This is my smoke signal!
Just wanted to drop a quick line to let you guys know what the end of a college semester looks like, and to let my parents know I'm alive under all this studying! I tallied up the number of hours I expect to be toiling away at homework this weekend, and the total quickly reached a neat 24.
I have about 12 hours "free" to work this weekend when I'm not performing, in a meeting, or fraternizing with my professors and peers at idyllic spring picnics and the like.
In other words, STRESS! The stuff I'm working on is actually really fascinating, but I'll probably only appreciate that after the fact, when I have three 10-to-15-page papers printed and sitting in front of me in an aesthetically pleasing stack.
The big-ticket items for each class include:
A paper on meditation in psychotherapy for my Indian Philosophy class: this will allow me to explore my interests in Vipassana and counseling, by analyzing the extent to which modern Western psychotherapy retains aspects of Buddhism in employing mindfulness meditation as a means to work with clients.
A paper on the Sardar Sarovar Dam on the Narmada River for my Environmental Policy class: this piece of controversial infrastructure is actually the reason I study at Harvard. Had my dad not been working on this project in the 90s, he never would have met his future employers at the World Bank, moved to the States, etc. etc. and I probably would have been born in India. So this project holds immense personal significance for me...and I should probably start thinking about working on my paper.
A presentation on integration by parts in my Calculus class: don't ask me what this means. All I know is that at the end of the semester, each student has to "present a lesson" on a concept in mathematics outside of the scope of our course, to experiment with having to learn math independently in the future (yikes!).
An analysis of a piece of critical literature on a piece of Latin elegy for my Latin class: this will be the treat I look forward to devouring after turning all of the above in. I haven't yet selected my topic, but being offered a list of options will be like going on a field trip to a candy store.
After all this is taken care of, I'll just have a few odd problem sets, translations, oh, and exams to worry about before a summer of recording an album with the Opportunes, working in Mexico at Centro Mario Molina, and coaching a team for National Latin Convention in Las Vegas!
Alright, reading period: here we go.
I have about 12 hours "free" to work this weekend when I'm not performing, in a meeting, or fraternizing with my professors and peers at idyllic spring picnics and the like.
In other words, STRESS! The stuff I'm working on is actually really fascinating, but I'll probably only appreciate that after the fact, when I have three 10-to-15-page papers printed and sitting in front of me in an aesthetically pleasing stack.
The big-ticket items for each class include:
A paper on meditation in psychotherapy for my Indian Philosophy class: this will allow me to explore my interests in Vipassana and counseling, by analyzing the extent to which modern Western psychotherapy retains aspects of Buddhism in employing mindfulness meditation as a means to work with clients.
A paper on the Sardar Sarovar Dam on the Narmada River for my Environmental Policy class: this piece of controversial infrastructure is actually the reason I study at Harvard. Had my dad not been working on this project in the 90s, he never would have met his future employers at the World Bank, moved to the States, etc. etc. and I probably would have been born in India. So this project holds immense personal significance for me...and I should probably start thinking about working on my paper.
A presentation on integration by parts in my Calculus class: don't ask me what this means. All I know is that at the end of the semester, each student has to "present a lesson" on a concept in mathematics outside of the scope of our course, to experiment with having to learn math independently in the future (yikes!).
An analysis of a piece of critical literature on a piece of Latin elegy for my Latin class: this will be the treat I look forward to devouring after turning all of the above in. I haven't yet selected my topic, but being offered a list of options will be like going on a field trip to a candy store.
After all this is taken care of, I'll just have a few odd problem sets, translations, oh, and exams to worry about before a summer of recording an album with the Opportunes, working in Mexico at Centro Mario Molina, and coaching a team for National Latin Convention in Las Vegas!
Alright, reading period: here we go.
Phew...I am breathless!
ReplyDeleteYou didn't mention what you do in your spare time.... :)
ReplyDeleteyou're like the coolest person i know, and i don't even know you lol. and daym your classes sound cool. i take classes like.. Math.
ReplyDeleteYOU CAN DO IT, RATNA!! The summer is seriously close! And I have dogs if you need a doggytherapy break--ill be grading in my room for sure until dinner if you want to join the relaxing study hall.
ReplyDeleteRough weekend!
ReplyDelete