Freshman Seminar Reflection
1) Use the act of writing to reflect upon your experience of and personal relationship to the Mississippi River over the course of the semester. Begin with your decision to register for this seminar, your expectations, your experience of each of the projects, and conduce with a relationship on your current relationship to the Mississippi River.
To start off honestly, I wasn’t planning on registering for this class. I wanted to sign up for this other seminar, Art Laboratory: A Place to Play, but it was filled so I decided to enroll in one of the other available seminars that had a little poorly drawn star next to it to indicate interest. Although I had no idea what to expect from this class, I mean besides some sort of teachings relating to the river, I wasn’t really sure what I signed myself up for. It was actually a great decision and I’m glad that the other seminar filled up. This seminar has definitely created a bond between the river and I the I’m not sure would have become if not for this class. I’ve always enjoyed nature and given the opportunities I would explore, but I don’t think I would have ever engulfed myself the way I did for this class on my own. From the tumbler posts, to the projects, to simply discussing our feelings and thoughts on the river it already made me see the river in a different light. That the river isn’t just a river. It’s actually the host of hundreds creatures and ideas, just waiting to blossom. I’ve been on tumblr for several years now. I was even on it before they completely revamped everything and the html coding for your blog layout was extremely confusing. Anyways I was kind of excited, to an extent, for the blogs because I was so familiar with the platform. The tumblr posts, although sometimes annoying, definitely helped me get closer to the river by helping me reflect on the river and keep it in my thoughts even when I wasn’t near it. It helped me gain an appreciation for it, especially since it’s literally about a hundred feet from my second home. I also enjoyed it because it was an excuse to go to the river and take pictures along with avoid my other responsibilities by justifying my procrastinating with “well it’s for river class so I better do this.” The other two projects, the collaborative and personal project helped me gain even more perspectives. Especially since I am very much a stubborn person and it’s hard for me to see things differently once I’ve created an idea of how something should be done. While in the group project it helped me become more fluid with my thinking. Since there were several bumps in the road for our project, I think each one overall helped push things in the right direction even if it was absolutely nothing we imagined. The personal project was very fun and allowed me to look deeper into both myself and the river. After being inspired by a photo series off tumblr, I wanted to recreate it. But supplies were limited and time was running out, I am very pleased with the outcome though. Most of the photos used were and still are some of my favorite ones I’ve taken lately and maybe even ever. And to be able to incorporate them into my final for this class gave me both a confidence boost and a sort of feeling of accomplishment. I’m glad I was able to convey my feelings successfully through my photos and that my classmates were able to glance into my mind and perspective. Overall, this class has been truly amazing to me. I don’t think my first semester would feel right without this class and all the memories it’s created for me. The river has become a third home for me and even though the weather is not kind and I am currently over 300 miles away from me I can honestly say I cannot wait to return to it and be greeted by its open arms made of leaves and warm welcome of the sandy shore. Thank you Mississippi River, I never thought I would ever address you as a person, but you’ve impacted my life more than most people.
2) Prioritizing your perspective as a student, reflect upon the potential role of the Mississippi River in the life of the campus community at the University of Minnesota. If you were presenting your perspective to President Kaler, Provost Hanson, and the Board of Regents what are the three key points that you would wan too communicate?
I think that the Mississippi is truly an untapped entity of hope and peace. Most students who come in contact with its greenery most off are simply taking a smoke break, but for those willing to let the river into your soul I think its extremely rewarding. Similar to an amazing professor or finding your niche amongst 60,000 others. I hope that every one in the community, young, old, student or non student alike, find the peace and solidarity that I have through the river. Life is tough and if people can find comfort in the river or a safe space I hope they find it. Yikes three key points and I’m speaking to these very important people oh no. Okay I would like to cover the ideas of peace/comfort, thought processor and fresh air. First, the river has helped me find a comfortable place to come to relax or just get away from the hustle and bustle of college. For me, I was lucky enough to find an amazing group of peers who live on my floor and thus I am constantly surrounded by others who love and entertain me. But it’s always take to slip away and take time for yourself. I found that time sort of slows when I’m down by the river. The river has some beautiful spots and they offer therapeutic touches to help us all relax and allows us to regenerate and grow as individuals. Second, like most people I think about a lot of things like constantly. So like many thinkers I usually drift off into thought in almost any location and situation, but having an ideal area where I have no obligations or restrictions is very nice. The river gives us room to breathe and take a step back to really reflect on our choices. I’ve sat beside the river for long periods of time, thinking about random thoughts. From what I want to major in to why am I such a mess to wow I have been truly blessed by this institute and the opportunities it’s provided for me. The Mississippi will stand by your side as you wrestle with the thoughts in your head and will offer its calm waves to wash away the angst. Third, getting fresh air is an important step in creating a healthy lifestyle. You don’t even need to go for a run next to the river, just a chill walk along the shore helps give your lungs a breath of fresh air. Which must be rejuvenating when being cooped up in the dorms or library for such long periods either doing homework or binge watching the last season of breaking bad. Having the Mississippi literally in the backyard of our dorms (well expect Sanford and Bailey hall, sorry guys!) It’s definitely something we should appreciate more. Take a 10 minute break from studying or while walking home after class and take a quick stroll around the river. Find a new place to sit or discover some cool graffiti or maybe even stumble across someone’s living situation. (Which I did, there’s a mattress and a large pile of things surrounding it underneath one of the bridges.) Lastly, if none of these antidotes get to you, think about how crazy life is and how truly meaningless our existences are. We are barely a spect of dust that is the endless span of the universe. The river helps ground us. It’s something we can grab and hold onto to help make sense of things. It allows us to connect to something bigger than ourselves while still allowing ourself the chance to spread our wings and discover our own way to fly.
