Things I've Learned So Far
Our first media assingment of our English career at freestyle was to come up with a list of 10 things we've learned so far in our lives. The lessons could be about anything an everything that we'd expereinced, the only criteria being that the lessons had to absolutely be true to ourselves, and as far from cliche as possible.
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From my list of 10 things I chose the one that remained most true, and it also happened to be the lesson that I had inadvertantly learned earliest in my years, too. One day, when packing up a couple boxes, trying to move into my new room, I'd carelessly tossed in, amongst pens and pencils, picture frames and necklaces, a stuffed animal that I tried to assure myself I'd once cherished. But, that's when I sadly realized, letting go of a chlidhood suffed animal is difficult, but realizing you've forgotten their name is even worse.
I feel that my picture ultimately was a true product of myself and that my phrase was unlike anything anyone had ever heard before. Specifically, some positive comments had to do with the lighting of the photo, how it seemed very direct and professional (a quality thanks to my dad’s lightbox.) Also, people seemed to react humorously to the fact that I actually cut the head of a teddy bear off.
Some suggestions for improvement I actually predicted before-hand. Earlier in the week I had recommended to a peer that next time his picture not be such a blatant, literal representation of the quote. Only after I made this comment did I realize that I could do the same on my photo. Even though my photo wasn’t as metaphorical as others were, I felt that the quality of the photo balanced made up for the slight lack of depth.
Below is my personal list of things i've learned so far.
- I've always felt badly when speaking up or speaking in general evaded me.
- Just because one gets older, doesn't mean they get more mature.
- It's not what you say, but how you say it.
- Letting go of a childhood stuffed animal is difficult, but realizing you've forgotten their name is far worse.
- It's far to worry about the future than to worry yourself into it.
- Learning to accept what I think is wrong with me is difficult, learning to accept what others think is wrong with me is a whole different ball game.
- Don't shoot the messenger.
- There's no such thing as quickly tempered eggs, just be patient.
- Music is simply poetry set to sound.
- I'm happiest when I know I'm loved.
I put a lot of thought into how I wanted to portray my life lesson and I think that that specific effort translated nicely. For the actual presentation, I prepared some words and points that I would say to help convey my message and they made for a seamless presentation. Overall, I am very proud of my work, a feeling I strive for when completing projects such as this. Moreover, the project made me reflect on my life so far and what messages i've learned--whether they're helpful or not. I also enjoyed having to step out of my comfort zone to create a list of ideas no one had ever heard before.