Famous Last Words: Finishing the Class

Now that I've arrived at the last day of the last week of this class, I thought it would be helpful to reflect on what I have learned and how it affects me as a student and person in general. 

Enjoy the effort & keep on learning!

I think this is a great summary of what I've taken from this class.

Source: Growth Mindset Resources.

First of all, I'm so happy that I was exposed to a wide variety of readings. There is such a vast, seemingly endless amount of mythology and folklore out there, and I appreciate that I got a taste of several cultures' stories. Also, I now have access to so many different readings online, through the Untextbook and Freebookapalooza. I love that the Untextbook is an open source with organized units and readings; it will be easy to continue learning about mythology and folklore in the future if I choose to.

Before this class, I had not written creatively since I was in elementary school. When I found out at the beginning of the semester that we would have to write stories weekly, I felt nervous and wasn't sure whether I would be able to write anything I was happy with. It turns out that I had fun writing! It is something so different from what I normally do for school, and I think it opened me up to thinking differently than I normally do. I enjoyed having the power as a storyteller to change things I didn't like about certain stories, or to dwell on things that I really did like. I didn't love everything I wrote, but I am proud of my Storybook and will share it with my parents, and there are also some weekly stories that I felt came out well. It became easier to write as the semester went on, and it especially became easier to make myself sit down and write without judging myself. At the beginning of the semester, I waited until the last minute to write because I was afraid of how bad my writing would turn out. As the semester went on, I realized that my writing was better when I wasn't under time constraints, and I also realized that it was okay if one story wasn't very good. I think I shed a lot of the fear I had associated with writing and built up some willpower to sit down and get things done. Not only has this made me better at writing, but I think it will translate to other academic areas in which I fear that my results will not be excellent. I have learned to be okay with imperfection, and to just try and do what I can.

While I really enjoyed reading stories, writing my own, and interacting with my classmates on their blogs, I think the biggest gain I have received from this class is an introduction to the growth mindset. I am so happy that the growth mindset assignment was required at the beginning of the semester. It stuck with me, and I definitely had to remind myself many times throughout the semester to embrace a growth mindset rather than fretting about classes. Knowledge about the growth mindset helped me enjoy my difficult classes, because I knew that I was stretching and growing through the challenges. It also kept me, many times, from beating myself up over not getting something right away (although I also had many times when I forgot the importance of a growth mindset and let myself believe I was not good enough to achieve future goals - it's a process). As with the readings,  I am so thankful to Laura for providing us with a wealth of resources about growth mindset and Carol Dweck's research! I know it's a big statement, but I honestly think that learning about fixed and growth mindsets has changed my life. I will certainly carry this information with me long after this class and even college are over.

Growth Mindset: Carol Zweck on Perfectionism

In Carol Zweck's video on perfectionism, she describes two different types of perfectionism and compares these mindsets to her concept of a fixed vs. growth mindset. The first type of perfectionism she describes is focused on success and accomplishment of goals. This type of perfectionist worries about losing respect and standing if he or she does not meet very high expectations. This mindset is obviously harmful. The other type of perfectionism is about constantly striving for excellence and improvement. This type of perfectionist may feel that perfectionism is actually a positive trait, because it pushes him or her toward overcoming challenges and becoming a better person. Zweck then points out that these types of perfectionism (if the latter can be called perfectionism) correspond to a fixed and growth mindsets, respectively. Just like the former type of perfectionist, someone with a fixed mindset is afraid of looking dumb or making mistakes, and feels as if any failure can compromise his or her worth, because it reveals some inherent shortcoming. A person with a growth mindset believes he or she can improve, and thus can set high goals without fear of failure along the way. Failure is a step toward reaching those high goals, rather than an indicator that the person is incapable of accomplishing them. 

I'd like to share a few of my favorite quotations from this video and then elaborate on them. Carol Zweck does a great job of summing up her message and making it very clear what fixed and growth mindsets are all about. After watching a couple short videos about growth mindset earlier in the semester, I felt I knew enough to implement it in my life. The advantage to watching a longer video like this one is that Zweck also does a great job of elaborating and providing examples of fixed mindset beliefs that I recognize in myself. She also explains how growth mindset can help us in so many different situations and can make us healthier and happier in many areas of our lives. I found these quotations so helpful because they either expose dangerous effects of a fixed mindset or encourage me and guide me to develop a growth mindset for myself.

The first quote that stuck out to me was "I was so perfect that I had to start shrinking my world to maintain it." Zweck shares that she was a star student growing up but refused to participate in larger spelling bees and other competitions, because she didn't want to risk losing her status of perfection. This quote really hits home for me because I want a larger world, not a shrinking one, and because I see in myself the tendency to do this. I try to push myself to do difficult and potentially embarrassing things, but I often come close to backing out because I'm afraid of embarrassing myself or being exposed for my shortcomings. For example, I am taking piano lessons at OU this semester and I had to play at a small recital this past Friday. I went through with it and am glad I did it, but I was so nervous that I would embarrass myself that, right before I played, I wished I had never said yes to playing in the recital. Afterwards, though my performance wasn't perfect, I was glad I did it. Why would I turn down an opportunity to share what I've been working on, get more comfortable with performing, and hear my peers' pieces? But in the moment, when fear of failure and embarrassment faced me, I felt willing to shrink my world. This also applies to the academic world. Many of my friends who are pre-med do not want to take difficult Honors classes because they don't want to risk their GPA - a measure of academic perfection. 

I'll mention the other two quotes together, since I think they point toward the same idea. The first is "Everything in life requires huge amounts of effort over long periods of time." The other is "Why shouldn't we revere struggle? It means we've worked hard toward something we value." Here, Zweck discusses the rejection of effort by people with a fixed mindset. To them, since they believe that their natural intelligence and abilities cannot be improved upon, effort reveals weakness and dumbness. Zweck argues that everything worth having requires effort somewhere down the line. No one can get the things they want and have a meaningful life without exerting some effort, and she points out how harmful it is for people to view such necessary effort as shameful rather than something to be celebrated. I really appreciate Zweck's reminder that effort is good and something we should be proud of. I want to embrace the effort that I put into school and other areas of my life. It's true that I feel much prouder of myself when I do well in a class that was very difficult than when I do well in a class that was a breeze. Overcoming challenge with effort not only feels good in the end, but allows me to grow in a way that easy tasks can't. I will keep these quotes in my phone, because they remind me to strive for a challenge and be proud of the effort I exert. I should feel disappointed (though not self-abusively so) when I go through a day without putting effort in.

Hard work leads to positive results.

A great reminder to revere struggle and effort!

Source: Growth Mindset Resources.

Learning Challenge: Mindfulness and Attention

For this week's learning challenge, I read an article from the New York Times called "The Power of Concentration." I have been hearing about the benefits of mindfulness and meditation since high school, but this article is one of the more convincing cases I've seen for the practice of mindfulness. The author was able to convince me of the fruits of mindfulness through her citation and explanation of multiple studies that show a wide variety of practical benefits from mindfulness. I often think, "It sounds nice and calming to sit and focus on one thing, but would I really gain anything from it besides a few moments of peace?" While I'd have to look at the studies myself to be completely sure, this article did a lot to convince me to at least pay more attention to mindfulness.

The fact that surprised me most is that mindfulness can create better connectivity in the brain area whose deficiency is linked with Alzheimer's disease. I wonder how mindfulness compares with other activities such as reading or learning math in terms of creating these connections in the brain. I don't know whether mindfulness would be the best activity, but it is definitely good news that such a relaxing activity could actually improve mental health.

"Adopt the pace of nature, her secret is patience." 

Photo of East Greenland by Kitty Terwolbeck.

Source: Flickr.

This article has made me curious to know exactly what the lessons are in these mindfulness classes that the studies employ. I plan on doing more research and reading about what mindfulness activities garner the benefits cited in the article. Focusing on breathing? Simply avoiding multitasking? Going on walks and focusing on the physical sensations, sights, and sounds? I doubt all mindfulness and meditation activities are equal, so I'm curious about what I can do to gain the benefits discussed.

Finally, I like that the author, while noting mindfulness's roots in Eastern religion and spirituality, also uses the secular figure of Sherlock Holmes to illustrate mindfulness. I tend to be a bit skeptical about spiritual and religious claims, so I like that mindfulness can be separated from these things while still recognizing and respecting the history behind it.

Reading Notes: Hans Christian Andersen, Part B

The Little Mermaid

The little mermaid. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Wow, I had never read this story before although the Disney version used to be my favorite movie when I was very young. I had heard that the Hans Christian Andersen version had a more tragic ending, but I did not know how beautifully the story would be written or that the ending would not be quite as desolate as I expected.

Unlike many fairy tales, this story speaks about souls. I almost had an existential crisis while reading this. I don't know whether we have immortal souls or not, but I can only begin to imagine the despair of knowing that others have immortal souls but you do not, and that others will live forever and you will perish into oblivion. That's pretty dark! I don't think I would have given up my voice and family to gain only the possibility of an immortal soul, but I can understand why the little mermaid did.

The little mermaid is such a sympathetic character. She is talented, gentle, curious, and loving toward the Prince and his bride (even though they inadvertently bring her to her death). As a child, I loved Ariel in the Disney film, but as I got older I felt that she was a bit ungrateful for what she had and not all that likable after all. Reading this story brought back all the sympathy I had for the little mermaid as a kid. Even though I do think it was rash of her to make a deal with the witch, I know she did it, not out of selfishness or "the grass is greener" thinking, but because of the dreadful longing for love and a soul. She didn't just want romance or nice things or to escape from her family. She loved her family and her voice, and I don't think she was ungrateful for what she had, but she could not deal with the sorrow of losing her life and the prince one day.

I love the detailed descriptions in this story. I will definitely be reading it again in the future for the beauty of the descriptions of the water, the ship, the castle, and the mermaids' views of the human world. The descriptions of the limb-like growths outside of the witch's house were wonderfully terrifying and dark.

Bibliography: Fairy Tales and Stories by Hans Christian Andersen. Link to the reading online.

Reading Notes: Europa's Fairy Book, Part B

Inside Again

This story is hilarious! My favorite part was the last line, because I had never heard it before and it made me laugh out loud. I had heard the basic story before, but I had never heard the moral flipped on the savior as it is in this story.

The last line, "There's gratitude for you," is so funny because the reader thinks throughout the whole story that placing self-preservation over gratitude is wrong (or at least that's how I read the story). Two of the animals that come by to serve as judges say "There's gratitude for you" because they have been thrown out by someone who should have shown them gratitude. They side with the snake because they feel that since they have not been treated with gratitude, neither should the man. While I read this story, I wanted the man to get away, which I think is what the author wants the reader to feel. But then at the end, when the man has won (although it was by trickery, not moral reasoning), he and his wife kill the fox, clearly displaying ingratitude. What a twist! I guess the man should have been eaten by the snake after all. Also, this ending shows that while the man claimed to have upper moral ground by insisting that the snake act out of gratitude, the man was really acting out of self-preservation the whole time. He didn't believe in the moral he preached, but only attempted to use it as a self-preservation tool. I wonder if the creator of this story was a little bitter and believed that everyone only acts out of self-preservation. I suppose it's possible that that's true! This would be a fun topic to explore in a story.

Clever fox, who is mistreated out of ingratitude.

Source: Pixabay.

Bibliography: Europa's Fairy Book by Joseph Jacobs. Link to the reading online.

Reading Notes: Europa's Fairy Book, Part A

The Earl of Cattenborough

I liked this story a lot because of the cat's cleverness and the rags-to-riches plot. At every turn, I thought, "How will the cat get them out of this one?" and she always found a way that surprised and amused me.

I also liked the part that luck played in this story. The cat was indeed clever, but she couldn't have done any of what she did without luck. For example, if the animals hadn't gone into the trap two at a time, she never would have had an excuse to meet the King. If she hadn't found the gold coin, she couldn't have used that trick to convince the King of the Earl's riches. If the ogre hadn't had a powder that made him shrink, the cat wouldn't have been able to claim the castle as the Earl's. So, luck is very important to Jack's success, as well as the cat's quick and creative thinking.

I was surprised that Jack didn't care about the cat when she almost died. I suppose it can be easy to forget about "lesser" creatures when you've been rich and successful for a while, but it really disappointed me that Jack couldn't hang on to any gratitude for the cat who kept him alive and elevated him to royal status. This would be a good point to expand on, since the story only included a line or two about Jack's behavior at the end.

Boy with cat. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Bibliography: Europa's Fairy Book by Joseph Jacobs. Link to the reading online.

Week 13 Story: Journey to the Stars

Ruth smiled as she watched her granddaughter, Molly, from the porch. The little girl was spinning ‘round and ‘round, alternating her gaze from the billowing fabric of her dress to the darkening sky above her.

“Ah!” exclaimed Molly, momentarily stopping her dance and swaying from dizziness. She pointed toward the sky. “The first star’s out, Grandma!”

“Oh, she’s looking lovely tonight,” said Ruth, following her granddaughter’s pointer finger to the budding light.

“She sure is,” echoed Molly. She began to spin again, but stopped. “Gosh, Grandma, I wish I could play with them.”

“With who, now?” asked Ruth.

“With the stars, Grandma!” said Molly impatiently.

The skin around Ruth’s eyes creased as she broke into a grin. “You know, Molly,” she said, “you sound just like me when I was your age. I wanted to play with the stars, too. And you know what?”

“What? What?”

“I did!” said Ruth proudly.

Molly stared at her with wide eyes full of wonder. She looked up at the stars, and they seemed so impossibly far away. But if Grandma had done it…

She climbed up onto the porch. “Tell me how, Grandma, tell me!” she squealed excitedly.

“Alright, honey,” said Ruth, chuckling. “I’ll tell you, but don’t go getting any ideas, now!”

After Molly promised that she certainly wouldn’t get any ideas, Ruth began her tale.

“As I said, when I was your age, all I wanted was to play with the stars. My parents brought home all sorts of little toys for me, but the excitement always wore off so quickly. But the draw of the stars: that never wore off for me! I’d talk about it constantly, and every evening I’d greet the stars as they came out to see me. But, as you know, they were too far to play with me.

“I’d talk and talk about meeting the stars, and of course no one thought it was possible. They all said, ‘You silly girl, Ruth, you’ll never meet the stars!’

“Now, I got tired of that talk very quickly. So I went off on my own. That’s right, I ran away to look for the stars!”

Molly gasped and broke into a peal of giggles.

“What did I tell you about not getting any ideas, Molly?” said Ruth sternly, before laughing along with her granddaughter.

“Well, anyway, I ran away, and I decided to ask everyone and everything I came across to tell me how to get to the stars. First I came across a pond, and I asked her if she knew where the stars were. She said that they would shine right there on her surface every night. So I went in and swam around, but I couldn’t find anything. You know, the science education wasn’t what it is now, and we didn’t know about reflection.”

“Grandma, that’s silly!” exclaimed Molly. “Ponds don’t talk!”

“Oh, you’d be surprised, honey,” said Ruth with a wink. She continued, “Then, I found a brooklet. He sang very nicely and was very kind to me, and he also said that the stars shone in his water each night. So I swam around the brooklet, too, but I didn’t find the stars there.

“I was feeling quite disappointed by now, but I still felt hopeful that I could find my playmates. So I kept walking until I came to the most beautiful meadow I had ever seen. It was filled to the brim with colorful flowers and butterflies. But as I got closer, I saw that there weren’t any flowers or butterflies at all, but tons and tons of fairies!”

“Fairies?” said Molly softly. “Everybody says those aren’t real! Were there really fairies, Grandma?”

“Child, don’t tell me you can believe in playing stars and talking ponds but not in fairies! Where do you think all the magic comes from?” said Ruth. “Well, the fairies told me that if I danced with them I might see the stars shining on the grass, but I danced until I was dizzy and sweaty and the stars never came out to greet me. So I sat right there in the meadow and cried ‘til my eyes were sore.

“But then, I heard the most beautiful song I had ever witnessed, and I realized that the fairies were singing. They were trying to help me! And I saw a great big golden staircase come down from the sky. I climbed and climbed all night, and when I got to the top, there were the stars. We danced and sang and spun around together, and when I started to miss my parents, they helped me get home.”

She looked out at the sky, which was quite dark now except for the constellations. “But that journey home is a story for another night,” she said mysteriously. Molly nodded and looked toward the sky, smiling. Although she had promised her grandma that she wouldn’t get any ideas, she had gotten a lot of ideas.

Author's Note: This story is based on "The Stars in the Sky," a British fairy tale. In the original story, a young girl goes out to find the stars so that she can play with them. She meets a milldam, a brooklet, and the "Good Folk" (whom I imagined as fairies), but can't find the stars. The Good Folk tell her a riddle, and she eventually is carried by a horse and a fish to a staircase with no steps. She climbs and climbs, but never finds the stars, and she eventually falls and finds herself back at home, where she weeps bitterly. I simplified the plot by taking out the horse and fish, and I changed the ending so that the girl met her goal, because I didn't see any reason for her not to! I decided to have the girl tell the story in old age, looking back, and I thought that an excited, star-obsessed granddaughter would be a great audience for her.

Image Information: Grandma telling story. Source: Pixabay.

Bibliography: "The Stars in the Sky" from More English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs. Link to the reading online.