Reflecting Journal assignment #4

This journal is about the unexpected obstacles that we must overcome. So the reason I bring out this topic is because this week I discovered that we had an assignment two days after it was due. Apparently our teacher posted in a different spot than he had posted all of our assignments up to this point. So I never recognized that we had it until one of my classmates pointed out the fact that they had turned the assignment late. Up until that point I had been ahead in all of my subjects, but when I found out about this assignment everything seemed to fall behind. All of a sudden I felt as though I had less focus and less energy. For some reason it was more difficult to do the tasks that I had been doing with ease before I got this news. I couldn’t stop thinking about that assignment and how I had missed it. This assignment was one that I knew would be very time consuming, but if I had known about it this past weekend I would have been able to complete the assignment with ease. The mere fact that I had missed the assignment made it seem so much more difficult to complete because of the fact that I knew that I had missed its deadline. But I realized that I couldn’t change the deadline or go back in time in order to make it so that I could finish this assignment. I had to rebalance myself. I was still ahead in all of my other subjects so I didn’t have to worry about the possibility that by working on the assignment that was already late that I would have to worry about not getting a different assignment done on time as well. What I gained from this experience is that when something unexpected comes up that your initial reaction is to panic and let it overcome you, but if you take everything into consideration and realize that the mistake has already been made and instead of worrying about it that you should just complete that task to the best of your abilities.


Okay so this next one is about my “volunteering” to be in the Neihardt date auction. The purpose of the auction is to raise money for Make-A-Wish foundation, which is a cause that my family has personally benefited from. I was definitely willing to volunteer but I was nervous about the fact if anyone would bid, but then my friends signed me up for the auction instead of me signing myself up. I think they assumed that I wouldn’t find out because of the fact that my name was on a list on a different floor and I just happened to see that I was on there. The thing is that I was actually grateful to them for putting my name on the list because then if my bidding goes poorly I can say that it was my friends’ fault because they signed me up to do it. It’s as if a hidden pressure has been taken off of me. And I’m extremely happy because of the fact that I’ll be able to help such a wonderful organization. I think that this fundraiser is a great way for college students to help out without worrying about ways to volunteer out time or make direct donations. Many students are much more likely to donate their money if they feel like they may receive something in return. It also is a great way for people to interact with each other and have a fun time. What I learned is that there are several people who are willing to help out but sometimes they just need a little bit of encouragement. I easily could have erased my name off the list, but I want to help out. I’m also encouraging my friends to put their own names on the list in order to help out. Opportunities like these are great ways to help out an organization that is worthy of both our time and money. I am extremely grateful that opportunities like this exist for us as students. Hopefully all will go well for the auction.