As I sit here, in my apartment, having just finished writing my last exam of the 2008-2009 university year, I still can't get over how fast this past year has gone by. I'm also somewhat shocked at the fact that I have just completed the second year of university career with no clear idea of how many total years I shall attend the University of Ottawa. So, what has the University of Ottawa done for me two years into my university career?
It's quite obvious that every single student's view of the world, once having begun post-secondary education, is (most often) drastically different than our narrow-sighted childhood years. We learn to critically analyse occurrences in our everyday world that (for many of us) were so very unimportant and insignificant before having arrived in university. I've also learned about many things that have aroused feelings of anger, confusion, sadness just to name a few.
I've always wanted to make the world around me a better place and that's one thing that hasn't changed. But, realistically, I'm obviously not the only one that wants to improve his or her surroundings. I've learned that bringing change isn't as easy as just saying you want to change something. Unfortunately, trying to bring any kind of change is usually a long and drawn out process, which leads to frustration and quite often abandonment. Also, change is often looked down upon because we seem to live in a world that is content with the status-quo and is too lazy and/or unwilling to improve upon what already exists.
Coming from a small town of roughly 5 000 people, where there was one African-American student in my high school, I have become more knowledgeable of different cultures from around the world.
My leadership skills, which became developed throughout my years in elementary and high school, have grown on a much broader level since arriving in Ottawa. I must say that I absolutely loved being apart of the 2008-2009 PIDSSA executive and am looking forward to the upcoming year within the new 2009-2010 executive. The knowledge and experience that I have gained during this past year will definitely be passed along to the new executive members and I look forward to working with all of them.
There is one thing that I am very happy about which has occurred since I left home: the bond that I share with my sister has grown very strong and I have learned to come to appreciate her more than I ever thought I would. Not to say that I didn't love my sister before I left home, but let's just say we definitely had our differences. Thankfully we have both grown past (most) of our brother-sister fighting and have become the best of friends. While I'm away at school, I think about her a lot. I worry a lot though too because she is a young high school teenager and having been there once myself, I'm well aware of the things that could happen to her. Particularly, being a guy, I know what some of the older guys in high school are looking for and I worry that she may fall into the wrong crowd or into the arms of the wrong guy. I often try to explain this her. But you know how teens always KNOW EVERYTHING.
Anyways, continuing on, my personal views and opinions have developed and I do have an opinion on pretty much anything. I have always been very stubborn when it comes to being right about something and have always been willing to debate until I prove whoever I am arguing with wrong. I have actually learned to be more open to others' opinions which is something that isn't easy to do and something that I'm quite proud of. When you firmly believe in something such as a religion or a political ideology, it can be very difficult at times to accept opinions that go against or contradict your own. Probably more so than in other areas of study, being a Political Science major, I'm quite literally surrounded by people with whom have very different opinions than my own. Sure, when it comes to politics, we will disagree a lot, but I always like to hear why the person with whom I am conversing takes the stance that he is defending. I'll also give my reasoning and we can usually end up agreeing that both stances have their pros and cons and then move on. It may sound very insignificant to be accepting of different views, thoughts, ideas, opinions. Although some people refuse to look beyond their own tunnel-visioned mindsets, it's an important aspect of life that everyone will eventually have to face in their lives. If you cannot at least accept the fact that people might not see things in the same way you do, your life will be one of seclusion and loneliness.
For now, I'll stop here because I'm pretty exhausted from my last exam that I wrote this morning. But, I will make sure to keep this blog updated throughout the summer even though I'm moving back home for the summer as I have locked down an amazing summer job! I'm already looking forward to 101 Week because it's going to be the biggest and best in the history of it's existence!
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