Plan of Action

Life takes action; life takes planning: in order to become the person I want to be, I will need to apply my self to every class; getting as much information as I can. Next I will need to evaluate which classes I felt a connection to and explore organizations and activities that relate to that interest. By getting involved I will be able to see what it would be like to potential have a career in that field. Then I can use the many resources U.T. offers such as advising or more specifically the Career Exploration Center to discover the many different careers or fields I might one day pursue. “Any discussion of career opportunities must first begin with an emphasis on education. The career paths that we choose or that seem to choose us are largely shaped by our educational experiences. That is why the right education and the ways in which you can match your personal interest with your academic pursuits are extremely important.”[1]

            I’m fortunate the first four classes at this University have already set a foundation for Covey’s four intelligences : mental, physical, emotional and spiritual.[2] Mentally, all my classes fuel my passion for knowledge and force me to think in new ways. Emotional intelligence is “self awareness”[3], and I’ve discovered so much about my self through this very course from analyzing my personality type, to deeply considering my passion. Just learning how to write has helped me to see the big picture: having the criteria to look at before we write our papers, we are able to start with the end in mind. We know while writing the paper we do not want to fill it with anything that doesn’t have substance or meaning; we want to use our words correctly, try and be error free, and connect everything. In the same way, I want to live the way I am learning to write: start with the end in mind. By knowing what I want to accomplish, I will be far less likely to fill my time with things that don’t have any substance towards my goal, I will try to avoid mistakes that will keep me from accomplishing my goals, and most importantly I will make connections in all aspects of my life. As the Myer-Briggs test points out: I’m an ESFJ. I know that whatever I plan do must involve people because I’m an extravert. This has made my Communication class very important because I know I will need the skills to communicate with people. This is where my emotional and social intelligence will be important. My “ability to communicate successfully with others.”[4]

            Psychology has opened my (very complex and marvelous) eyes to the astounding system of the human body and increased my physical intelligence. I’ve learned all about “what [the] body does without any conscious effort”[5]. It is so fascinating what is going on every second inside our bodies.[6] In philosophy, I have been able to explore new and exciting ways of thinking; allowing my spiritual intelligence to grow. By learning about Hinduism, I have started to think more about my soul and how I can get to the highest spiritual level. From Buddhism I’ve learned about Karma and how I should not identify with the ego. Taoist has opened my eyes to just being a part of nature and realizing that by naming something, we set limits on it. The teaching of Confucius taught me about balance. With each new spiritual view, my soul is no longer limited to one belief. I spend a lot of time thinking about each view and what I believe.  U.T. And Leadership has strengthened each of these areas. Emotionally, I have learned so much about myself by looking at my personality type and truly examining my passion and leadership views. Physically, learning about the importance of using both my left and right brain has encouraged me to make sure I’m using my brain to the fullest. Mentally and spiritually, I have learned so much new information, and sympathetic imagination has allowed me to come to respect ALL earthlings.  

For the next four years I am dedicated to each class I take. Knowing “a man reaps what he sows,”[7] I want to put in as much effort and time into my classes as I possibly can. But I am not just dedicated to my classes, because knowledge “cannot lead, it can only serve.”[8] So I have to find something that my knowledge can serve as it connects me to the world. By looking at my personality and what classes I take a particular interest in, I can narrow down what field or career I might like to have. But I cannot decide what I will do until I have tested it by getting involved with organizations and activities that will help me develop a sense of what that career would be like.

My senior year of high school I decided that because Chemistry was one of my strengths in school and I wanted to help people, I should go into the medical field. But instead of entering college a Pre-Med student, I decided to see what it was like and volunteer at Dell Children’s Hospital.  I started at the beginning of last summer and at first, I loved it! I loved that the staff seemed like one big family, as I am extremely family-orientated. I volunteered in as many areas as I could. I thought I would love the ER because it would be exciting, but it didn’t take me long to realize it wasn’t for me. Dealing with families wasn’t the easiest thing to do and I found that I did not have the patience for it. I started to spend more time in the clinic, but I found that it was hard to have patience with the children in the waiting room, and learning about therapeutic responses opened my eyes to how children think on a different level. My favorite area was the pre-op. I started helping the Child Life Specialist Jenny and Belinda with the Sunday Surgery Tours. This was fun because we got to go through all the medical equipment and procedures with the children in a fun way so they would not be scared when they came for their surgery. The most significant thing I’ve learned from Volunteering is if I ever did anything in the medical field, I would do it at a children’s hospital because it is designed to be kid-friendly and fun. It’s a much more pleasant place to be and it has an uplifting mood. But after a while, I lost the joy for it; some days, I was not in a great mood and it was very difficult put a smile on for the kids and be patient with them. I realized I could not handle the stress of the medical field. I could never be stuck in a building full of sick people every day of every week of every month of every year. Realizing that I thrive when I’m not restricted to one place or idea has helped me to realize I want the world to be my office. [9] The biggest thing I learned from the hospital is that I get tired of doing the same thing.

I have already started to look into what careers I might want to pursue by paying a visit to the Career Exploration Center. The more books I read from their library, the more I realized: I would love to work with nature because there is no limit to what I could do.  From the Career Exploration center library and a visit with Amy my wonderful college advisor, I found that there are many environmental opportunities. I can see myself now: Working with a team doing research, then informing people of the information I find because there is a “need for individuals who possess effective communication skills.”[10] Or I could take my love for helping people and use a more natural approach: healing with plants. A bolt of lightening struck the millions particles in my mind making a strong, clear, unique idea[11]: The environment appeals to all four of my capacities. [12]  A career in the environment is not limited by any means, whatever specific path I take, I will be able to fulfill my passion of interacting with people, learning more about nature, and travel through my office: Earth.

As I develop my four intelligences, I develop the person I want to be, and along the way I will discover whether or not an environmental career will help complete me and connect me. What career I choose is how I will connect my inner self to the outer world. With the world as my office, "the sky is the limit."[13]

 

Word count: 1471

Word count without quotes: 1374

URL:http://ellensview.blogspot.com/2008/10/life-takes-action-life-takes-planning.html

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[1] Fasulo, Mike, and Jane Kinney. Careers for Environmental Types & Others Who Respect the Earth. 2 ed. (Chicago: VGM Career Books, 2002), 6.

[2] Covey’s Four Human Intelligences/Capacities, in U.T. and Leadership, 42.

[3] Stephen R. Covey, “The 8^th Habit,” in U.T. and Leadership, ed. Jerome Bump (Austin: Jenn’s Copies & Binding, 2008), 42.

[4] Covey in U.T. and Leadership, 43.

[5] Covey in U.T. and Leadership, 42.

[6] http://www.humananatomy.biz/?404=Y (accessed October 30, 2008).

[7] Galatians 6:7 (New International Version).

[8] Daniel Goleman, “The Power of Emotional Intelligence,” in U.T. and Leadership, ed. Jerome Bump (Austin: Jenn’s Copies & Binding, 2008), 62.

[9] http://www.thehomeofficeorganizer.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/earth_apollo17.jpg (accessed on October 29, 2008)

[10] Fasulo and Kinney, 3.

[11] When lightning strikes sand, it can create glass. The millions of particles in mind my mind, is the sand on a beach, the idea is the glass that forms from the lightning.

[12] http://geoffc.smugmug.com/photos/46211726_62rEs-L.jpg (accessed on October 30th, 2008).

[13] Lil Wayne, “The Sky is the Limit.” http://www.metrolyrics.com/skys-the-limit-lyrics-lil-wayne.html (accessed on October 30th, 2008).

Animals and Alice

As we look at animals and humans, were does one draw the line in separating them? From Alice’s experience and our own, we can see that there are differences in how we think and feel about different subjects. Alice finds many times that she offends the animals, and it made me wonder how many times I myself have offended an animal. In order to find what separates us, we must find how the other feels, thinks, and perceives things in comparison to the way we do. Because we cannot speak with animals, we have to take everything we know about them and try to see what it is like being them. The best way to do this is sympathetic imagination: “actually entering into the object… to secure a momentary but complete identification with it.”[1] If we could only use sympathetic imagination in our daily lives we would be able to be more respectful to the other species.

            Alice does not do a very good job in being respectful to the various creatures in Wonderland. Poor Mouse was frightened many times as Alice talked about cats and dogs, and although Alice did not intend to frighten the mouse, by not imagining herself as a mouse, she could not stop herself from saying offensive things before they slipped out.[2] Alice had the advantage in Wonderland to be able to talk the animals, so just by listening to his history, she could “understand why it [was] [the mouse] hate[d] cats and dogs.”[3] We, on the other hand, cannot communicate with animals and, therefore, we are not reminded of how our actions affect them. We think nothing of harming an ant or insect, although when it comes to harming dogs or cats, we tend to “have a bias towards big mammals like us”.[4]

            We should try to be sensitive to something no matter what its size is. We should even consider how they feel being the size they are! Alice, once again, has an advantage in Wonderland as she becomes only three inches tall. The Caterpillar, also three inches tall, thinks it’s a very good height, but because Alice is not used to it, she in unable to understand how the Caterpillar feels, and because of this, she offends him by saying it is a “wretched height to be”. [5] [6] Each animal should embrace who they are, and others should respect why others feel the way they do, even if they are different and embrace their own way.

            Taking just a moment to consider what another feels can help you understand where they are coming from. An upset Pigeon accuses Alice of being a serpent.[7] Alice defends herself, for she knows she is not a serpent, but the Pigeon shares what it thinks a serpent is, giving Alice a new perspective.[8] It was such a “new idea to Alice, that she was quite silent for a minute or two”[9] as she considered the Pigeon’s view.

            I believe considering another’s view is crucial in life. Whether the view of an animal or insect, human or plant, everything deserves to be respected. By “seeking first to understand”[10] you must use empathic listening so that you “listen with your heart…for feeling, [and] for meaning.”[11] Although we do not get to experience Wonderland, where we can easily communicate with animals, we can still give them a fighting chance by placing ourselves in their paws, hooves, feet, or fins.[12] [13]

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[1] Walter Jackson Bate, “The Sympathetic Imagination in Eighteenth-Century English Criticism” in U.T. and Leadership, ed. Jerome Bump (Austin: Jenn’s Copy & Binding, 2008), 160.

[2] http://www.ebbemunk.dk/alice/08mouse_pool_of_tears.jpg (accessed October 22, 2008)

[3] Lewis Carroll, The Annotated Alice (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2000), 27.

[4] Donald G McNeil, “When Human Rights Extend to Nonhumans”, Bump, 1046

[5] Carroll, 53.

[6]http://thumbs2.modthesims2.com/img/5/0/2/5/2/MTS2_Lethe_s_669091_caterpillar-2.jpg (accessed October 22, 2008)

[7] http://www.natureman.net/files/snake_emerald_tree_boa.jpg (accessed October 22, 2008)

[8]http://www.naturalmath.com/workshops/scrapexchange/20january2004/alice1.jpg (accessed October 22, 2008)

[9] Carroll, 56.

[10] Stephen Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (New York: Fireside, 1989), 240.

[11] Covey, 241

[12] http://www.gutenberg.org/files/18525/18525-h/images/illus_p019.png (accessed October 22, 2008).

[13] http://www.rydersranch.ca/f/footprints_4.jpg (accessed October 22, 2008).

Alice guide to Surviving U.T.

As a child, we usually perceive things in simple terms, yet as we grow older, we begin to see more connections and things become so complex. It is funny to me that Alice in Wonderland is a children’s story, because as children we miss the point. Reading The Annotated Alice by Lewis Carroll has helped me to make connections to my own life here at U.T. and also it has helped me see things in a different light.

It seems like in high school I wanted “nothing but Facts,” but I’ve realized this can only get you so far.[1] Using my imagination is a freeing and challenging task that allows me to have to come up with my own thoughts and ideas. Surprisingly, I have been using my imagination more now that I am in college. Perhaps this is because, like Alice, some of the new material I’m learning seems as if “it’s all in some language I don’t know”.[2] I have to look at things differently and see them from other standpoints. Just as Alice uses the mirror, I use my imagination to think of things differently. One of the most powerful ways to see something in a different view is to try and see the view of that thing! “The sympathetic imagination is the ability of a person to penetrate the barrier which space puts between him and his object, and, by actually entering into the object, so to speak, to secure a momentary but complete identification with it.”[3] Alice startles the mouse by mentioning her cat, and he cries, “Would you like cats, if you were me?”[4] The question made me wonder if Alice really did put herself in the mouse’s view, but I assumed she didn’t because it seemed like she was only trying to get the mouse to see a different view. Maybe she would convince the mouse that her cat isn’t bad, so maybe all cats aren’t. This really stood out to me because I have realized how many different views there are here at U.T. Allowing myself to see things differently and consider other peoples opinions has opened up many new doors for me.

At the same time, I feel like so many doors are shut, and I cannot get it. Sometimes I get lost in the diversity, and I feel like I’m not special enough or I’m insignificant compared to the other 49,999 people here. At other times, I feel as though I’m a big stupid lump, just getting in everyone’s way. I’m sure Alice would agree that it isn’t a great feeling. Alice struggles with being too big and too small to get to the places she wants to go and I think that happens a lot in college as we miss judge ourselves. But in order to overcome this, I have to look inside myself and figure out what I want to achieve and why I’m here. I noticed the caterpillar didn’t care how Alice felt big or small, he only wanted to know who she was. When you get to college, you have to seriously ask yourself, “Who am I and why am I here?” When I started to think about why I was here, I realized one of the deciding factors of coming to U.T. was that my father went here. Alice says to herself, “I do hope it’s my dream, and not the Red King’s! I don’t like belonging to another person’s dream.”[5]  This made me think about the countless people who are at a school because their parents wanted them there. Although this was a similar situation for me, I made it my dream to be here. I made sure I was living for my dreams, and not the dreams of my parents.

Becoming your own person also means taking responsibility for yourself. In the first chapter of Through the Looking Glass, Carroll writes, “One thing was certain, that the white kitten had had nothing to do with it—it was the black kitten’s fault entirely.”[6]  It is so easy to place the blame on a professor or another class than it is to admit you did not take care of your work. This quote made me realize the importance of taking responsibility and being honest with yourself because it is ultimately up to you! Black or white, a kitten is an innocent kitten. You may want to blame one thing or another, but usually neither of the two is at fault.

There are so many lessons to be learned from this book that apply to the college life as well as other children’s books such as Oh, the Places You’ll Go! by Dr. Seuss. Although we sometimes miss the meanings when we are young, we can find them by carefully reading them again as young women and men.

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[1] Charles Dickens, “Hard Times” in U.T. and Leadership, ed. Jerome Bump (Austin: Jenn’s Copy & Binding, 2008), 281

[2] Lewis Carroll. The Annotated Alice. Definitive Edition. (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2000), 148.

[3] Bump, Jerome. "Sympathetic Imagination." October 5, 2007.http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~bump/302/scheduleframeset.html (accessed October 20, 2008).

[4] Carroll, 26.

[5] Carroll, 233

[6] Carroll, 137

Images:

From http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~bump/302/scheduleframeset.html

and

Dr Seuss: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n185/deblee13/Dr%2520Seuss/dr-seuss.jpg&imgrefurl=http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm%3Ffuseaction%3Duser.viewprofile%26friendID%3D54000830&h=298&w=400&sz=50&tbnid=8rAy6ajYXkoJ::&tbnh=92&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3Ddr%2Bseuss%2Boh%2Bthe%2Bplaces%2Byou%2527ll%2Bgo!&usg=__cOYDE5vLUjsw7NjoIn98w7vi6r4=&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=7&ct=image&cd=1

Turning Dreams into Realities

A hero is someone that sets out with only their goal in mind and stops at nothing to achieve it. It wasn’t until I read the various stories that I came to this conclusion. I read about different people with different goals or dreams that all came to one University and accomplished something bigger than themselves. Heroes are not limited to what already exist; they break the mold and invent new ways, new styles and they make changes when needed.

When it came to hearts, Denton Cooley saw a “whole new opportunity for [himself] as a young surgeon” (TxTell: UT Stories, Denton Cooley, X931)[1]. He knew what he wanted to do and stopped at nothing to achieve it. Performing the “first successful heart transplant in the United States” and introducing “'bloodless’ heart surgery”, Cooley paved a new way, set the bar higher, and in doing so, caused others to improve. [2] As the picture shows, the heart is complicated and one can immediately understand the medical milestone he led to. Luis Jimenez also had great influence over others, but it didn’t seem that way at first as he received negative remarks about his work. Keeping his goal in mind, he continued to do what he was passionate about and it led to his amazing “fiberglass depictions of cowboys and Indians” earning him a spot on a list of the “'most impressive, intriguing, and influential Texans’” (TxTell: UT Stories, Luis Jimenez, X935). In both situations, these men set out in their own paths to achieve something new and inspiring.[3] In this picture you can see Luis Jimenez and his the outstanding work.

The most inspiring heroes, to me, were the ones who saw were something needed to be changed and stopped at nothing to not only find a way to change it, but make that miraculous change a reality. Heman Sweatt went against all odds and fought with everything he could to bring about a radical change at the University of Texas. His dream was to go to law school at UT which would mean breaking the “racial barriers” that kept fellow African Americans from doing the same. Heman was a hero because he was striving for more than a personal goal and gave up whatever it took to achieve it. In a similar way, Leon O’Neal encouraged Julius Whittier “that the only way for Texas football to change would be for blacks to come to Texas and change it” (Texas, Our Texas, Julius Whittier, X919). [4] This helped Julius to realize that it wasn’t just about his life, but the lives of all the other talented athletes who desired to play at UT. The most significant change was brought to my attention a few weeks ago, and I was reminded of it as I read “The Times They Were A’Changing”. This change involved the whole University. Students begin to think for themselves, and in doing so changed their world. Sure, they might have been “terribly self-righteous”, but they took matters into their own hands and made their own judgments from the knowledge they gathered (Texas, Our Texas, Betty S. Flowers, X914). Betty Flowers had a huge impact on Bill Moyers who claimed she was “the person who [he] would wish to be born as” (TxTell: UT Stories, Bill Moyers, X938). Moyers was a student of hers, and he learned to write in a way that connected things that most did not see a connection in.

When I think of a hero, one name comes to mind: Martin Luther King Jr. [5] He had a dream, and he died fighting for it. In a crown of sonnets, I wrote all about Dr. King’s life:

“For a man that could compare there were none

Righteously he lived to be a good son

Everyone could see a bright burning Light

Extending a hand to those who lost sight”[6]

My dream is to be a part of something radical that inspires others to seek the truth that is hidden and question everything. I want to see my dream come true or die trying. The University of Texas has molded passionate, goal-driven people into incredible leaders and heroes, and it will continue to forever. The only question is who will be the next to rise above and make their dream come true?

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[1] Bump, Jerome. Leadership and U.T. 66540. 2, Austin: Jenn's Copy & Binding, 2008.

[2] http://blogs.indiewire.com/twhalliii/heart_med.jpg (accessed October 13, 2008).

[3] http://americanart.si.edu/eyelevel/images/jimenez_and_vaquero.jpg (accessed October 13, 2008).

[4] http://www.prizes1.com/texas%20football%20gm.jpg (accessed October 13, 2008).

[5] http://www.writespirit.net/inspirational_talks/political/martin_luther_king_talks/martin-luther-king2.jpg (accessed October 13, 2008).

[6] Hargrove, Ellen. "King of Kings." (2008):

The Next Step

As I questioned myself if I wanted to be a leader, I found that I didn’t want to at all. I then proceeded to ask myself, “Why do I no longer have the desire to lead?” “Assess[ing] how [I] feel about power” lead me to the answer (Lee, X80). Whenever I thought of leadership, I thought of power. Power is not what I want, and I have no desire to have power over anyone. Once I established this, I was able to think of leadership in a new way. I began to analyze the word in doing so found my definition of a leader. A leader is someone that leads ideas and knowledge to connect with other pieces of information, and in doing so, inspiring others to do the same. “Intellect alone will not make a leader,” but because I am passionate about my own intellect, I can use my passion to inspire and guide others (Goleman, X62). Connecting emotional with intelligence is what makes me want to be a leader!

Holmes said, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us”[1] (Covey, 96). What lies within us is our ability to connect what lies behind and ahead and this is where it all begins. Synergy “catalyzes, unifies, and unleashes the greatest powers within people” and it is the “essence of principle-centered leadership” (Covey, 262). John Newman explained that our minds connect a "view of old and new, past and present, far and near” and “has an insight into the influence of all these one on another; without which there is no whole, and no centre. It possesses the knowledge, not only of things, but also of their mutual and true relations."[2]

When we look within, and connect, we grow some much. I believe you should never stop growing, learning, or discovering yourself. “The idea is that when we take time to draw on the leadership center of our lives, what life is ultimately all about, it spreads like an umbrella over everything else” (Covey, 294). Being a leader is just a part of my life’s journey to discover, learn and grow.

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[1] Covey,Stephen. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. First Fireside ed. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989.

[2] Jerome, Bump. "Leadership." http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~bump/302/scheduleframeset.html (accessed October 8, 2008).

As I questioned myself if I wanted to be a leader, I found that I didn’t want to at all. I then proceeded to ask myself, “Why do I no longer have the desire to lead?” “Assess[ing] how [I] feel about power” lead me to the answer (Lee, X80). Whenever I thought of leadership, I thought of power. Power is not what I want, and I have no desire to have power over anyone. Once I established this, I was able to think of leadership in a new way. I began to analyze the word in doing so found my definition of a leader. A leader is someone that leads ideas and knowledge to connect with other pieces of information, and in doing so, inspiring others to do the same. “Intellect alone will not make a leader,” but because I am passionate about my own intellect, I can use my passion to inspire and guide others (Goleman, X62). Connecting emotional with intelligence is what makes me want to be a leader!

Holmes said, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us”[1] (Covey, 96). What lies within us is our ability to connect what lies behind and ahead and this is where it all begins. Synergy “catalyzes, unifies, and unleashes the greatest powers within people” and it is the “essence of principle-centered leadership” (Covey, 262). John Newman explained that our minds connect a "view of old and new, past and present, far and near” and “has an insight into the influence of all these one on another; without which there is no whole, and no centre. It possesses the knowledge, not only of things, but also of their mutual and true relations."[2]

When we look within, and connect, we grow some much. I believe you should never stop growing, learning, or discovering yourself. “The idea is that when we take time to draw on the leadership center of our lives, what life is ultimately all about, it spreads like an umbrella over everything else” (Covey, 294). Being a leader is just a part of my life’s journey to discover, learn and grow.

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[1] Covey,Stephen. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. First Fireside ed. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989.

[2] Jerome, Bump. "Leadership." http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~bump/302/scheduleframeset.html (accessed October 8, 2008).

In Pursuit

In Pursuit

If someone wants to talk about passion, look no further: My middle name is passion, literally! Passion can be defined as “Ardent love”[1], and my middle name, Arden, can be defined as “passionate”[2]. My middle name explains me very well; I am a very passionate person because my fire, my object of intense desire[3], my greatest passion, is knowledge. Knowledge leads to the truth, and “the truth will set you free”[4]. With knowledge as my passion, every single area of my life is important. Knowledge can be found in school, people, traveling, nature, current events, and most importantly, knowledge can be found within. Wherever there is knowledge, I am passionately pursuing it, which is why I am here, at such a diverse, highly knowledgeable University.

            The University of Texas is where I will begin building a credible and firm base of knowledge.  [5]I have already gained so much new information from each course, and dealing specifically with knowledge, my philosophy class has revealed the most. One of my classmates in philosophy attended Columbia University and gained a great understanding of philosophy and literature there. As we discussed whether a statement was true or false, I realized that my classmate used what she already knew about philosophy to determine the answer, so even though I might not be able to learn and know everything, the more I know, the easier it is to determine what is true and what is false. In Plato’s Meno, Meno is faced with a paradox: “If we don’t know what “X” is, how can we recognize it, and if we can’t recognize “X”, how can we learn what “X” is?”[6] If I do not know something, how will I recognize it and learn from it? The answer is, I won’t. Therefore I want to know all there is to know, and never be satisfied with the knowledge I already have. In Philosophy, some consider the sources of knowledge to be perception, inference, and reliable testimony, and although I do not believe they are the only sources, I believe they are very important ones. The one I enjoy learning from the most is testimony.

            When someone gives me a personal testimony about a subject, I learn it so much better because I am passionate about what people have to say. Whether a person is passing on information, or telling me a story, I can gain knowledge. In my personal relationships, I enjoy talking with that person and listening to them so that I may better understand and know them. My passion for knowledge leaves me with a compassion for people. I care deeply about my loved ones, and I show that by listening to their needs and getting to know them better. I know my close friends and family very well because I am so passionate about whom they are, how they feel, and why. Even if I don’t gain knowledge about a person, I enjoy gaining information from them. I am very interested in the different cultures and ways of the world, so what greater way of learning about them than by talking to the people of those cultures themselves! Knowledge can be found across the globe, and in order to learn it from the people themselves, I must travel.

            Traveling is one of the most incredible things a person can experience. All my life, people have told me to travel as much as I can. I believe traveling is so important because it allows you to gain knowledge through people, personal experiences, and perception. I have a great desire to travel rooted in my desire to gain knowledge. Learning from the people of a certain culture not only would allow me to gain knowledge, but through that knowledge, I would also gain respect for the people and place. The more you know about a place, and it’s people, the more respect you develop. Traveling allows you to have personal experience rather than read information from a book, which for me, is so much more valuable. Through perception you gain those personal experiences. This is what I am most passionate about when it comes to traveling. Personally seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, and physically being in a place are what I want to experience. Through my own senses, I can gain so much information. Being in touch with the nature of a place is an incredible experience, no matter where you go because there is so much to be learned from nature. 

            Nature is everywhere, yet so often it goes unnoticed and unappreciated. For me, nature allows me to use all my senses and knowledge of nature to appreciate it. I am so passionate about nature because it is so complex and therefore there is so much to learn. “Planet Earth” is a moving television series on the Discovery Channel that allows us to see what we never even imagined. [7] It has inspired me to learn more about how nature does what it does because by knowing how things work, I appreciate them so much more. Yet sometimes, we are tied down to definitions and names. Eckhart Tolle explains in his book, A New Earth, that, “when you are alert and contemplate a flow, crystal, or bid without naming it mentally, it becomes a window for you into the formless.”[8]  [9]This makes us have to use our perceptions to understand what something is. There is a vast amount of knowledge in nature that extends to the ends of the Universe, although I can’t make it to space, I can still learn so much.

            The universe is full of knowledge, just waiting to be discovered. [10] “Not only has it been expanding, but it is growing in complexity and becoming more and more differentiate.”[11]As my passion leads me out of my world and into the universe to gain the knowledge that awaits me, my view of life is profoundly changed. I no longer live in the world that revolves around what is going on in my life. My knowledge and awareness of the universe brings me outside my world and into a space where I am a small, and perhaps, insignificant being. I believe this is the best way to be. If I were to still be in my own little world, I would not realize the things that go on and happen outside my world, and thus I would miss out an infinite amount of knowledge. In becoming more aware with the universe I have discovered many videos and readings about what exist out there. This has led me to the knowledge that “We have been visited by highly intelligent, highly advanced, extra terrestrial beings in our very recent history, and probably as long as there have been humans on this planet.”[12] We are not alone in this universe, and this opens the door to new possibilities and knowledge. The idea that there are extra terrestrial beings has led me to discover so much new and exciting information. I am doing my own research and forming my own opinions based on the knowledge I have gained from many people’s testimonies. One of the greatest experiences I have had in my search for knowledge is using what I know to come up with what I believe and hold as truth. Finding new knowledge within myself has inspired me in ways I cannot explain.

            There is knowledge I have inside my mind and soul that I have not yet realized; it is just waiting to be discovered. It is revealed through the connection of the knowledge I am already aware of. “Your conscious mind is your deliberate level of thinking, responsible for collecting information from the environment and transferring it to the subconscious.”[13] Just knowing this has made me very passionate about connecting every piece of knowledge I have to as many other things as I can. “Hammer[ing] [my] thoughts into unity”[14] provides me with new knowledge that is self-discovered and essential to my development. The more knowledge I gain, the more knowledge I can connect. The more knowledge I can connect the more I can learn from myself, and the more I learn from myself the more I learn about myself. By gaining knowledge I am developing the person I am and what I believe defines me. Knowledge is greater than myself and it is what connects me to something greater than myself.  Although “knowledge is power,”[15] I do not strive for power, or a position of power. If I am a leader, I am one “who leads without leading”[16]. By gaining knowledge I hope to inspire others to examine their lives and ask themselves if they are satisfied with the knowledge they have. Knowledge is the passion, the fire, that lights up my world.

            Because I am passionate about knowledge, I am passionate about all things, for in every emotion, every experience and every place, there is something to be learned. Whether learned from the courses I take at the University of Texas, the people I interact with, the wonders of nature I experience, the unknown parts of the universe, or my own mind, knowledge is the most valuable thing to me. “Everything you are and everything you are to become is a result of learning.”[17] Without it, I would not be able to appreciate the wonders of life and my passion for life itself would not exist.  

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[1] Farlex, "The Free Dictionary." http://www.thefreedictionary.com/passion (accessed October 6th, 2008).

[2] "Babyfit.com." September 5, 2007.http://babyfit.sparkpeople.com/baby-names-detail.asp?name=Arden (accessed October 6th, 2008).

[3] "Merriam-Webster Online Dictonary." http://aolsvc.merriam-webster.aol.com/dictionary/passion (accessed October 6th, 2008).

[4] The Holy Bible. New International Version. New Testament. John 8:32.

[5] An inspiring picture of the UT tower representing the class of 2012

[6] Phillips, Stephen. "MENO'S PARADOX." http://asnic.utexas.edu/asnic/phillips/pages/302/menosparadox.html (accessed October 6th, 2008).

[7] http://www.planetearthseries.com/images/planet-earth-set-large.jpg

[8] Tolle,Eckhart. A New Earth. New York: Plume, 2005. (p. 5)

[9] A beautiful picture taken in California that inspired me to look at the tree without mentally naming it.

[10] http://www.ammasso.com/image/universe.jpg

[11] Tolle,Eckhart. A New Earth. New York: Plume, 2005. (p. 279)

[12] Ben Hargrove

[13] Wilson,Taylor. Mind Accelerator. London: Volition Thought House, 2003. (p. 26)

[14] William Butler Yeats (cited in Frank Tuohy, Yeats, 1976, p.51 )

[15] Francis Bacon

[16] Chinese proverb

[17] Wilson,Taylor. Mind Accelerator. London: Volition Thought House, 2003. (p. 121)

Word Count: 1575

Higher Learning is the Highlight

As an early graduate from high school, I didn’t have much time to think of where I wanted to go to college. To be honest, I applied to UT because it was the best school in Texas and I knew I could get in and afford it. I never really thought any deeper about it until I graduated high school and received my diploma. I suppose I thought I would have a sense of knowledge and accomplishment, but I was left empty. I realized my high school diploma meant nothing to me because it didn’t mean I was intelligent or I had a lot of knowledge. This caused a burning desire to LEARN, to understand knowledge and be able to use it in my life. I am so thankful I had this revelation before attending UT because it would have had a huge impact on my college education.

I am here at the University of Texas at Austin to take my education to the highest level and “to prepare [myself] to be the most successful person [I] can be” (X25).  My passion is rooted in gaining knowledge and, as John Henry Newman discovered, connecting all braches of knowledge together (X308).  

A lot of people would assume by knowledge, I am referring strictly classes, but I am not.  A university is defined as an “institution for higher learning” and that not only means in the classroom but also the social aspect outside of it (X324).  Professor Brent Iverson stated, “the University of Texas has more to offer than any University in the world, but you have to take advantage of what is here” (X25). That is why I am so glad I am at UT. It is so diverse that it opens up so many new learning opportunities. Getting involved in organizations, using the incredible libraries, getting involved in research studies, there are so many ways to achieve higher learning. For me, it is about taking classes that are interesting to me and becoming a well-rounded person as Professor Iverson suggests (X25).  I, like Lisa, am on a journey. I am learning as much as I can and although I do not know where it will end I know it will lead me to the path I need to be on.

            Using discovery learning, I am asking myself new questions and challenging myself to think from different views and in different ways. I am here to gain knowledge in every aspect of life using the tools provided by this incredible University.