That One ZOOper Fun Time

{Zoo Blog Post}

     Last week, Sam, Christy, and I decided to venture to the Fort Worth Zoo.  However, there were not a lot of people at the zoo, so finding people laughing was harder than we thought.  I also think that most children were either in silent awe of the animals or were crying because they wanted something they could not have, such as Dippin’ Dots.  Nonetheless, we witnessed a few instances of laughter. 

     The first video depicts a girl laughing on the Merry-go-round.  It seemed like she was laughing because she was having a fun time, rather than laughing in reaction to something else.  I would characterize her laughter as an example of both the Relief and Relaxation Theories.  The Relief Theory “interprets laughter as a natural venting or release of the emotions (and the body).  The Relaxation Theory embraces the idea that “laughter is fundamentally pleasurable, and people need to indulge in pleasurable feelings to moderate the stress in their lives.”  Although the girl necessarily was not moderating stress, she was using laughter as a form of enjoyment.  She appeared to be having a wonderful time riding the Merry-go-round with her dad.

     The next clip depicts a girl frolicking across a bridge.  The bridge was moving with her, so she was laughing at the mere action of running across a set of wooden planks.  Her laughter would also be an example of the Relaxation and Relief Theories. 

     Lastly, this clip depicts a reenactment of the first YouTube video ever uploaded: “Me at the zoo.”  Christy’s inspiration for this role was her love of elephants and her dream to one day own an elephant.  She practiced her lines for weeks on end and finally, decided to take those lines to the zoo for the actual shoot.  This reenactment will air on Animal Planet next Monday at 9/8C.  She is up for the Oscar for Best Reenactment of a Person at an Elephant Exhibit. 

The Fresh Perspective is the Best Perspective

{Conversation Partner #6}

     Wow.  It is still mindboggling to me that there is exactly one week left of school.  Looking back at my semester, I am in awe of the amount of new experiences I have had the opportunity to be apart of, the amount of knowledge I have gained, and the sweet friends that I have had the pleasure of meeting.  

     Most significantly, I am incredibly blessed with Noor’s friendship.  Thankfully, she will be coming back next semester for the IEP Program, so I will still get to see her regularly.  We have become so close over these past few months that I cannot imagine my semester without our Monday lunches, jam sessions, and habitual laughing sprees. 

     Thinking back to the beginning of the semester, I acknowledge that I had somewhat of a closed mind, from having to meet with someone from a different country (that I did not know at all), to sharing my thoughts on a public blog.  Yet, these experiences helped challenge my way of thinking and altered my perspective on life drastically.

     I honestly think that a fresh perspective is the best perspective.  What I mean by that, is when one goes into a situation with an open, unbiased outlook, they are more likely to get more out of that experience, than if they were to go into it with a negative one.

     Although I came into this conversation partner experience with a closed mind at first, I quickly shifted my perspective when I realized that I was going to get as much out of the program as I put into it.  I began to look forward to my meetings with Noor and maximized our time together.  I noticed our similarities more than our differences.  I asked her questions about her life and she asked me questions about mine.  We both shared our favorite music and food with one another.  We laughed often, talked way too much, and celebrated our newfound friendship.

     As I read over some of my past conversation partner blogs, I realize that having a fresh perspective was a common theme in all of my posts.  Noor and I accepted each other’s differences.  We taught each other new aspects of our cultures and met each other’s friends.  I showed her my dorm and invited her to class.  She introduced me to her peers from the IEP Program and extended her home for dinner and Arabic coffee.  We both offered each other new experiences, which helped guide our learning and our friendship.  Yet, if one of us decided to not put in the time or effort to make this friendship work, it would not have worked at all.  Simply stated, fresh perspectives need to work both ways.  Luckily enough, they did.

     Looking forward, I hope to continue to use a fresh perspective throughout various life endeavors.  I hope that I will be able to take the positive experience I had with Noor and use it as a sweet reminder of what can happen if two different people put in the effort to make one strong relationship.  I truly believe a fresh perspective is the best perspective.

SGA 2014 - 2015

{Learning Experience 4}

     As I sit here tonight at Starbucks, I try to sort out the mixture of emotions that are currently circulating throughout my body. To be honest, I do not know how to truly explain what I am feeling, but I will attempt to give it a shot.

     So, if you know me, you know I am a complete emotional wreck and that is totally accurate. Consequently, I have had a lot of tears tonight. What about? Endings and new beginnings.

     This past year, I have been apart of TCU’s SGA (Student Government Association) and I have been blessed more than I could ever imagine. I have met the most INCREDIBLE people who all love TCU more than life and who have bigger dreams for our school than I could ever envision. I without a doubt believe SGA is comprised of the absolute smartest, driven, and most motivated people on campus and it has been an honor to lead alongside these individuals.

     Tonight was our last house meeting and it was the last time our group would all be in the Chambers together. It started off as an emotional night, with speeches made my cabinet members and committee chairs and then, the swearing in of new cabinet members and elected committee chairs. While I am extremely excited to see what SGA does this next year, I am also saddened by all of the amazing people that are moving on to new life endeavors.

     To truly describe our current house, I simply need to mention one name: Cody Westphal. If you don’t know Cody Westphal, you are seriously missing out. To be honest, I do not even know Cody Westphal extremely well, but what I can say is that I have seen tangible differences made on campus because of him. It is no secret that he has made huge changes at TCU, from initiating the Not on My Campus movement to the sexual assault roundtables. On top of that, he works tirelessly each and every day to better our university. He can be found serenading people on campus (even though he claims that is now something of the past), talking to people in his office (because he always has his door open), and meeting with students about new projects. I do not know how he has done it this past two years, but all I can say is “WOW.” We are losing one heck of a president, one heck of a horned frog on campus, and one heck of a great guy.

     Even besides our president, we have so many students that work day in and day out to improve the overall TCU experience. Unfortunately, I will not be apart of house next year because I am taking on an internship, but tonight has made me realize how impactful this organization has been not only on my life, but on the other 8,646 undergraduate students’ lives.

     I have met some of my best friends through SGA, have gotten to work with some of the coolest and smartest people ever in my academic affairs committee, and have been able to vote on bills and resolutions that have enacted change on campus!! How freaking cool is that? Honestly, this year has been unreal and I owe it 100% to SGA for making it so life changing.

     My hope for SGA next year is that our members continue to foster the wonderful legacy cabinet has left behind. My hope is for new experiences and positive changes, but that my fellow SGA members will always remember the unique privilege we have of serving our student body. Few people have the opportunity to say that, but what a joy and pleasure it is to be able to.

     So, thank you. Thank you SGA 2014-2015 for making my year meaningful, for filling it with caring and driven people, and for teaching me how to serve others deeply and completely.  What a wonderful learning experience SGA has been.