and then the following posts:
1. Introduce who you are
2. Introduce the topic you will be blogging about
3. Why is that topic important to the reader?
For their first blog post, the students focused on introducing themselves, and discussing which issue they are working on and why. I was able to read all their posts and experience their points of view. I suppose that is the point of this blog, not only for myself, but for others to be prompted to do their own searching, until they find themselves.
Interestingly enough, the concept of developing a blog and writing posts has come up a lot recently in my life. First and foremost in this class obviously, as it is one of my assignments. One in which I need to post at least three times a week, twice detailing my endeavors in achieving my professional goals, and once covering my personal goals. This is not a new concept to me, as I had a blog in middle school, but looking back on it, it was much more scattered throughout my life, and there was nothing linking the posts together, other than the fact that all the posts centered around my life. In this case though, this blog will have a deeper meaning, as I will be able to look back on it while I am in this period of determining who I wish to become. This semester definitely has me standing at a crossroads, with many different paths I can go down, both in the short and long term, and this will help me figure it all out.
Additionally, this idea has come up in my placement at Winooski High School, where I visit a class each Monday that is centered around community based outreach. That is, the students have identified various issues that the student body is facing, and they are working to remedy them. This is the pilot for this course, as nothing like it has been taught before at Winooski. For their first year, the students are tackling the issue of unappetizing school lunches, and difficulty accessing the school building during times of need(such as after sports practice or arriving too early on those cold Vermont mornings). Each student is to keep a blog of their progress throughout the year, following a specific format. Mainly that there are three key pieces to a successful blog and then the following posts:
1. Introduce who you are
2. Introduce the topic you will be blogging about
3. Why is that topic important to the reader?
For their first blog post, the students focused on introducing themselves, and discussing which issue they are working on and why. I was able to read all their posts and experience their points of view. I suppose that is the point of this blog, not only for myself, but for others to be prompted to do their own searching, until they find themselves.
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