Reflections
I. An AMES Memory
II. A Reflection on a Quote
II. A Reflection on a Quote
I. An AMES Memory
When I was still a freshman,
I decided that I wanted to be an ornithologist (a scientist who studies birds).
My dad had gotten a pet cockatiel that year, and I was fascinated by it. When
it was time for registration, the counselors went around to briefly tell
us about all the different classes, and I remember that "Science
Research" stood out to me. I didn't really know how to go about becoming
an ornithologist, but "Science Research" sounded like the perfect
place to start. I didn't actually know what it was, however, so I asked my counselor
if it really would be helpful. She was so quick to say "Yes, take
it!" that I forgot to ask her to tell me more about it.
So the next year when I first sat down in the class, I actually had no idea what I was excited for. I don't know why, but I guess I didn't think to ask about it for the entire six months leading up to it either! As it turns out, "Science Research" is a class dedicated to doing science fair projects.
Honestly, it's a good thing I didn't try harder to find out what it was, because I'm not sure if I would have taken the class if I knew before. I had done a science fair project in both 2nd and 5th grade, and while the experience wasn't terrible, it was by no means fun. I really thought it was a boring waste of time that causes unnecessary stress. I remember the previous year, when a friend and I saw that the school science fair was going on in one of the classrooms, she said, "I'm glad I'm not such a nerd that I have to do a science fair project." I didn't necessarily think there was something wrong with being "nerdy," but I wasn't really interested in the fair either. However, I did wonder to myself how they even got involved in it, as I hadn't heard anything about it until then.
Now I had found myself a part of it on accident! And I thought that the irony was a little funny. However, my counselor had been so adamant that I should take the class; I decided it wouldn't hurt to give it a try. After all, it'd be great to put on resumes and applications. Besides, if there was an entire class devoted to it, it was surely going to be much more organized... and therefore, much less stressful.
I was wrong.
What makes elementary school fairs stressful is that the kids don’t actually know what they are doing. They might get help from parents, but they might not, so a lot of them are left to do a lot of guesswork with no feedback. High school fairs, on the other hand, are stressful because they're actually professional. The first few weeks were especially hard, because unless you already had an idea for a project (which I obviously didn't), you have to spend that time scrambling to think of something that you are both interested in and is at least somewhat original. Basically, NO baking soda volcanoes allowed.
Once you choose an idea, it gets much easier. You have to spend a lot of time doing research to help refine and narrow down your topic, and also so that you can start your Research Plan. Once you have get your Research Plan completed and approved, you can start experimentation! By the time you start experimentation, you’re halfway done with the project, so it’s always very refreshing when you finally can dive into it. Experimentation can take a lot of time or very little depending on the project, but after it’s completed, all that’s left is to analyze the data. Oh, and of course you still get to make a pretty poster! That’s one of my favorite parts.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that I really like the science fair. Even though I still like birds, I don’t really care to be an ornithologist now, but I still think I got a lot out of it. That’s why I took it again during my senior year. Unfortunately, my second project didn’t turn out very well. I had a great idea, but due to problems such as switching projects in the middle of the year, I wasn’t able to get much of it done. However, I don’t regret participating again.
Public speaking used to be incredibly scary to me. Not only would I be anxious before and during a presentation, it would take me at least ten minutes afterwards to relax. The first time I did a science fair project, presenting to judges was extremely nerve-wracking. However, despite not having a completed project the second time, I wasn’t nervous at all, just very excited! I realized that I had still learned a lot from developing the project, so I decided to just be excited to share that with the judges, and I got a lot of praise for my enthusiasm. I know that the science fair isn’t the reason that I overcame my fear of public speaking, but I do think it helped. And even if it didn’t, I think it’s still an experience worth having.
So the next year when I first sat down in the class, I actually had no idea what I was excited for. I don't know why, but I guess I didn't think to ask about it for the entire six months leading up to it either! As it turns out, "Science Research" is a class dedicated to doing science fair projects.
Honestly, it's a good thing I didn't try harder to find out what it was, because I'm not sure if I would have taken the class if I knew before. I had done a science fair project in both 2nd and 5th grade, and while the experience wasn't terrible, it was by no means fun. I really thought it was a boring waste of time that causes unnecessary stress. I remember the previous year, when a friend and I saw that the school science fair was going on in one of the classrooms, she said, "I'm glad I'm not such a nerd that I have to do a science fair project." I didn't necessarily think there was something wrong with being "nerdy," but I wasn't really interested in the fair either. However, I did wonder to myself how they even got involved in it, as I hadn't heard anything about it until then.
Now I had found myself a part of it on accident! And I thought that the irony was a little funny. However, my counselor had been so adamant that I should take the class; I decided it wouldn't hurt to give it a try. After all, it'd be great to put on resumes and applications. Besides, if there was an entire class devoted to it, it was surely going to be much more organized... and therefore, much less stressful.
I was wrong.
What makes elementary school fairs stressful is that the kids don’t actually know what they are doing. They might get help from parents, but they might not, so a lot of them are left to do a lot of guesswork with no feedback. High school fairs, on the other hand, are stressful because they're actually professional. The first few weeks were especially hard, because unless you already had an idea for a project (which I obviously didn't), you have to spend that time scrambling to think of something that you are both interested in and is at least somewhat original. Basically, NO baking soda volcanoes allowed.
Once you choose an idea, it gets much easier. You have to spend a lot of time doing research to help refine and narrow down your topic, and also so that you can start your Research Plan. Once you have get your Research Plan completed and approved, you can start experimentation! By the time you start experimentation, you’re halfway done with the project, so it’s always very refreshing when you finally can dive into it. Experimentation can take a lot of time or very little depending on the project, but after it’s completed, all that’s left is to analyze the data. Oh, and of course you still get to make a pretty poster! That’s one of my favorite parts.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that I really like the science fair. Even though I still like birds, I don’t really care to be an ornithologist now, but I still think I got a lot out of it. That’s why I took it again during my senior year. Unfortunately, my second project didn’t turn out very well. I had a great idea, but due to problems such as switching projects in the middle of the year, I wasn’t able to get much of it done. However, I don’t regret participating again.
Public speaking used to be incredibly scary to me. Not only would I be anxious before and during a presentation, it would take me at least ten minutes afterwards to relax. The first time I did a science fair project, presenting to judges was extremely nerve-wracking. However, despite not having a completed project the second time, I wasn’t nervous at all, just very excited! I realized that I had still learned a lot from developing the project, so I decided to just be excited to share that with the judges, and I got a lot of praise for my enthusiasm. I know that the science fair isn’t the reason that I overcame my fear of public speaking, but I do think it helped. And even if it didn’t, I think it’s still an experience worth having.
II. A Reflection on a Quote
"I don't believe you have to be better than everybody else.
I believe you have to be better than you ever thought you could be."
Ken Venturi
Because everyone is different, and there's always going to be someone better than you at anything, trying to be the best is pretty vain, as well an unfair thing to do to yourself. However, there is nothing wrong with trying to be your best.
I think self-improvement is very important; fun, even! I'm sure everyone finds themselves struggling with self-confidence and/or disliking who they are at some point or other. However, there's beauty in that, because it allows you to learn to love yourself, and therefore, not take it for granted. It is so nice to discover that you can count yourself as a friend, rather than just an acquaintance (or even enemy).
Calling back to that idea of being your own friend, it is important to be able to count on friends, family, and coworkers when you need to, but it's even more important to be able to count on yourself. You are your greatest ally. If you want to be able to fulfill your dreams or even just be happy on a day to day basis, you have to trust in your own abilities, know you're responsible enough to do what needs to be done, and know where your limits are so that you can get help instead of setting yourself up to crash and burn.
If you know who you are now, then you can see where you want to improve. As you grow up, you're asked many times who your hero is. Other people have so many wonderful qualities, and discovering theirs' is not only fun, but can give you a better idea of who you want to be.
Now, don't get confused. I'm not saying that you should look at other people and wish you were like them. No. Be like yourself, but with new traits and abilities that you develop for the sake of bettering yourself. Excuse me for the Pokémon reference, but it makes a good metaphor. When a Pokémon evolves, it supposedly becomes a totally new creature. However, it's still the same on the inside. And couldn't you say that it's better than it was before? It's experiences helped it to learn and grow so that it can now do all sorts of things it could never have dreamed of before. That's what people are like. Even if they seem totally different, they're not; they've just increased their potential.
That's what I like about religions. There's a common theme of love (IE loving other people, loving yourself), and being a good person, being your best. True, many terrible things have been done in the name of religion, but I don't think it's right to judge a religion based on the mistakes of members. People excel at making mistakes, and religion is supposed to help guide them, and therefore, minimize mistakes.
I hope everyone can experience what it feels like to realize that you can actually say that you are the person you want to be; whether it's who you've always wanted to be, or you realized you like who you were all along, or something in between. Loving yourself eliminates a lot of stress, and I think even makes everything easier and more fun. And once you get there, then you can follow the advice from the above quote, and continue to challenge yourself "to be better than you ever thought you could be"! So fun!
I think self-improvement is very important; fun, even! I'm sure everyone finds themselves struggling with self-confidence and/or disliking who they are at some point or other. However, there's beauty in that, because it allows you to learn to love yourself, and therefore, not take it for granted. It is so nice to discover that you can count yourself as a friend, rather than just an acquaintance (or even enemy).
Calling back to that idea of being your own friend, it is important to be able to count on friends, family, and coworkers when you need to, but it's even more important to be able to count on yourself. You are your greatest ally. If you want to be able to fulfill your dreams or even just be happy on a day to day basis, you have to trust in your own abilities, know you're responsible enough to do what needs to be done, and know where your limits are so that you can get help instead of setting yourself up to crash and burn.
If you know who you are now, then you can see where you want to improve. As you grow up, you're asked many times who your hero is. Other people have so many wonderful qualities, and discovering theirs' is not only fun, but can give you a better idea of who you want to be.
Now, don't get confused. I'm not saying that you should look at other people and wish you were like them. No. Be like yourself, but with new traits and abilities that you develop for the sake of bettering yourself. Excuse me for the Pokémon reference, but it makes a good metaphor. When a Pokémon evolves, it supposedly becomes a totally new creature. However, it's still the same on the inside. And couldn't you say that it's better than it was before? It's experiences helped it to learn and grow so that it can now do all sorts of things it could never have dreamed of before. That's what people are like. Even if they seem totally different, they're not; they've just increased their potential.
That's what I like about religions. There's a common theme of love (IE loving other people, loving yourself), and being a good person, being your best. True, many terrible things have been done in the name of religion, but I don't think it's right to judge a religion based on the mistakes of members. People excel at making mistakes, and religion is supposed to help guide them, and therefore, minimize mistakes.
I hope everyone can experience what it feels like to realize that you can actually say that you are the person you want to be; whether it's who you've always wanted to be, or you realized you like who you were all along, or something in between. Loving yourself eliminates a lot of stress, and I think even makes everything easier and more fun. And once you get there, then you can follow the advice from the above quote, and continue to challenge yourself "to be better than you ever thought you could be"! So fun!