Tag: Recap

You Can’t Win if You Don’t Play: 2014 – 2015 in Review

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Things I Learned Over the Last Nine Months:

  • Stand your ground and stand firm
  • Let things go
  • Take time for yourself
  • You’re a boss
  • No one else has to understand and not everyone needs to know
  • People who want to be in your life will let you know
  • People who don’t want to be in your life will show you
  • Being in love is easy
  • Being in a relationship is challenging
  • Things will work out one way or another
  • It’s the little things
  • If you open up, others will fill in the gaps
  • Not everyone will like you 100% of the time
  • Not everyone has to
  • Your words and actions may have larger impacts than you think

It’s been a long year to say the least, but it’s finally over. I had my hand of balancing studies, work, and personal life. I had my hand of unforgettable memories. I had my hand of disappointments and hard decisions. After the long Monday nights, writing a play, and learning more and more about the people around me, I can say that Junior Year was by far the toughest year. But because of its challenges, it was also the most rewarding year. I’m proud of the work I did, the people I met, and everything we accomplished together. 🙂 Next up: Senior Year!

Three Words for 2014

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(*please forgive the late post)

1. eye-opening
Throughout the year, a number of things opened my eyes. I didn’t even realize it until later, but a lot of the things I’m passionate about now weren’t really in my so-called “plan”, my VISION if you will, until the middle of this year. I didn’t know how much diversity and social justice meant to me. I didn’t know how much writing meant to me. I didn’t know until those things were put at higher stakes.

A lot of people helped me open my eyes. I got a reality check. Some people and some things are worth the time and effort. Some aren’t. Some people were jerks. They opened my eyes to how people can be lame and unreliable. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that everyone has different priorities than me, but some people are just mean. On the other hand, some people were complete blessings. They pushed me and they believed in me. This kind of support came from friends I never would have expected to support me like they did a year prior.

2. heart-opening
Kind of self-explanatory if you know me pretty well. Bahaha. This year, I learned how to open up my heart to someone. It’s been amazing, to say the least. 🙂

Beyond my special someone, because of the eye-opening, I was able to open my heart to social justice. It’s important to me. Specifically, accurate representation is important to me in our American society. I know that I want to contribute to multicultural literature and theatre and my heart hurts because I want that so badly and I want people to understand.

3. starry
Over the past year, I’ve been able to see and listen to many different people doing things they were meant to do. Concerts. Poetry. Theatre. I admire artists so much. I admire their dedication and their passion. I admire their fire.

I also admire my friends. I admire the community that surrounds me. I am amazed by people every day, in their commitment to their work or relationships or goals. They leave me speechless and a bit panicked–like I need to be doing something more. They inspire.

Thanks, 2014.

Don’t quit your daydream, 2015.

Internship Lessons

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Last month, I had the pleasure and privilege of interning at an awesome theatre company in San Francisco. It was seven weeks of ups and downs, but it was a learning experience and for that I’m grateful!

Here are Three Things I Learned:

  1. Sometimes, you are just the intern. You will have to ask questions. You will be challenged. You will screw up. And you just have to deal with it. This is hard at first, because you may want so badly to take on the world (in terms of the internship), but you can’t do anything without approval first. Other times, it’s not so bad because that means less responsibility (It also means ice cream, meals, and reusable water bottles all for freeee!). You will move up the ladder!
  2. Your worth as a worker is valuable no matter what. You might be an unpaid intern, but you are still a human. Everyone is. Your time and effort is worth something always. You are doing these people a huge favor just by volunteering your time to them, so make sure you are gaining something in return. Don’t let an intimidating work environment stop you from learning.
  3. Theatre is hellish, but it is also wonderful. Professional theatre is just as (if not more) insane as theatre done in school. After last-minute planning, doing, and stressing, at the end of the day, the production was a huge success! Theatre requires a certain level of insanity and on-the-flyness. It is not for the easily discouraged. It is challenging, but it is worth it! The pay-off is so so so wonderful.

Even though it was seven weeks of seriously not-fun commuting from the South Bay to SF and crazy officeness, I grew more into my niche as a theatre-maker. I was able to be the production assistant for an awesome play-in-development, meet the future of theatre in the form of my fellow interns and great playwrights, and learn more about production. I’m so grateful. And I’m also exhausted.

Three Things Sophomore Year Taught Me

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When I started this blog back in March, I intended to update it at least every week. I forgot that Spring Quarter is the busiest, most hectic quarter of the year so that goal was clearly not met. Whomp. After 11 weeks of applications, interviews, papers, exams, the last math class I will ever have to take (woo hoo!), culture shows, event-planning, and overall college, I am again recapping my quarter (and my sophomore year as a whole).

This year was definitely a challenge to say the least. Now, I understand what people meant when they said to freshman-me that they missed freshman year: The further you get into college (and life, I suppose!), the more you begin to understand what you want to spend your time doing and you actually do that thing(s) and you get busier and the classes become more specialized and harder. For me, sophomore year was a real learning experience because I realized a lot of things about myself, people, and life. I learned a lot of things in the past 33 weeks, but here are three of the most important:

  1.  Step Up – I started the year applying for a job I really really really wanted even though it felt kind of like why would they hire me, I’m just a lowly sophomore. I was nervous, of course, but I got the job and it is the very reason why my year was so much fun, busy, and stressful. Throughout the year, I faced all kinds of projects that called for me to not only put my best foot forward but to also step up and embrace the fact that I was scared of what came next. Sure stepping up as a leader means more responsibility and more stress, but it also means the pay-off is that much greater. At the end of the day, I can’t say that I regret any of my all-nighters or hard conversations that had to happen because I decided I didn’t just want to sit and watch things happen. I wanted to make things happen.
  2. Patience – Patience truly is a virtue. And it’s hard sometimes. Stepping up a lot of the times also meant delegating tasks to people or working with people and sometimes people don’t exactly know what you mean or they don’t do the job how you would like it done or any number of things! It’s frustrating and time-consuming to collaborate, but I learned to just take a deep breath and be patient. No matter how many times I would go back to my dorm room and rant to my roommate about how annoying people could be, I know that people do the best that they can do. You can’t control people. You have to trust them.
  3. You Never Know What You’re Going to Get – Seriously, this year was full of so many surprises and 180s, I could barely keep my thoughts together some days. One day in March, I got onto a conference call with a co-worker and a boss knowing exactly what I was doing for a job this summer. After the conference call, it was like those summer plans went through a paper-shredder. I had no idea that with just one phone call my job could become jeopardized. I was lost for about a week then I figured it out—and as it turns out, that call led me to apply for and get a great internship for the summer! As my dad would say, you just have to be like water (Bruce Lee) and be flexible. ADDITIONALLY, people can and will surprise you, too. You never know who’s going to step up into your life, but when they do, you better hold onto them! 🙂

I was talking to a friend one night (as we scrambled to put together an end-of-the-year slideshow and movie) reminiscing on the year when I thought back to my freshman year. I thought about how I was a major dork without a clue, just finding my niche at SCU. Then I thought about this year and how much I’ve grown as a student, as a leader, and as a person. It kind of blew my mind how just one year could give me so much. Those three lessons I listed above really impacted me and I hope that I never forget their value. (Though, I am still a major dork hahah.)

I could go on and on and on about all my experiences this year as a student, MCC PR, ASM, and nineteen-year-old, but that would take too long. Not many people read this, but thank you to everyone who helped me along the way this year. I really appreciate the time my friends and classmates put into their work and their relationships! It takes a lot to be a student (not to mention when you go to SCU and everyone is involved in about 246 extracurriculars). Sophomore year will be missed, but things will only get better!  Here’s to a summer full of opportunity (and blogs!) 🙂

Winter Quarter Recap

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Every quarter, without fail, there is a sense of “that went by so fast!” Syllabus week turns into midterm season which in turn becomes finals week and everything in between blurs together to form the quarter. I don’t know how many times I had a conversation with a friend that started like “I can’t believe it’s already Week Four/Five/Etc!!” It seems like all of us loose track of time (or even the days of the week, in my case). It also seems like this quarter was all of our busiest, toughest, most stressful quarter–but what quarter isn’t? Just like how every quarter goes by in a snap, every quarter will bring us stress. We all look forward to a fresh start, by Monday of Week One. Yet, priorities and commitments will pile up by the end of the week. It’s something that I’m growing accustomed to.

That being said, Winter Quarter 2014 was a real learning experience for me.

  • Assistant stage managing the winter production of First Person Shooter was such a blast. Learning about the rehearsal process and getting to know everyone involved was awesome. The show itself was great! I’m so happy I was able to be part of it. 🙂
  • Collaboration is hard. It frustrates me to no end how collaboration is even an issue. I could (and probably will) write an entirely separate post about this. It’s hard, yes, but I’ve learned how to deal with it.
  • My classes ruled. I truly enjoyed all my classes this quarter even if they were challenging. I was able to read great books that sparked discussion of humanity, explore my opportunities as a performing artist, and analyze the meaning of laughter.
  • Having grown-up guts takes guts. This quarter, I faced (dramatic music) Adult Problems. Being only 19, I barely feel like an “adult” becuz wut r taxes nd rent nd other adultz?!1 (Cough.) Someone recalled to me that the difference between being a kid and being an adult was the decisions you made. (I could probably write a separate post about this topic as well.) Anyway, I had to make a big decision regarding my plans this summer. It was actually a really tough decision to make, but in the end, I took a risk. For the first time in three years, I do not know what I’m doing this summer. I have an idea of what I want to do and I’ve applied for some internships, but nothing is set in stone. It’s actually pretty scary… But also exciting. Crossing my fingers for the best!
  • Balance. What with ASMing and working in the MCC, I had a pretty booked schedule week to week. I learned more about time management (I really don’t think I’ll ever truly master this), but I also learned to take breathers. Sometimes, it’s okay to skip out on a (optional) meeting or two. Or to have a quiet meal in my room. Really, being alone from time to time is probably in our best interests. When quarters go by as quickly as they do, it’s important to remember to take some time for yourself! Balance work, play, and rest!
  • Do what you want now. Several guest-speakers came into one of my classes this quarter and talked about being in the theatre business. I was in awe almost every class period by what they had to say. They shared their experiences and advice and it all just reaffirmed my path to go into this business. Kit Wilder, Artistic Director at City Lights Theater Company, probably summed it all up in the words Do what you want now. Don’t wait for someone to tell you yes and don’t mind the people who tell you no.
  • Friends are wonderful. In the midst of homework, rehearsals, and meetings, I leaned on several close friends this quarter; from lengthy text message conversations to long talks in the middle of the night. If I didn’t have these friends, I probably would have drowned my hall in stressed-out tears. Thank you to these friends (they know who they are :)).
  • Hard work pays off. Despite all the stress and “adult problems,” my work resulted in success (or is on the way there!).

My dad asked me about a month ago what my favorite part about college was. I could have said a number of things (friends, theatre, MCC), but I took a minute to think about it. I told him my favorite part was learning. Because college is supposed to be a place for new things and I know every day I learn something new. Over the past year and a half (woah, has it been that long already?!), I’ve learned about (among so many other things) literary history, ensembles, leadership, people, writing, and (probably most importantly) myself. So, goodbye Winter Quarter 2014! Thanks for the lessons.

Happy Spring Break, friends. 🙂