Tea, Typing, and Parting Thoughts

                It’s hard to believe I’m writing yet another end-of-year blog; only one more after this, and then I’m out in the real world. As usual, I don’t feel like anything is ending, although outlining this meant pulling out my resolution sheets to once again analyze my progress this semester, which left me a little reflective. For now, it’s enough.

                My life at the moment consists of a lot of typing and a slightly alarming amount of tea – I’ve almost emptied my reserves. I’ve drafted both my final essays; I just need to revise them, take one more final, and I’m done with the year. I’ve attended a few events as well. On Thursday I attended a talk by Joe Letteri, the director of Weta Digital, which worked on everything from Lord of the Rings to Avatar to Batman v Superman. It was an interesting talk, and I enjoyed just sitting back and listening to how the digital effects were created, with illustrative clips from movies I like.

                On Friday I took a Sabbath and tried not to think about all the work I had left to do. I couldn’t seem to take an interest in any of my independent projects, though, and so I ended up spending most of the morning planning out a strategy for my ROTC billet next semester – I’m in charge of discipline and morale, which is going to be fun. I was brainstorming, and then systematizing, and somehow I ended up with a five-page document on my free day. And then I spent most of the afternoon watching animated Justice League movies. Apparently I like DC much better in animated form, although if you’d told me two weeks ago I would be watching animated superhero movies, I probably wouldn’t have believed you. Anyway, on Saturday I attended a training event for leadership in Christian Impact next semester; we heard a few talks on leading small groups and helping others develop, and then we brainstormed for next semester. It was a planning weekend.

                Before I give my reflections for the semester/year, I want to briefly overview my plans for the summer. I’ll be home most of the time, unless we plan a family trip or two. I’ll be taking a business overview course developed by Harvard; we’ll see how it goes, but I might want to entrepreneur someday, so it’s something to look into. I’ve also been accepted into the master’s program at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary; I’ll take my first course this summer, and I should finish by the time I’m out of the Navy. This isn’t so much for my future as for me; I know what I think about things, but it’s nice to put names to concepts and systematize my theology; I’m much more developed on the philosophy side of things. Oh, and one more thing – the courses are in Spanish, to add some extra spice. We’ll see how it goes. And of course, at some point in all of this I’ll be on cruise with the Navy, but I still don’t know when or where that is.

                My resolutions for the semester divided my personal development goals into three areas – internal, external, and interpersonal. The goals themselves are too many to enumerate here, but I think the categories are helpful. Internally, then, I’ve managed to be much more organized. Not only have I developed a fairly regular schedule, but I knew what I wanted to get out of the semester, besides classes, and I worked toward it. Those goals, and the vision they embody, gave me the energy to get done the things I needed to do. I have goals for my personal development and leadership during the semester, but even more than that, I have a much clearer idea of what I want to do in the future – and although it still doesn’t make much sense outside my head, it’s a source of unlimited energy.

                Externally, I still splurge more than I think is probably healthy, but I’ve gotten much better. I’ve stuck with my early to bed, early to rise schedule, and it’s served me well, though ROTC’s early-morning appointments made it less effective than it could have been. I’ve exercised more regularly than I have since high school, and my eating habits have improved. Most noticeably, nicer dress, makeup, jewelry, and etc. have become ingrained habits, which I’m happy about. I’ve also had more practice organizing logistics due to my leadership positions and a few trips into town of my own.

                Interpersonal relations are my Achilles’ heel; they take a lot of energy, and I still stick my foot in my mouth on a nearly-daily basis. This area always requires the most work, but it has to be balanced with developing the areas I actually like developing. Still, because of the opportunities I’ve had to lead and the concentrated focus on trying to be more encouraging to those around me, I think I probably notice the most progression in this area. Overall, between my leadership positions and my efforts to improve, progress is being made. There’s still a lot to be done, of course, but I can tell I’m more put-together and mature than I was at the beginning of the semester.

                Junior year has probably been the best year of college so far, and definitely so if we discount the outliers of study abroad. After the trudging work of the first three semesters and the revelatory release of study abroad, I was able to reevaluate and finally fit the pieces together. I’ve found my rhythm now, my way of organizing my life on my own; last semester I found my routine and vision, and this semester I began the drive to implement them. I’ve been very happy with the results. Maybe I’m a little late to the game, or maybe I’m a few years early; I don’t know. But I know where I’m going now, with a certainty that should outlast even the transition from college to career. We’ll see what the future holds.

Pictures: the weather alternates between beautiful sunlight and cold rain; at the moment, it's chosen the latter.

 The talk on Thursday (they didn't allow pictures during the presentation itself):

Sometimes I just have to look around and remind myself that I go to Harvard; it's difficult to remember how unattainably magical that thought used to seem.

 I eat very healthily - except for the sweet tooth.

 It's spring!

This is in one of the libraries. When you're feeling down, remember that Harvard students and faculty felt the need to write 'push' and 'pull' on their doors so as not to confuse themselves. And people still ignore the signs and push/pull the wrong way.

 This is entirely tea paraphernalia. It's a couple of inches deep.

 Until next semester, most likely! Bye for now, and see some of you very soon!