Day 365

There are 365 days a year to set sail

To embark on a journey that you will never forget

Yet here I am now,

On the last day of time

Just catching the winds of destiny for the first time

All because I was too scared

Too afraid to raise the sail

I was a boat waiting in the dock

Waiting to not be so timid

I had 365 days each year to set sail

I never did

Until now

But now it is to late
Time is being taken from me.

I am a Kappa Delta Girl

Despite the stereotypes, being a woman of a sorority is one of the most incredible things I have ever chosen to do. From the moment I walked in and met the girls for the first time, I knew Kappa Delta was the place I was meant to be. It feels so great to have a place where women with similar values and goals surround you but who are also so diverse. It is always cool to look around to all the women who you feel so close to and get along so well with, and see all the different types of people who come from such different places and backgrounds.

Not only has being a Kappa Delta woman brought me a new family; it also has allowed me the opportunity to do so much community service. Although many people think all sorority girls do is party, fail school and get boys, this couldn’t be farther than the truth. Serving the community that we are a part of is one of the top priorities. We go help anywhere and everywhere that needs us, whether its sorting clothes at the ARC, helping out at the local YMCA or assisting kids at one of the elementary schools shop for Christmas presents for their families. Our sorority is made up of people who really care about the people around them.

We also work hand-in-hand with our national philanthropies, which are the Girl Scouts and Prevent Child Abuse America. We focus on building confidence in young girls, which is so important in this day and age. It feels so amazing to get to be a mentor to young girls in the Girl Scouts and to help them growing into inspiring young women. Through PCAA we get to save kids that can’t save themselves. Through both of these organizations I get to bring share my passion of helping others and that is one of the many reasons I am passionate about being a woman of a sorority.

Kappa Delta has also allowed me to grow as a leader, be involved on campus and make connections with people I would have never done so otherwise. Within our own sorority, there are ample amounts of leadership positions varying in responsibilities. I currently hold the assistant public relations officer position but some day I hope to hold a hire office in which I can make an even bigger difference in Kappa Delta. Also, we have the opportunity to hold leadership positions for Greek life as a whole, through Panhellenic Council. It is also a joy to see how many Greek life members are a part of the student government for the whole university. Everywhere you look you are bound to find someone in Greek life.

Just being in Greek life bonds you to so many people. You have so many people you can call your Greek life brothers and sisters. These people are there for you no matter how well they know you specifically because you share so many common friends. Although we are a somewhat large group of people, we are a close nit community!

I am so proud to be a woman of Kappa Delta and to call myself a sorority girl. I believe so strongly in what it means to be both of those things and I would never want to be anything else. It’s not just for four years, it’s for life!

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

I love to think about how large the world we live in is and how many cool places there are to discover. Nothing excites me more than knowing how many more places I have yet to go and explore. This is why I think that travel is one of the most amazing things a person can do in his/her life.

Compared to most people in the United States, I have traveled quite a bit. In total, I have been to 34 states and three countries (not including the United States). What blows my mind is the fact that, although I have traveled a decent amount for my age, I have still only seen a miniscule part of the world.

One of my most favorite parts about traveling is getting to experience cultures other than my own. I love seeing how the mindsets of local people and ways of life change throughout different areas and countries. However, it is also cool to see the similarities between cultures because it shows that even though this world is a big place, we are all still connected.

My love of travel reinforces my desire to discover the unknown. When a person is traveling in a new place, every step they take is a new experience. There is something special about the feeling that you get when you see something for the first time, it is a feeling that can never be recreated. Each and every moment is different and can never be truly planned.

The fact that I have been traveling from a young age has made a very open minded person and instilled the importance of being culturally competent. I chose to not see people as according to where they are from but rather as unique individuals that make up the word as a whole. I love to learn aspects of all cultures so that I can attempt to have an understanding the individual people that make up our world.

I have never understood people who have no desire to step beyond the boundaries of the United States, or even the state they grew up in. Like I mentioned earlier, this world is so big, why wouldn’t you want to see all it has to offer. There is always something incredible waiting around the corner; you just have to allow yourself to go find it.

The world is a place that I will never be able to truly see all of, but I sure am going to try.

Uphill Battle

For most of my life, I have been a person that is very focused on academics and perfection. It was not until my freshman year when this became a big problem. Where I went to school, 9^th grade was a part of the junior high, so instead of being at the bottom of the food chain freshman year, we were at the top; we were the oldest at our school. Throughout my time in junior high, I was majorly involved in many ways, but especially in leadership. By the time I was a 9^th grader, I had become the person that everyone looked to for help and guidance, which I loved. However, there was a dark curse lurking. There were many times throughout the year that I would end up in my teacher’s office crying because I felt like I had the world on my shoulders; I would come home and have panic attacks. It was no fun but I couldn’t figure out why. I knew that I took everything too seriously and I put too much pressure on myself but I couldn’t stop.

Then my sophomore year came along and I did the same thing I did in junior high; I became the go to person in leadership. I take pride in being this person for my peers and my teachers. But my need for perfection was still impacting me. Adding on to the pressure I put on myself to excel in leadership, I also put pressure on myself to get straight A’s, because that is what I have always done. All this made me sicker and sicker. After missing about a week of school because I couldn’t get out of bed, I went to the doctor and got diagnosed with severe anxiety and mild OCD.. Due to my anxiety, I missed about a third of my sophomore year. I was also taking some of the hardest honors classes available. Even though I couldn’t always go to class, I worked with my teachers and my classmates to make sure I stayed caught up. I was determined to not let my anxiety wreck the grades I have worked so hard to get. I ended getting my worst ever grades(A’s and one C), but compared to others in my grade, I was still above average. I was proud that I was able to make it through that year and still graduate in the end with a 3.7.

This is something that I will now struggle with for the rest of my life, but I don’t let it control my life. I have overcome it once when I was at my worst, therefore I know I can always make it through any obstacle, no matter how difficult.

It's rhetorical analysis time! This is the commercial I am choosing to do my essay on! Wish me luck!

That's a Wrap! (At Least for This Project)

Final post for this assignment! After this I will have successfully completed my first project for english 120! Yay me!

Today was kind of a crazy day but also a day where I realized how much stronger of a person I have become. For some reason, I am not always dealt the best of cards but I have always been determined to win the jackpot anyway! I don't believe is letting things pull you back because when you triumph and look at all you went through to get there, it feels so incredible. I am a true believe that everything happens for a reason. Some of the things that have happened recently haven't been the easiest to handle or see how they can turn into something positive. That being said, the best thing that has come out of things that happened in the fall is the fact that it brought my suit mates and me closer than ever (which I kind of mentioned in my last post). But something else that I have found is that everything has made me way stronger and stand up for myself and what I want in life. I am finally fed up with putting everyone else in this world before myself. I am honestly really proud of myself for finally realizing this all.

If you personally knew me this all would make a lot more sense (and does for those who do and are reading this). Sadly there's this thing called the internet where it is not always the best to share every detail. It is kind of nice having this to generically share my thoughts however.

Back to the point.

Today and last night, I finally stood up for myself, boy did it feel good. I have learned that 'no' is a word I have in my vocabulary and I can actually use it (against other people than just my parents). I also put my foot down and decided that I am done letting people make me feel scared. It is my life, I work hard, and I deserve to live it the way I want to live it. I have learned so much and grown so much the last couple of months. I never thought somethings would happen to me but they did. And being states away from my family, I had to deal with it myself. Thankfully I have made a really supportive community for myself here so I really didn't have to do it completely alone. And that is another thing that I have learned; it is ok to rely on those close to you and who care about you. I never used to think it was ok to ask for help, I thought it made me seem weak. I know I am a strong person, but now I am so much stronger when I also have the strength of those around me.

My last thought that I want to leave you with tonight is that, always remember there is something great right around the corner, even if it is hard to see now, it is just hiding, waiting for the perfect time to pop out and surprise you!

When Life Has Got You Thinking

Do you ever have a moment where you think about where you were a year ago or who you talked all the time in the past?

In the past couple of months, I personally have had somethings happen that really made me think about life and relationships, romantic and not. The reason I think about this now, is because in the last couple of hours today I had yet another thing happen that made me do so. I am fairly sure that everyone out there has at least had one person in their lives that played a major role one moment, and the next moment they were completely gone. This happens, and it is a normal part of growing up. Friend groups change because the people in them change. However, looking back, it blows my mind because in that moment, that person (or people) is your everything. They are the first person you think of when you need help or just need to talk. I have had a few people in my life who were like this. But now, those people are gone. Luckily, I have a new person who is my best friend and second half. But then I think about the people before and I can't help but wonder, is this just a never ending cycle, will history just repeat itself? Honestly, the person who is my best friend now, I truly feel that we will be in each others lives forever. Yes, I know that sounds cheesy, but because of the past, I have learned what a true friend looks like and what is important.

The thing is, can forevers really happen?

I sure hope so.

The future is so unknown that all you can do is just enjoy today.

It is still unfathomable to me that one second you can be so close to someone and the next second it is like you never even knew each other? You can think you know every detail about someone but actually know nothing about them at all. This is kind of the same about life in general, you can know exactly where your life is headed one moment but then all of a sudden have no clue or have a whole new world open up to you. This happened to me half way through last semester. I thought I was heading down one path but then I was honest with myself about one small thing, and my world just exploded (in a good way). I have never been so excited for the unknown and pure possibilities. I have always been a person that needs to know exactly what is happening next. But for once in my life, I am okay with having just  a blank canvas in which I slowly get to add things onto in order to create my personal masterpiece 70 years down the road. It truly is the journey not the destination. I can't wait to look back when I'm old and see everything I have been through, all the amazing things I have done, people I have met, and place I have been. I have a feeling it will be a breathtaking moment like watching the sun set over the Cascade mountains.