WEEKLY REFLECTION
The Roots
Every week I am to write a reflection on the following:
-One event that I worked that had a particular impact on me.
-One event that I felt I was able to impact in some way through servant leadership.
-Something I have recently covered in one of my courses.
WEEK 1 (August 21st-25th)
This week was the beginning of a hectic semester. Not only did I have to adjust being back into school and work and things, I also had to adjust to my new role as a student ambassador. I worked my first two events this week, Sweets with the SOLs and Wear Red, Get Fed. The event that had the most effect on me was Sweets with the SOLs. It was so nice to see all of the students from orientation and I having all of them come up to me and greet me, so excited and full of life. It really filled my heart with joy. By participating in Wear Red, Get Fed, I felt as though, I really made an impact. I was able to show servant leadership, by getting students to participate and be spirited simply by passing out pizza. Recently, I covered the topic of the causes of crime in America in my Criminology course. I thought the topic was really interesting and it made me excited for this upcoming course, because the topic is something that has sparked my interest in career paths for year.
WEEK 2 (August 28th-Sep. 1st)
This week I found it especially difficult to be motivated. I am not sure whether its the dreary weather or what, I just felt as though I was not particularly helpfully in the events I was involved in. This week I worked the Fall Resource Fair, it really impacted me, by helping me realize how lucky I am to have this position. Having so many students coming up to me and asking how they can get to where I am made me understand how fortunate I was. I did not feel as though I had any particular impact on the event, rather than sharing information and steps to help students understand how to become a Student Ambassador. Something I covered in one of my courses this week was in my Nutrition and Health class, I found out that organic foods are not always the best option.
WEEK 3 (September 4-8)
I had a lot of fun working the Fall involvement fair, it reminded me a lot of why I wanted to become an ambassador in the first place. I got to interact with students and make them smile and have fun with everyone. Working cotton candy with Emma was tons of fun and really made me realize what servant leadership is. One thing I learned in my English Composition class is the relationship between discourse and community.
Week 4 (September 11-15)
The highlight of my week was working the Guidance Counselors breakfast. I was really nervous beforehand because I have struggled with public speaking for a long time. Before we started I was having a mini panic attack because I did not know what I was going to talk about or how I was going to say it. However, once I got up there and I started talking about my experiences at UCBA, the words just started to flow with ease. I felt relaxed once I made the audience laugh and smile. All the compliments that I received really brightened my day.
FUN FACT OF THE WEEK: More people died at the hands of toddlers than at the hands of muslim people last year.
Week 5 (September 18-22)
This week was kind of hard mostly because I was sick most of the week. I tried to push through as much as I could. But I did have a pretty successful week besides the fact that I missed an event. I had a lot of fun at Dish With The Dean, I did not do much at the Applied Administration table, I really enjoyed listening to people have discussions with the dean, I thought it was really interesting. I really enjoyed participating in the Cross College Student Panel, I am starting to like public speaking a lot more. I enjoy talking about my experiences and making the audience giggling.
FUN FACT OF THE WEEK: Excess protein is stored in your body to be turned into energy, too much excess protein turns into fat.
Week 6 (September 25th-29th)
This week was a very busy week for me. I had some one on one time with Emma where we talked about our pasts and shared old facebook pictures with each other, it was a lot of fun. I had my first meeting with Jessyka where we talked about our plans with my position as club manager and all the tasks I had to go over. I also attended my first strategic planning meeting, that was really interesting. I do not know what everyone was really talking about but I was trying my best to understand and follow along with all of the discussions. The 50th Anniversary Gala was the kicker of all the events. Personally, I had a lot of fun, however, some of the other ambassadors had a problem that we were not treated as equals during the event and that we were simply just kicked to the side. I felt the same way, but it did not bother me as much because I was having such a good time being with my fellow ambassadors. During the event I had a one on one with Charlotte where we talked and compared our personal struggles with one another. UC Smiles was so much fun for me, I had a lot of fun with the ambassadors and I love working with kids, I was so happy the entire time, even after I got sick from eating the kid's lunch food. I also found out that poster hanging is a lot more difficult than it seems! Overall, this was a pretty good week for me, I just really enjoyed a lot of the things I did this week.
FUN FACT OF THE WEEK:
Week 7 (October 2nd-6th)
This week I had another club manager meeting where I started to get some of my tasks done like updating OrgSync. I helped out with the emergency preparedness seminar, even though we were not really needed. This event showed me what it really meant to be a servant leader. There was a lot of down time during the event so I had a one on one with Ludwing where we talked about our futures and our upcoming business endeavors. It was a really interesting and fun conversation! Open House was... a lot. At first I was having a lot of fun blowing up balloons and preparing for the event, however, once we reached the actual event it became very stressful. I had issues with work, people were yelling at me and everyone was yelling at me. It really started to stress myself out. But eventually everything worked out and the event ended up being tons of fun. The study Abroad Luncheon was really cool for me. I got to eat really good cookies and I learned about the upcoming classes that I am really interested in. I also got to speak about my experiences in Australia which is one of my favorite things to do! Overall, this week was a bit stressful but I go through it.
FUN FACT OF THE WEEK:
Week 8 (October 11th-13th)
This week really threw me off of my game. I only had one event this week and that was the French Film Festival. I was so stressed out about homework and school work that I was late to the event and I really feel as though I did not put my best foot forward this week. But things can only get better, right?
Week 9 ( October 10th-20th)
BOY am I excited that this week is over! It was so hectic! So many events, it was homecoming week, schoolwork was piling up it was so much, but I made it through! During my welcome desk shift I had a really meaningful one on one with Mackenzie. It happened so naturally, we just started talking about our future plans that we were both so excited for. We talked about where we wanted to live, what we wanted to do and even what kind of cars we wanted to have. I really enjoyed talking to her especially because I feel as though I do not get to talk to her as much as the other ambassadors. I also had a one on one with Meghan that happened pretty naturally, we just started talking as we usually do, about our lives and relationships just the normal, I always love talking to Meghan. TAG Day was a lot of fun, even though it was kind of frustrating trying to explain the concepts to students who were not really interested in doing any work and just wanted free stuff. However, I enjoyed myself, I love working with Emma and Tessa and those cakepops were pretty good. The Clark Montessori visit was interesting, I feel like I am getting worse at tours, i feel like none of the students really cared about being there or what I was saying, it was a bit disheartening. The Johnathan Rapping event was really the highlight of my week. As a criminal justice student who had already had a passion to be a defense lawyer, I was recently having some doubts about being a defense lawyer because of personal reasons and thoughts. Johnathan Rapping made me realize the importance of public defenders and defense lawyers in general, I felt almost reborn after his event, I have a whole new drive now.