If when you saw this title and thought of it to the tune of "12 Days of Christmas", then congratulations for following my train of thought, because that was the point of the title. Now that the moment of music puns has come and gone, it's time to bring you all up to speed on the highlights of this week.
This week I received 4 business cards from people of various political professions. Now for those of you who will one day need business cards, I will warn you now that I handed out about 7 or 8 business cards and received 4, which means that business card exchanges may not always be an equal ratio. Some people run out of business cards at an inconvenient time or just plain don't have a business card of their own, but it's still good to spread your name because it could help you get a future job.
My 3 roommates and I get along pretty well. We take the same classes on Tuesdays, but we intern at very different places. Nevertheless, we do enjoy our internships and each other's company. We've had both some good laughs and interesting discussions. Apparently they now think that I should teach a seminar on how to hand out business cards....
Ironically though, the 2 networking events that I attended this week were the first time that I ever handed out business cards. As a student under the Washington Internship Institute (WII), it was highly recommended that we make our own business cards. The 2 networking events were on Tuesday the 27th and Wednesday the 28th. Both of them had good food and different people to talk to. However, the event on the 27th was sponsored by WII and took place in a bar called Blackfinn while the organization I intern at was in charge of the event on the 28th and it took place in the building I work in.
After the networking event was over on the 28th, my supervisor, fellow interns, other workers at where I intern at, and I were putting away leftover food in the fridge. There was this huge container (as in approximately 13" x 19") that was mostly full of cantaloupe that was too big to fit in the fridge. My supervisor stated earlier in the evening that we could take home some of the food if there were leftovers, so I volunteered to take the container back to the apartment. I may have received a few weird looks from other passengers when I rode the Metro that night, but I wasn't paying too much attention since I was very happy to have a whole bunch of cantaloupe. I REALLY like any kind of melon. Once I was back at the apartment and told my roommates about the cantaloupe, I found out to my surprise that one of them doesn't like cantaloupe. After I realized that there was too much cantaloupe for 3 people to eat, I split about half of the amount of cantaloupe with another apartment of WII students. So if you give a Minnesotan fan of melons too much cantaloupe, they will share the wealth with others.
Well, that's about everything this week. Next week there will be a couple more stories, so stay tuned!
Friday, January 30, 2015
Friday, January 23, 2015
There's a First Time for Everything
Good evening everyone! I hope that this week has been going well for all of you. Anyway, there's a few first times that I would like to highlight that have happened within the first week...
My first Sunday, the 18th, brought many firsts. For the first time ever, I went to a church where to be Caucasian was to be in the minority and also this church was located inside a hotel. The church I went to was just about a 10 minute walk from where I live. Like the church I attend when I'm at Gustavus, Two Rivers Vineyard Church, they played contemporary music, have kind people, and are blessed with a good preacher. After the service, I was introduced to the first Minnesotan that I've come across since I first started my semester. We both laughed a bit about how people tend overreact to a little bit of snow. From there we went to a Vietnamese restaurant (unfortunately I can't remember the name, but I do remember that I can't pronounce it), which was another new experience for me. I can tell you that the food was yummy!
Martin Luther King Jr. Day had its own set first time adventures. One of my roommates along with 3 other fellow interns and I all went to the Kennedy Center. We sat in the second tier of seats in the Millennium Stage, and the section of seats we sat in were formatted in such a way where there was only one seat per row, so we all sat in a row, only it was vertical instead of horizontal. We Natalie Cole, the daughter of Nat King Cole, perform along with the Georgetown University's Let Freedom Ring Choir for this FREE concert. The music was fantastic and it's hard to pick an absolute favorite piece, but I really liked the duet that Natalie Cole did with footage of her late father for the song "Unforgettable". After this concert, we found a little pub called Lindy's Red Lion, and I can testify that the food was delicious and it was at a reasonable price (as in Midwestern reasonable, which means it was tasty and cheap, with the exception of the 10% sales tax).
The next day, the 20th, was the first day of classes, including my first-ever 3 hour long class. However, both classes got done in about half the time it would normally take, so that meant we got done early. I don't think that will be the case next week, but I'm looking forward to the fact that one of my classes will have a different speaker (or 2) each week on a different topic.
Wednesday the 21st was the first day of my internship. I found out that I am one out of three interns for the particular place I'm interning at, and I can say that the other two interns are nice people. The most intimidating task of my first day was answering phone calls since I wasn't expecting the phone at my desk to ring at all.
Yesterday, the 22nd, had a first that I wasn't expecting so soon. A bunch of high school students who came for the March for Life boarded the bus I was taking back to the apartment. When we all got to the final stop of the bus, I gave them some advice on which Metro to take in order to get to their destination and to make sure that their Metrocard had enough money so that it wouldn't go less than a dollar in the negative. It felt good to be in a position where I could help other travelers even though I've only been in the area for a little over a week.
Today my supervisor at my internship treated all three of us interns to shakes at BTS, which is short for Burgers, Taps, and Shakes. While my supervisor got the peanut butter shake, all three of us got the cookies and cream shake, and we agree that it was yummy!
Well, I think that's enough writing for one week since I know I can write quite a bit, I don't want to write so much that I bore people to tears. Have a great weekend and stay tuned for next week!
My first Sunday, the 18th, brought many firsts. For the first time ever, I went to a church where to be Caucasian was to be in the minority and also this church was located inside a hotel. The church I went to was just about a 10 minute walk from where I live. Like the church I attend when I'm at Gustavus, Two Rivers Vineyard Church, they played contemporary music, have kind people, and are blessed with a good preacher. After the service, I was introduced to the first Minnesotan that I've come across since I first started my semester. We both laughed a bit about how people tend overreact to a little bit of snow. From there we went to a Vietnamese restaurant (unfortunately I can't remember the name, but I do remember that I can't pronounce it), which was another new experience for me. I can tell you that the food was yummy!
Martin Luther King Jr. Day had its own set first time adventures. One of my roommates along with 3 other fellow interns and I all went to the Kennedy Center. We sat in the second tier of seats in the Millennium Stage, and the section of seats we sat in were formatted in such a way where there was only one seat per row, so we all sat in a row, only it was vertical instead of horizontal. We Natalie Cole, the daughter of Nat King Cole, perform along with the Georgetown University's Let Freedom Ring Choir for this FREE concert. The music was fantastic and it's hard to pick an absolute favorite piece, but I really liked the duet that Natalie Cole did with footage of her late father for the song "Unforgettable". After this concert, we found a little pub called Lindy's Red Lion, and I can testify that the food was delicious and it was at a reasonable price (as in Midwestern reasonable, which means it was tasty and cheap, with the exception of the 10% sales tax).
The next day, the 20th, was the first day of classes, including my first-ever 3 hour long class. However, both classes got done in about half the time it would normally take, so that meant we got done early. I don't think that will be the case next week, but I'm looking forward to the fact that one of my classes will have a different speaker (or 2) each week on a different topic.
Wednesday the 21st was the first day of my internship. I found out that I am one out of three interns for the particular place I'm interning at, and I can say that the other two interns are nice people. The most intimidating task of my first day was answering phone calls since I wasn't expecting the phone at my desk to ring at all.
Yesterday, the 22nd, had a first that I wasn't expecting so soon. A bunch of high school students who came for the March for Life boarded the bus I was taking back to the apartment. When we all got to the final stop of the bus, I gave them some advice on which Metro to take in order to get to their destination and to make sure that their Metrocard had enough money so that it wouldn't go less than a dollar in the negative. It felt good to be in a position where I could help other travelers even though I've only been in the area for a little over a week.
Today my supervisor at my internship treated all three of us interns to shakes at BTS, which is short for Burgers, Taps, and Shakes. While my supervisor got the peanut butter shake, all three of us got the cookies and cream shake, and we agree that it was yummy!
Well, I think that's enough writing for one week since I know I can write quite a bit, I don't want to write so much that I bore people to tears. Have a great weekend and stay tuned for next week!
Friday, January 16, 2015
Road Trip, Move-In, and Orientation
Hello everyone! I hope that you are all having a great week. There have been many events that have taken place since I last wrote, and since today is Friday it's time to provide an update.
On Monday the 12th at about 4 AM, my mom and I began the drive from Minnesota to get to the DC area. My job was to navigate us without getting lost. Once we left MN, we went through part of Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana before we spent the night at Zanesville, Ohio. The next day, the 13th, we left the hotel around 8 AM and travelled through the rest of Ohio, part of the top portion of West Virginia, a bit of Pennsylvania, West Virginia again (to avoid toll booths in Pennsylvania), and Maryland. However, when we got to Washington DC, we managed to get ourselves lost a couple times for about half an hour to an hour since the roads were confusing. (Note: This was the ONLY time we got lost.) When we finally got to our destination, the amount of driving time it took to get from my house to DC was about 22 hours. While the road trip was a bit tiring, it was also fun.
On Wednesday the 14th, I moved into my apartment along with most of the people who are part of the Washington Internship Institute (WII) this semester. (A few people moved in early due to an earlier start to their internship or because of travelling circumstances.) There was also some snow that morning in Virginia, and to my surprise there were school cancelations and warnings on the news to be careful on the roads when they received only about a centimeter of snow. After many trips back and forth between the car and my apartment, all of my belongings were moved into my apartment. My roommates and I went out for lunch and walked around on sidewalks that we thought had way more salt than was actually necessary. Then we bought a few groceries before we returned to the apartment. From there I met up with my mom again in order get a few items in bulk from a nearby Costco and brought those to the apartment before we said our goodbyes. I got to do a bit of unpacking before my roommates and I met the rest of our fellow interns for pizza and a few icebreaker games. There are a total of 28 people including me who are part of the program this semester (20 females and 8 males for those of you who are curious to know the gender breakdown). Following our socializing time, one of my roommates and I went to fill our Metro cards and got a couple items at Marshalls before we returned to the apartment to put away more of my belongings before I turned in for the night.
Yesterday, the 15th, I woke up at 7AM, which was painful since my brain is still not accustomed to Eastern Time, so I felt like I woke up at 6AM which is early for me. However, we had to take the Metro (which is the equivalent of the subway in New York) in order to get to the WII office by 8:30AM for breakfast, so off we went. After breakfast, my fellow interns and I walked to the Charles Sumner School listened to a few introductions, some advice, and learned about how to navigate ourselves while we're in DC. We then put those skills to the test through a picture scavenger hunt in groups of 3 or 4 people, which took us from the White House, to the US Botanic Garden, to the Friendship Arch in the Chinatown section of DC, to finally the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery. After all of that walking (with one ride on the Metro too), a few of us took the Metro to a couple stores that were close to our apartment building in order to get some more groceries or other needed supplies for our apartments. Once our shopping was done, we headed back to our apartments for the night.
Today I woke up early again for day two of orientation. Once again my fellow interns and I took the Metro to get to the WII office for breakfast, and walked to the Charles Sumner School. After that we received some words of wisdom for when it comes to being an intern as well as networking. Dr. Peggy Lewis, Associate Dean of the Graduate School and Director of Media Studies at Trinity Washington University, then spoke to us and she gave us her list of ten and a half things that we should keep in mind throughout the semester. She also allowed us to ask her questions about how her career. When orientation was done for today, one of my roommates and I visited Carpe Librium. This is a gently used bookstore that gives all the proceeds to Turning the Page, an organization in DC with the mission to give DC students the resources they need for a good public education. While we were there, we both found a few books that we were interested in, so we purchased them and then took the Metro home.
While my classes and internship haven't started yet, I'm looking forward to it and hope to tell you all more next week!
On Monday the 12th at about 4 AM, my mom and I began the drive from Minnesota to get to the DC area. My job was to navigate us without getting lost. Once we left MN, we went through part of Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana before we spent the night at Zanesville, Ohio. The next day, the 13th, we left the hotel around 8 AM and travelled through the rest of Ohio, part of the top portion of West Virginia, a bit of Pennsylvania, West Virginia again (to avoid toll booths in Pennsylvania), and Maryland. However, when we got to Washington DC, we managed to get ourselves lost a couple times for about half an hour to an hour since the roads were confusing. (Note: This was the ONLY time we got lost.) When we finally got to our destination, the amount of driving time it took to get from my house to DC was about 22 hours. While the road trip was a bit tiring, it was also fun.
On Wednesday the 14th, I moved into my apartment along with most of the people who are part of the Washington Internship Institute (WII) this semester. (A few people moved in early due to an earlier start to their internship or because of travelling circumstances.) There was also some snow that morning in Virginia, and to my surprise there were school cancelations and warnings on the news to be careful on the roads when they received only about a centimeter of snow. After many trips back and forth between the car and my apartment, all of my belongings were moved into my apartment. My roommates and I went out for lunch and walked around on sidewalks that we thought had way more salt than was actually necessary. Then we bought a few groceries before we returned to the apartment. From there I met up with my mom again in order get a few items in bulk from a nearby Costco and brought those to the apartment before we said our goodbyes. I got to do a bit of unpacking before my roommates and I met the rest of our fellow interns for pizza and a few icebreaker games. There are a total of 28 people including me who are part of the program this semester (20 females and 8 males for those of you who are curious to know the gender breakdown). Following our socializing time, one of my roommates and I went to fill our Metro cards and got a couple items at Marshalls before we returned to the apartment to put away more of my belongings before I turned in for the night.
Yesterday, the 15th, I woke up at 7AM, which was painful since my brain is still not accustomed to Eastern Time, so I felt like I woke up at 6AM which is early for me. However, we had to take the Metro (which is the equivalent of the subway in New York) in order to get to the WII office by 8:30AM for breakfast, so off we went. After breakfast, my fellow interns and I walked to the Charles Sumner School listened to a few introductions, some advice, and learned about how to navigate ourselves while we're in DC. We then put those skills to the test through a picture scavenger hunt in groups of 3 or 4 people, which took us from the White House, to the US Botanic Garden, to the Friendship Arch in the Chinatown section of DC, to finally the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery. After all of that walking (with one ride on the Metro too), a few of us took the Metro to a couple stores that were close to our apartment building in order to get some more groceries or other needed supplies for our apartments. Once our shopping was done, we headed back to our apartments for the night.
Today I woke up early again for day two of orientation. Once again my fellow interns and I took the Metro to get to the WII office for breakfast, and walked to the Charles Sumner School. After that we received some words of wisdom for when it comes to being an intern as well as networking. Dr. Peggy Lewis, Associate Dean of the Graduate School and Director of Media Studies at Trinity Washington University, then spoke to us and she gave us her list of ten and a half things that we should keep in mind throughout the semester. She also allowed us to ask her questions about how her career. When orientation was done for today, one of my roommates and I visited Carpe Librium. This is a gently used bookstore that gives all the proceeds to Turning the Page, an organization in DC with the mission to give DC students the resources they need for a good public education. While we were there, we both found a few books that we were interested in, so we purchased them and then took the Metro home.
While my classes and internship haven't started yet, I'm looking forward to it and hope to tell you all more next week!
Friday, January 9, 2015
7 Things I'm Looking Forward To... and 5 Concerns
It's exciting and a little surreal to know that soon I'll be leaving MN. Like many people before an adventure, I'm excited about some things and nervous about others.
Here's what I'm excited about:
Here's what I'm excited about:
- I can't wait to meet my 3 roommates in person at last!
- The opportunity to be more independent.
- I'm looking forward to cooking my own food.
- This will be my first time living in an apartment.
- I'll get the chance to visit places that I didn't have the opportunity to go to the last time I was in Washington D.C. (which was in July 2012).
- Four days a week I'll get to work in the field I want to go into on something that I'm interested in and passionate about.
- The chance to see how God will move in this chapter of my life.
- I might get lost trying to use the Metro.
- I may suffer from sticker shock since prices are lower in the Midwest in comparison to the East Coast.
- What if I unintentionally break my promises when it comes to keeping in touch with my friends back home?
- What if I fall behind on my blog because I'm having too much fun away from home (of which I'm not sure there is such a thing) or get too distracted by my internship duties and homework?
- What if my expectations for this experience are too high?
Friday, January 2, 2015
The Story of How I Got to Where I Soon Will Be
As many of my friends are soon leaving to go to J-term at their respective colleges, whether it's to take a class or prepare to travel internationally for band or choir, or head elsewhere such as Fiji and New Zealand, Tennessee, or the Bahamas for J-term, I think that it may be a good idea to write about how I got to this point in my life. Fair warning, this is a long story.
The first time I heard about the Washington Internship Institute (the organization responsible for the program I will be a part of) was when I was a freshman and went to the Study Abroad Fair. At the time I pursued a double-major in Political Science and Music, so while the idea of spending a semester in Washington D.C. sounded cool to me, I knew that realistically I wouldn't be able to participate in the program and still graduate college in three and a half years like I intended. So I let the idea go and didn't think about it for a while.
Over the summer before sophomore year there was a lot of thinking about whether or not I was supposed to be a Music major, especially since I was rejected in my first attempt to enter into the Music major program. I was torn. While I was great at music theory, did well in my skill checks, had a great time with my composition project at the end of freshmen year, and do love music, my performance assessment on flute, my primary instrument, didn't go as well as I hoped since I get nervous when I play flute in public by myself. Also, it probably didn't help that I never had private flute lessons until college. Part of me wanted to try again with the second performance assessment, but at the same time part of me was afraid to fail again. By the end of the summer I still hadn't come to a resolution.
However, that all changed within the first week of sophomore year. As I read the syllabus for Music Theory III in my dorm after class, I took notice about all of the different forms of music that my classmates and I would learn about. Something about it made me feel ill at ease. Also, since I'm an over-analyzer, I wondered if by learning all of those concepts would cause me to analyze my music as I play it, which would in turn cause me to lose my enjoyment of music. After a lot of thinking, praying, and talking to a few friends about the matter, I dropped Music Theory III before the end of the first week of class. I still have the passion for music as well as sing and play flute and piano, it's just that the path of a Music major wasn't the best way for me to live out my passion. By becoming a Music minor, my three and a half year plan (instead of the typical four year plan for college) had more freedom.
I suddenly realized that now I could spend a semester in Washington D.C., and I already had a sense of when would be a good time to go. As a person in choir, there was no way that I wanted to miss Christmas in Christ Chapel. Also, more of the fall semester classes caught my eye than spring. After I talked to a couple friends, I decided to apply to study abroad for Spring 2015. Once I submitted my application though, I knew that the Study Abroad Program at Gustavus wanted to have a more even distribution of students going abroad in fall and spring and since more people request to go abroad in the spring than in the fall, I knew there was going to be some people who wouldn't be allowed to go in the spring but be requested that they go in the fall. I hoped and prayed that I would not be one of the people who would be asked to change my plans. After a long wait, I received an e-mail which stated that I was allowed to study abroad for Spring 2015.
This last summer, part of my time was dedicated to applying to the Washington Internship Institute. There was a two-step acceptance process, and the second step required recommendation letters from a couple of my professors. However, in my haste to get the application process done and over with early, I had applied at a point in time where my professors weren't checking their e-mails as much because they were enjoying their own summers. As the deadline approached for the letters to come in, I started to worry since I hadn't heard anything from the professors I originally messaged, so I sent requests for recommendation letters to a few more professors. I wondered what would happen if the letters didn't come in time, so I messaged one of the coordinators of the Washington Internship Institute about my concerns. With a few days to spare, I finally heard back from my professors and the required recommendation letters came in on time. However, this was not the last of my obstacles.
Last semester, with the help of my intern advisers of the Washington Internship Institute, I applied to many different organizations that caught my interest in the hopes that I could be their intern. I submitted many cover letters and resumes, but there was a long period of silence. The lack of responses was so long that I worried I wasn't good enough to be an intern anywhere in D.C., that maybe I incorrectly perceived what God's will was for me. I had come so far already... were all of my efforts in vain? Eventually I got a few certain nos, which gave me a bit of closure in that God didn't want me to intern for those organizations. My intern advisers warned me that organizations don't always think ahead for spring interns because Thanksgiving messes things up and then they have an "oh shoot" moment where they realize that they still need interns for the next semester. I didn't have any phone interviews until December and I was finally place in my internship during finals week.
I confess that when sometimes people bring up discouraging truths to me, I feel like it means that they don't fully support me in my endeavors. For example, my brother will graduate high school the same year that I will graduate from Gustavus and I've been warned by my parents that since the graduation dates would be kind of close, there would be a chance that they wouldn't attend my graduation. I could of moved up my graduation though, for before I submitted my application to study abroad, I knew that I had the potential to graduate in three years due to me taking more than four credits' worth of classes every semester. However, by now I have come to know many of my classmates of 2016 and to me it would feel wrong to not graduate with the same class that I entered in as. If Gustavus took 3's as AP credit, which would have made me enter Gustavus as a sophomore and not a half-freshman half-sophomore, it would be a different story. Also, there are still things I want to do before I graduate, such as go traying and have a senior recital that would involve both flute playing and singing. I wouldn't have felt as prepared to work in politics either without some sort of internship opportunity. I remember last summer I had a conversation with my neighbor across the street about this, and she told me that it would be too soon if I were to graduate a full year early, which made me feel glad for her support. Hence, I am a member of the class of 2016.
I know that Washington D.C. has a high crime rate as I've been told by many people and the media. I'm aware that I need to watch my back otherwise I could end up a victim. However, I also know that God has kept me alive for the past 21 years and kept me safe, so I know that he will be protecting me too.
So here I am now, with just a couple weeks before my semester begins. I admit that I have things that I'm looking forward to as well as fears, but I'll reveal what those are next Friday.
The first time I heard about the Washington Internship Institute (the organization responsible for the program I will be a part of) was when I was a freshman and went to the Study Abroad Fair. At the time I pursued a double-major in Political Science and Music, so while the idea of spending a semester in Washington D.C. sounded cool to me, I knew that realistically I wouldn't be able to participate in the program and still graduate college in three and a half years like I intended. So I let the idea go and didn't think about it for a while.
Over the summer before sophomore year there was a lot of thinking about whether or not I was supposed to be a Music major, especially since I was rejected in my first attempt to enter into the Music major program. I was torn. While I was great at music theory, did well in my skill checks, had a great time with my composition project at the end of freshmen year, and do love music, my performance assessment on flute, my primary instrument, didn't go as well as I hoped since I get nervous when I play flute in public by myself. Also, it probably didn't help that I never had private flute lessons until college. Part of me wanted to try again with the second performance assessment, but at the same time part of me was afraid to fail again. By the end of the summer I still hadn't come to a resolution.
However, that all changed within the first week of sophomore year. As I read the syllabus for Music Theory III in my dorm after class, I took notice about all of the different forms of music that my classmates and I would learn about. Something about it made me feel ill at ease. Also, since I'm an over-analyzer, I wondered if by learning all of those concepts would cause me to analyze my music as I play it, which would in turn cause me to lose my enjoyment of music. After a lot of thinking, praying, and talking to a few friends about the matter, I dropped Music Theory III before the end of the first week of class. I still have the passion for music as well as sing and play flute and piano, it's just that the path of a Music major wasn't the best way for me to live out my passion. By becoming a Music minor, my three and a half year plan (instead of the typical four year plan for college) had more freedom.
I suddenly realized that now I could spend a semester in Washington D.C., and I already had a sense of when would be a good time to go. As a person in choir, there was no way that I wanted to miss Christmas in Christ Chapel. Also, more of the fall semester classes caught my eye than spring. After I talked to a couple friends, I decided to apply to study abroad for Spring 2015. Once I submitted my application though, I knew that the Study Abroad Program at Gustavus wanted to have a more even distribution of students going abroad in fall and spring and since more people request to go abroad in the spring than in the fall, I knew there was going to be some people who wouldn't be allowed to go in the spring but be requested that they go in the fall. I hoped and prayed that I would not be one of the people who would be asked to change my plans. After a long wait, I received an e-mail which stated that I was allowed to study abroad for Spring 2015.
This last summer, part of my time was dedicated to applying to the Washington Internship Institute. There was a two-step acceptance process, and the second step required recommendation letters from a couple of my professors. However, in my haste to get the application process done and over with early, I had applied at a point in time where my professors weren't checking their e-mails as much because they were enjoying their own summers. As the deadline approached for the letters to come in, I started to worry since I hadn't heard anything from the professors I originally messaged, so I sent requests for recommendation letters to a few more professors. I wondered what would happen if the letters didn't come in time, so I messaged one of the coordinators of the Washington Internship Institute about my concerns. With a few days to spare, I finally heard back from my professors and the required recommendation letters came in on time. However, this was not the last of my obstacles.
Last semester, with the help of my intern advisers of the Washington Internship Institute, I applied to many different organizations that caught my interest in the hopes that I could be their intern. I submitted many cover letters and resumes, but there was a long period of silence. The lack of responses was so long that I worried I wasn't good enough to be an intern anywhere in D.C., that maybe I incorrectly perceived what God's will was for me. I had come so far already... were all of my efforts in vain? Eventually I got a few certain nos, which gave me a bit of closure in that God didn't want me to intern for those organizations. My intern advisers warned me that organizations don't always think ahead for spring interns because Thanksgiving messes things up and then they have an "oh shoot" moment where they realize that they still need interns for the next semester. I didn't have any phone interviews until December and I was finally place in my internship during finals week.
I confess that when sometimes people bring up discouraging truths to me, I feel like it means that they don't fully support me in my endeavors. For example, my brother will graduate high school the same year that I will graduate from Gustavus and I've been warned by my parents that since the graduation dates would be kind of close, there would be a chance that they wouldn't attend my graduation. I could of moved up my graduation though, for before I submitted my application to study abroad, I knew that I had the potential to graduate in three years due to me taking more than four credits' worth of classes every semester. However, by now I have come to know many of my classmates of 2016 and to me it would feel wrong to not graduate with the same class that I entered in as. If Gustavus took 3's as AP credit, which would have made me enter Gustavus as a sophomore and not a half-freshman half-sophomore, it would be a different story. Also, there are still things I want to do before I graduate, such as go traying and have a senior recital that would involve both flute playing and singing. I wouldn't have felt as prepared to work in politics either without some sort of internship opportunity. I remember last summer I had a conversation with my neighbor across the street about this, and she told me that it would be too soon if I were to graduate a full year early, which made me feel glad for her support. Hence, I am a member of the class of 2016.
I know that Washington D.C. has a high crime rate as I've been told by many people and the media. I'm aware that I need to watch my back otherwise I could end up a victim. However, I also know that God has kept me alive for the past 21 years and kept me safe, so I know that he will be protecting me too.
So here I am now, with just a couple weeks before my semester begins. I admit that I have things that I'm looking forward to as well as fears, but I'll reveal what those are next Friday.
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