How I've Grown and What I've Learned

Over the past 3 months, I have gained a lot of knowledge by being involved in the Hixson program. I have been given resources I am able to use over the next 3 and half years. I have also been shown people that are here to help as well. Most importantly though, I have seen a huge growth in myself in just these short past months. 

First and foremost, the information given to me about Iowa State University has been more than beneficial. We've been shown things like the National Student Exchange Program, which I found most intriguing, that most people on campus probably do not know about. A big thing that we learned during classes was about the hundreds, if not thousa33333nds, of opportunities on campus. Whether it's a Spring Break "short trips" or having students that are involved in various clubs come talk to us. I particularly enjoyed hearing from these older Hixsons and students because it enabled me to see how involved I can become in the next few years. I've also got to learn many of the Iowa State traditions and the history of my university that I did not know about before.

Secondly, I've found people that are willingly to help guide me through this year at Iowa State as well as my next few years. In my last blog, I also mentioned these people, but I feel like it ties in here too. I believe that the relationships you form can make or break you. Obviously, all the people associated with the Hixson program are going to help! I've heard a ton from people this year that it's all about who you know and I think I know some of the best people on campus. 

Finally, I've seen myself grow a ton. At first, college was very scary as well as exciting. I have never had this much freedom and control of what I really need to do for myself. I've fully grasped the concept that everything I do now is for myself and if I want something done, I'm going to have to take the initiative to do it myself. For example, the Hixson program is willing to give me funding for tutoring if I ever need it. Although I have never used tutoring in the past, I might need it at some point and will have to be the one to seek out the help. No one is here reminding me to studying and turn in assignments it's all on me now.

I am very thankful for the Hixson program and all that it has done for me in just the last 3 months. My future is brighter because of this generous help and I look forward to staying involved with the program as well as in contact with my fellow Hixson recipients. 

The Hixson Award

Receiving the Hixson Opportunity Award was a huge surprise to me, but one that I gratefully accepted. I live in Scott County which means I was up against all the students from bigger schools in Davenport and Bettendorf, so I can't say I thought my odds were really with me. I applied for the scholarship anyways because I met all of the qualifications and just saw it as a way to get a little extra help with paying for my education. Little did I know that it would be helpful in many more ways, other than just financially.

First of all, it provided me with a place to go when I need to study in peace and quiet or get away from things for a while. The Hixson building is perfect for me because it's right across the street from my dorm and it's quiet! I can even go there 24/7 if I need to! I study there more than any place on campus. The lab is incredibly helpful in that I don't have to take my laptop with me and create unneeded distractions for myself with social media. I can just grab a desktop for a minute or two if I need it and then get back to reading and studying. I always get stuff done when I'm over in the Hixson building.

Academically, being a Hixson is great. There are people that I can talk to if I'm struggling in a class and they truly want to help. Although I am a part of Iowa State's biggest freshman class, I don't feel like just a number, like many in the past said I would. Between the one-on-one meeting at the beginning of the year with Debra and the two-on-ones with my peer mentors, I've figured out that these people are there for me, especially my peer mentors. They were in my shoes just a few years ago and probably know what I'm going through for the most part. Additional help with academics is available because I can get a tutor if I need one for cheaper than most students. I have yet to use this service, but am looking into because I have a pretty tough schedule next semester and every bit of help with be beneficial.

Finally, by being a Hixson I have met great people that I probably wouldn't have met otherwise. Over the past couple of months, I have really gotten to know the people in my group and become friends with them. The other night I actually went and played volleyball with one of the girls. I can't say I have done that with anyone else from my actual classes. Seminar each week is great in that I usually sit by someone different that is from a different section so I get to learn a little about them, too!

Obviously, however, the biggest help did come financially. Because of the Hixson award, I will not have to take out a loan for this first year of school and hopefully, if everything goes well, the next three years. Talk about a relief! Graduating college without debt, or at least minimal debt, is a huge goal of mine. I will forever be grateful for the contribution Christina made toward my education and for the opportunity she has given me to provide myself with a future full of potential. If there is one lesson I learned from receiving the Hixson Award, it is to go after something you want. I may have thought that getting this award was a long shot, but sometimes all you need is that one chance. It may not work out every time, but when it does, it will be worth it.  

The Real Dirt on Farmer John

For my Go! Diversity event, I attended the viewing of the documentary of The Real Dirt on Farmer John. The main focus of the documentary was the struggles of John Petersen and how he overcame them to create a successful organic farm in northern Illinois. I learned a lot about the different farming crises that have hit our country over the years as well as how changing his location for periods of time helped him. His story was full of adversity, but thankfully, ended happily. Although, I am not from or particularly interested in the agriculture field, I found many areas where I could relate to John.

First, I saw him learning the ins and outs of farming from his father, who learned his skills from his father. Their farm was a huge family operation that dated back for many years. This reminded me of the background that my mom came from. Her whole family was self-sufficient farmers. From stories, I've heard about their animals, old machinery, garden, and chores. My grandpa is 86 years old, but he still will go out to his farm every day to do something, although my two uncles have taken over now. In the documentary, John's family was proud to have gotten through the Great Depression. I have also heard my mom talk about this. My grandparents made it through as well and now they spend very little money, even though they are actually very wealthy. My mom says it's because of their old habits and their fear of the Great Depression happening again. Basically, for the whole first part of the movie, I was thinking of my grandparents!

Next, I saw him go through college. Obviously, a time in his life that I can relate to very well right now. Because of the difference in time periods, however, our experiences differ greatly. He went to a college close to home because he was still tied down to his farm. I had the freedom to go wherever I felt like because I was tied to nothing. So I choose to be over one hundred and fifty miles away. Secondly, he went to college during the "Hippie" era, so he was very much into art. He would bring his friends back to his farm and they would help him out. They also redid many of the structures on the farm so they were more artistic. My college experience doesn't involve much agriculture or art, just a lot of studying and science! I think it's safe to say we are two diverse college students.

Finally, going back to me leaving my hometown for college, John did something similar. When things got really bad on the farm, he would up and leave. He would go down to Mexico or South America and do farming there. He liked it because there, hands were still touching the soil, seeds, and crops, unlike back in America where machinery was doing all of the work. This lead him to his most recent venture of agriculture. When he returned home, to a much smaller farm (he had to sell most of the land to pay off debts), he decided to turn his farm into an organic farm for many reasons. He loved the crops and the work it took to do it manually without fertilizer or chemicals. This operation also reconnected him with his mother, who had grown very elderly by this point, by allowing her to run a stand that sold his chemical-free crops. As a dietetics major, I love the idea of organic foods. I understand how fertilizers and chemicals make for a more efficient production and will keep the cost of produce down, but I still like the idea of staying away from harmful chemicals that could potentially have fatal health risks.

Overall, by attending The Real Dirt on Farmer John, I saw something different, something that otherwise would not have crossed my path. There are many, many differences between the life of Farmer John and my life, but I was still able to find similarities in between. This just goes to show that even if we think that we are so much different from each other, even polar opposites, there just might be one or two things that we have in common. This makes for a successful world because of the different ideas we all come up with. Diversity will forever be beneficial, as long as we all respect one another and our ideas.

Diversity

I have always know that diversity is important for our country, especially considering that we are a nation made up of immigrants. But to be honest, before this year, I had not experienced a whole lot of diversity. I come from small town Iowa, where most everyone is white and have conservative beliefs. To put that into another perspective, I graduated with all white classmates. So although I knew diversity existed, I hadn't particularly been exposed to it on a day to day basis.

With that said, I felt the presentation that was given last Tuesday was very informative. After I wrote my introductory paragraph, I remembered how diversity doesn't necessarily just mean what race or ethnicity a person is. So I think that was the major thing I took away from the lecture. Diversity can also mean sexual orientation, gender, and religious affiliations among other things.

So thinking back to my views on diversity in high school and my views now, they have definitely changed and I would say in a good way. Although Iowa State is still made up of many small town Iowa kids like me, we have a ton of different people! Something that proves that is the number of clubs we have here. I think I once heard over 800? With that in mind, I'm sure there are clubs here that I would never be interested in joining and I'm sure there is someone here that wouldn't want to be a part of a club that I am in. But that is completely fine! One of my favorite parts of being a part of such a big university is all the different people I've met and gotten to know. Sure, some are similar to people I went to high school with, but others are just polar opposites.

I think this diversity is essential to our culture and education because without it, life would be boring! We would go about every day agreeing with each other and nothing would get accomplished. For example, if we were all like me and hated blood, needles, and surgery, who would be our doctors? Who would find cures to diseases? Like I mentioned earlier, our country was made up of immigrants hundreds of years ago and still today, new people are coming in from other countries daily that improve our schools, businesses, and health care.

Finally, I think that it is one of the worst things in the world when people stereotype and judge people based on their appearances and beliefs. Unfortunately, we all do it. I think it's important that we all work on this because we have all probably lost so many potential friends by just passing by them and not getting to know them. By getting to interact with people of all different backgrounds daily, I'm sure you would be able to learn more about yourself as well! Most importantly, just respect each other. I don't think anyone would ask for anything more than respect and a chance.

Social Media Week

For social media week, I choose to use a Twitter account to connect with other Hixsons, Iowa State organizations, and professionals in my career path. I have been on Twitter for about a year and a half, but I have never thought of it as a way to connect with professionals and organizations, but rather as a way to connect with my friends and share some of my experiences and thoughts. By engaging in this week, I have seen how beneficial social media can be, rather than just a time waster. I think online social media gets a bad reputation most of the time, particularly by the older generations. I don’t think they fully understand just how helpful it has been in today’s age of technology or what its total capabilities are.  To be completely honest, I didn’t even know some of its capabilities and I’m a frequent user!

The articles really showed me how effective having a social media account, particularly Twitter, can be for finding a career. It’s an easy way to find potential employers and a way to give them an idea of who you are. It’s pretty easy to Google search anyone’s name and find what websites they are a part of.  For that reason, it’s extremely important to know what your online identity looks like and how you want it to look. I know too many people that use their accounts to vent about people they don’t like, to share where they drank at, or to curse about anything and everything. As far as I’m concerned, that does not look professional and you could share that by text message to a close friend if you really need to tell someone. That way, it’s between the two of you and not between you and Twitter’s other million users. 

Social media can also be helpful when trying to spread news fast. In one of the articles, I read about how certain countries, like Mexico, use it share important messages. This makes a lot of sense to me because things on Twitter always seem to spread like wild fire. Most people check their accounts at least once every few hours, but people usually watch one newscast a day. Retweets from news stations like CNN, make it easy to know that you are getting reliable information and you don’t have to worry about hearing it from one someone else who may or may not know all of the facts. Another organization, FEMA, went to Twitter to inform those affected by Hurricane Irene about when or if they should evacuate, when it was safe to go back, and how to get help if needed.

  

Finally, I read another article that talked about something different than just how social media can be helpful for you. They took the opposite perspective and talked about how Facebook, a very popular website, can hurt you by making you become annoyed with your friends. Personally, I deal with this daily as some of my friends seem to post statuses about unimportant and somewhat stupid things. In other circumstances, people will post things that they would be too shy or embarrassed to say in person.  For whatever reason, there is an increased confidence level when there is a computer screen between you and the person that you could be attacking. Cyber bullying is a huge issue that many are trying to raise awareness for. Hopefully, it will be stopped as it negatively affects too many young kids. 

In conclusion, I think that social media will be what you make of it. If you want to use it as a professional account, watch what you say and make a positive image for yourself. If you want to use it to just connect with old friends that is great too. Just remember that it has your name on it and can easily be found by any and all future employers. 

MBTI

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator evaluation is something that I had done in the past, but it was a very long time ago in middle school. It was awesome to have the opportunity to re-do the evaluation and see how my personality has changed since I was younger. My type was Extraversion, Sensing, Feeling, and Judging, or ESFJ. I liked how we got the statistics of each type so I was able to see that I am similar to 12.3% of the total population and 16.9% of the female population. My personality type is also fairly common when compared to the other 2012 Hixson Scholars. 14 of us are ESFJ’s!

The first letter in my personality type combination is the one that surprised me the most. I am a self-determined Introversion for the sole reason that I love to be alone because that is when I do my best work and get the most done. However, as I thought about it, I think I am more of an Extraversion when I am around others. I’ve always been the type of person who starts conversations with strangers and is the leader of a group. This trait is something that I must have been developing throughout these years and has definitely emerged more now that I am interacting with new people every day.

The Sensing and Feeling types did not surprise me as much because I have always been methodical and considerate. I’m happier with learning facts in chronological order rather than hearing ideas that are just thrown out. I can think of a particular example of this. In high school, my chemistry teacher would lecture for most of the class period on stuff that we had never worked with before and that was very advanced. Then, he would always end the class by saying, it’s okay if you don’t understand this because it’s very abstract and it will all come together in the end. I hated that class. I would rather learn key facts first and build off of that so that I always feel like I know what is going on. As for the way I make decisions, it has always been the Feeling type for me. I care a lot about other people and how I affect them, so even though they may not be the most logical decisions sometimes, I would rather sacrifice the “smart” decision for the more thoughtful one.

Finally, I am a Judging person, but according to the Preference Clarity Index, I am not a very strong Judging person. However, I would say I am. I love making to-do lists and getting stuff done. I plan out my days and know what I will get done each day. I guess I could see how I am sometimes a more Perceiving person because while I know what I am doing tomorrow or the day after that, I am terrible at making plans for the weekend or month ahead. Sometimes going with the flow is more convenient for me.

Overall, I think my ESFJ type is accurate. The snapshot that we received for our types said that I am helpful, personable, loyal and stable, organized, and focused on the present. It’s almost scary how well that fits me. I know a lot of all people have said it scares them, but I think it’s amazing how someone came up with this. It’s very helpful because it gives you a sense of what your strengths and weaknesses are so you are able to improve yourself and in our case, our learning abilities while we are at Iowa State.  

Before It's Over, I Will..

"Don't blink, life goes faster than you think." --Kenny Chesney

I think of any age group, we are told the most how fast time goes and how we're going to miss what we have at the moment. I don't know about any of you, but I heard "Senior year goes by so fast" about eight hundred times last year. At the time, I took it as a grain of salt because as far as I was concerned, college was going to be the time of  my life and high school was worthless. Looking back, there are tons of things that I do miss about high school, but don't get me wrong, college is great. With that said, here is a list of things I will make sure I do before my time here at Iowa State is gone in order to make unforgettable memories!

The Iowa State Bucket List
-Take a picture with Cy
-Lose my voice at Jack Trice and Hilton
-Participate in intramurals
-Eat a Superdog
-Get kissed under the Campanile
-VEISHEA
-Pull an all-nighter
-Graduate

Alright, so the first couple of things are something all ISU students will do at some point, but they're a little difficult for me because I am a born and raised, proud Hawkeye fan and Cy creeps me out! I have yet to go to Jack Trice for a game so this weekend's game will be my first time and I will be wearing cardinal and gold, the forbidden colors of my past. I can only hope that I will be at a game like last year's Oklahoma State upset where I get to rush the field and feel like a true Cyclone.

The next few are all fun stuff. I played sports all throughout high school, so naturally I want to continue to compete and make new friends through intramurals. It wouldn't hurt if I got a coveted champion t-shirt to show off around campus, too. Normally, I would say no to all hot dogs offered, but all of my friends that grew up around here told me that I have to a Superdog so I guess I'll have to trust them so I can say I've had one. Getting kissed under the Campanile at midnight is something that I'm sure every Iowa State girl will have on their Bucket List because like they say, you're not a true Iowa Stater until you've done it, plus it's really romantic! Finally, I want to experience VEISHEA. At this point, I have no idea what it is except for a huge party, but I have heard there are a ton of things to do that week so I'm excited to find out what they all are.

My last two have to do with why I'm here, school. Pulling an all-nighter doesn't sound at all fun to me, but the idea of pulling a necessary all-nighter to get an A on an exam sounds fine. I'm sure an all-nighter will be easy to accomplish because I've already noticed the homework and studying piles up fast. Of course, most importantly, I want to graduate from Iowa State with a Bachelor's Degree in Dietetics in four years. I want to leave this place with a huge amount of new friends, contacts, and an all important dietetic internship so I can continue on into my career path of being a registered dietitian.

As we all know, after college is the daunting "real world", where we have to get jobs and officially be on our own. Being a girl who loves her independence, this excites me a lot more than it scares me. There is so much to do, but we seemingly have so little time when you factor in your job, family, and other commitments. With that said, there are a few things I want to make sure I squeeze in wherever possible.


The Life Bucket List
-Travel
-Go to the Olympics
-Meet someone famous
-Attend a major sporting event
-Fall in love and have a family
-Love my career
-Be happy and make a difference

Starting off my list is the fun stuff. I've always loved traveling, but I've only been to other states, never out of the country. Another fun fact: I've never been on an airplane! Of all places, I want to go to London. I think it's a beautiful city and I'm obsessed with the royal family. Recently, I was hit with Olympic fever so I would love to see some of those events and maybe meet someone famous there. Or I could meet them at a major sporting event, whether it's a Super Bowl where I'm cheering on my favorite team, the New Orleans Saints, or some kind of NCAA championship, hopefully for the Hawkeyes! I apologize to all you true Cyclones out there, but once a Hawkeye, always a Hawkeye!

My last things on my list are more serious. First, I want to fall in love and have a family. I grew up in a big family, three brothers and sisters and about fifty cousins, so I want about four kids. I also want to love my career. Right now, that would be as a dietitian, but a stay-at-home mom wouldn't be bad either! If it's not either of those, I just want to end up somewhere where I am happy and do not dread going to work everyday. It would also be a bonus if I was in a career where I can make a difference in at least one person's life.

 Most importantly, in college and for the rest of my life, I want to love my life and live every day like it is my last because some people aren't able to do all things I can. I'm sure I will be crossing off things on these lists and adding some too, but I just want to be able to look back on my life and know time was not wasted!

A Lot More Than A Game

"To succeed...You need to find something to hold on to, something to motivate you, something to inspire you." --Tony Dorsett

Have you ever wanted something so badly that you would do almost anything to achieve it? Have you ever failed at reaching this goal, but ended up feeling like it was one of the best days you could think of? If I had to pick one time where I felt like I was at my best, it would be during my last high school basketball game. The odd thing about that is that we ended up losing the game. It probably doesn't make a lot of sense to you so I will explain.

I began to play basketball during the fourth grade, when I just wanted to be with my friends and maybe make a couple baskets, nothing more. Fast forward to high school, where I found myself in the gym every summer three times a week for hours at a time. At some point between fourth grade and high school, I found the one place that I felt like I really belonged and fell in love with a sport that eventually would mean so much more to me.

Two games into my junior season, my teammate, classmate, and close friend, Emily, was killed in a car accident just a few miles from her house and from our high school. Devastated and in disbelief are the only ways to describe how I felt for weeks after the tragedy. My one saving grace was basketball and my other teammates. Although we had a pretty tough time getting through our first practice without Emily, our first game without her, away at West Liberty, was an emotional roller coaster. It started off sad, each of us had a #35 patch sewn onto the hearts of our jerseys and we all teared up as we surrounded her jersey during a moment of silence. As tip-off drew near, all of us Wildcats had one mission, win it for Emily and we did. The best part? We scored 35 points that game; maybe it was a coincidence, but we took it as a sign that she was still with us. We went on with the rest of the season and into my senior year. We continued to bring her jersey with us and work toward the goal of winning a post season game in her honor, something a Durant girls basketball team hadn't accomplished in five seasons. 

Fast forward to February 20th, 2012, in Camanche, Iowa, where my team, who really had nothing to prove, was preparing to fight for a win. A quarter and a half into the game, things were not looking good and half time wasn't much better. I'm not one hundred percent sure of this, but I would say we were down at least fifteen points and it was looking like my eight year run of basketball had sixteen minutes left. A little disappointed, we pulled ourselves together and started the third quarter. I don't know if I just wasn't paying attention to the score because I thought we were done for, but before I knew it we were only down seven, then five.  Until late into the fourth quarter, it was a tie game going back in forth between Camanche and us. Suddenly, the senior captain role and friend of Emily really came out in me. At that point, I wanted nothing more in the world than to win and I think everyone else sensed that and got the mindset, too. Camanche didn't just back down and roll over for us, though. We took them into three overtimes. We all had adrenaline rushing through our veins and although we would have normally been exhausted after running down the court so many times, we all wanted to play and not be sitting on the sidelines, me in particular. This is what the hours upon hours in the gym and heartbreak of previous years had led up to. It was a scary, yet incredible feeling knowing what was at stake and I felt like the perfect scenario was about to play out: we come from behind and take the game in three overtimes to end our post season losing streak, all for Emily.

Except for it didn't. We came up short and that was the end. I never got to win a post season game and I would never compete as a Wildcat again. To say the least, it was a teary eyed locker room as our coach thanked the seniors for the hard work over the past four years despite everything we had been through, namely losing Emily. 

I bet you're all still a little confused on how this was a time I was at my best. Well, on the bus ride home, I finally realized what all these years had really been about. Basketball is supposed to be a game, someone wins and someone loses, but basketball meant so much more to me. I learned from it. I created memories. I overcame hardships. My teammates and I left an example that we are all proud of, regardless of the fact that we weren't the best team out there. So it's not just a game to me, it's the place that I learned lessons that carried into the real world and made me, me. Without basketball, I wouldn't be at my personal best everyday. I would probably find it easier to give up, take the easy way out of things. Instead, I've learned to put the work in, persevere in all circumstances, and do my absolute best so that I can be at my best at all times.