Dec 10 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Profile Final Draft

What is it like to be a new professor at a liberal arts college and brand new to a part of the country you never been before? That question is precisely what Dr. Barbara Prince is facing currently.

Dr. Barbara Prince is a new professor at Morningside College. She works for the Department of Social Sciences. This semester, she’s teaching two classes: sociology of gender beyond pink and blue and elementary probability in statistics.

She started at Morningside in August of 2018, which makes her a freshman among the other professors and of the college. For new professors, they go to a new faculty seminar, which meets once a month.

“All of the first, second, and third-year faculty and we talk about a book, so it’s kind of like a first-year orientation for faculty.”

She talks about how in the seminar they talk about Morningside, all of the acronyms, what’s going on and happening on campus. She’s also learning from the other professors too as the semester progresses.

Dr. Prince is not from Iowa nor the Midwest part of the United States. She was born Seaford, New York. It’s on Long Island and 40 minutes outside of New York City.

She has one sister named Katherine and two cats named Zelda and Luna. She lived in Seaford her whole life until she went to college.

Some people may not know this, but she’s shy and is an introvert which may surprise many because she is a professor and has to stand up in front of people and talk to them. Her love and passion for teaching overpower her shyness.

She was also a professional Irish step dancer, starting at the age eight and ended her career when she was in college. Her career lasted for 15 years, and it ended when she ruptured her Achilles tendon. She also played basketball as well.

Dr. Prince was an undergraduate at Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania, which is similar to Morningside College. Elizabethtown currently has 1700 students, is a liberal arts college, work closely with the professors.

She said her experience being at Elizabethtown made her think “that this is what I want to do (teach).”

She went for her master’s degree at West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia. She received a master’s degree in sociology and a certificate in university teaching.

At West Virginia University is where she started to get the “how-to” in teaching. She then went for a Ph.D. degree at the Bowling Green State University in Ohio.

Her love for sociology started when she took a sociology class for college credit as a senior in high school. She describes the difficulty of the class and how it changed her way of thinking.

“I thought that it was super, super, super difficult. I would spend HOURS, every night working on it.”

This class help Dr. Prince realize that this is the subject that she wants to teach one day. It also challenged and shifted her thinking.

She moved away from sociology when she went to college. Initially went to college to be a music major, because she was in the marching band and a drum major. But, she freaked out and didn’t want to the auditions.

She then changed her major to history. The reason is that she likes history. But when she was signing up for her second-semester classes, the only ones available were the sociology classes.

She then became a double major in sociology and history. As she was taking the sociology classes, she realized that she’s hooked and that this is it.

She made her history major into her minor and dedicated her time to the sociology major.

“It is like putting on a new pair of glasses.”

Being here at Morningside, it brings back memories of her time at Elizabethtown College. She likes the environment of how the students want to learn, are engaging in their classes, wanting to meet with her, and how involved they are in sports and events happening on campus.

“I really love it.”

She said that her start at Morningside has been pretty good so far. She’s learning all of the traditions that Morningside College brings.

She said that it has been very challenging “trying to learn the culture here.”

She’s enjoys teaching and has been wanting to do this since she was an undergraduate in college.

“It’s been really exciting to finally get to be a real professor. It is stressful right now, but I’m really enjoying it and having a good time.”

It is not just adjusting to Morningside but also adjusting and getting used to being in the Midwest. She said that it is completely different from the East Coast.

“People are nicer here. They say hello. They greet you. Everyone walks around with their heads up, making eye contact. In the city, it doesn’t happen.”

For her, this is the exact job and exact place she wanted to work at in her career. That made it easy for her to decide to take the job at Morningside College.

It was complicated for her to take the job at Morningside. For her interview, she was only in Sioux City for 24 hours and loved it.

Dr. Prince closest relatives are eight hours away from Sioux City and had no one that she knows in Sioux City, which made it complicated for her.

What helps her out is that Morningside is a welcoming community. It brings a home environment and the faculty help each other out, especially towards new members.

“People are inviting me over to their houses for dinner. I moved in and had to leave my apartment for two weeks and needed someone to watch my two cats.”

One of the faculty members watched her cats, and she didn’t know Dr. Prince at all. Her and Dr. Valerie Hennings go out for lunch and get coffee together.

“They want you to feel like you belong. They want you to feel welcome. They see themselves as a Morningside family. That trickles down to the students and trickles up from the students.”

It is still hard for Dr. Prince to get used to people saying hello. She thinks that people are talking to someone else but in reality, they are saying hello to her.

She does miss her East Coast home a lot. She misses the people and the culture.

“I miss my friends and family. I have only been here for a few months. It’s going to take some time.”

She doesn’t know how long it is going to take for her to adjust to being here. She heard that the first year is a whirlwind and just survive it.

After that first year, it will be easier for Dr. Prince. She loves her job and her career at Morningside and wouldn’t change it for anything. All she has to do is get through the upcoming semester.

One response so far

Dec 09 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Profile Draft

What is it like to be a new professor at a liberal arts college and brand new to a part of the country you never been before? That question is precisely what Dr. Barbara Prince is facing currently.

Dr. Barbara Prince is a new professor at Morningside College. She works for the Department of Social Sciences. This semester, she’s teaching two classes: sociology of gender beyond pink and blue and elementary probability in statistics.

She started at Morningside in August of 2018, which makes her a freshman among the other professors and of the college. For new professors, they go to a new faculty seminar, which meets once a month.

“All of the first, second, and third-year faculty and we talk about a book, so it’s kind of like a first-year orientation for faculty.”

She talks about how in the seminar they talk about Morningside, all of the acronyms, what’s going on and happening on campus. She’s also learning from the other professors too as the semester progresses.

Dr. Prince is not from Iowa nor the Midwest part of the United States. She was born Seaford, New York. It’s on Long Island and 40 minutes outside of New York City.

She has one sister named Katherine and two cats named. She lived in Seaford her whole life until she went to college.

Some people may not know this, but she’s shy and is an introvert which may surprise many because she is a professor and has to stand up in front of people and talk to them. Her love and passion for teaching overpower her shyness.

She was also a professional Irish step dancer, starting at the age eight and ended her career when she was in college. She also played basketball as well.

Dr. Prince was an undergraduate at Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania, which is similar to Morningside College. Elizabethtown currently has 1700 students, is a liberal arts college, work closely with the professors.

She said her experience being at Elizabethtown made her think “that this is what I want to do (teach).”

She went for her master’s degree at West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia. She received a master’s degree in sociology and a certificate in university teaching.

At West Virginia University is where she started to get the “how-to” in teaching. She then went for a Ph.D. degree at the Bowling Green State University in Ohio.

Being here at Morningside brings back memories of her time at Elizabethtown College. She likes the environment of how the students want to learn, are engaging in class, wanting to meet with her, and how involved they are in sports and events happening on campus.

“I really love it.”

She said that her start at Morningside has been pretty good so far. She’s learning all of the traditions that Morningside College brings.

She said that it has been very challenging “trying to learn the culture here.”

She’s enjoys teaching and has been wanting to do this since she was an undergraduate in college.

“It’s been really exciting to finally get to be a real professor. It is stressful right now, but I’m really enjoying it and having a good time.”

 

Comments Off on Profile Draft

Dec 07 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Non-Fiction Text Review #2 – Paper Lion

Filed under Assignments

Paper Lion is about a writer trying to see what it is like to a professional football last-string quarterback and write about it in a book. George Plimpton, the main character, has a hard time trying to find a team that is willing to have him go to pre-season practices. The first two teams that Plimpton contacts are the New York Giants and the Baltimore Colts. The Detroit Lions are the third team that he calls, and they said yes. He heads down to their pre-season headquarters in Cranbrook school, a boys’ private school in Michigan.

He talks about his experience in the pre-season camp and practices. He discusses the environment and treatment of veterans to rookies. He’s describing in many details what it is like to be a rookie quarterback in the “big times.” He gets to know and bonds with the players and coaches on the team. He talks about playing his only football game and losing 30 yards. After that game, he tries very hard to play in another football game, but the NFL commissioner said no. He leaves the Lions training camp and a season later; he works at the NFL Draft as a representative for the Detroit Lions.

The author of this book is George Plimpton. The book was published in 1966. He was the first editor-in-chief of The Paris Review. In his sports journalism career, he pioneered the participatory journalism, where he competes in professional sports games and writes about it for people to read. He has written the book Out of My League in 1960. Out of My League was put together in the same way as this book and was the influence of this book. For Paper Lion, he thought that he could repeat the same experiment that completed when he tried out baseball as a part of the New York Yankees. His determination to try participatory journalism again but in the world of the NFL and the Detroit Lions.

The author’s purpose for writing this book to see if his experiment in participating in the professional world of football as an amateur would work, and it did. After the success of his first participatory journalism experiment, he took a few years off to plan his next test which turned out to be the book, Paper Lion. He wanted to see what it is like for an average person or amateur to be a part of an NFL team and play professional football. It turned out that it was improbable for an average person to become a professional football player in the NFL. He wanted people to know what the players on the Detroit Lions team are like on and off the football field. He accomplished his goals of the experiment with football and for writing the book to explain in details what it is like to be the “odd” person out in an NFL team.

Plimpton’s idea for the book was to call up NFL teams and see if they wanted him and if it was alright to write about his experience with the team. It took two different NFL teams until the third team, the Detroit Lions, said yes to having him on their football team during their pre-season training camps. The Lions said yes for Plimpton to write all about his experience. Once he arrived at the Detroit Lions’ pre-season training camps, the team made it clear to Plimpton that he should try to fit in with the players, so that they won’t get nervous with having a writer being around them.

His methods for writing this book were interviewing, observation, research, and participation. Plimpton interviewed but also talked to the players in conversation to have a sense of who they are and what they are like as a football player and as a person. He observed by watching the football players on the football field, practicing over and over again. Plimpton researched the team by asking the coaches and players what happened last season for the Lions and reading the sports section of the newspaper to have a feeling of what the team is like during the season. He read the papers before he went to the training camps.

He participated heavily on the football field during practices and hanging out the players after the practice sessions were over for the day. The participation of being on the team as a quarterback and as a member of the Detroit Lions is the most important to accomplish what he wanted to do. He couldn’t write this book that way that it was without being there in person and talking to the members of the Lions. Another part that helped the participation part of Plimpton’s methods is interviewing. Participating and talking to the players go hand-in-hand throughout the entire book.

George Plimpton’s perspective when writing the book is the opinion and subjective observations. There are parts of the book where he tries to be objective but realizes that he can’t because he is soaked up in the life of an NFL football player. His position in the book is trying his best to have the players be comfortable with him talking to them and being around them. He is emotionally involved in the story because he is the main character. In the process of being apart of the Lions’ training camp, he becomes obsessed with the game of football, and after he leaves the training camp, he also becomes obsessed with the team by wanting to help them out in any way. He learns that there is a brotherhood in football and even after leaving the sport, there is still that brotherhood that is inseparable.

I liked reading this book. To read a book from the perspective of someone who is trying not only a new sport but at the professional level is fascinating. George Plimpton brings the readers along with him on his journey to playing an NFL football, along with the ups and downs. He also helps the readers learn more about the players on the Detroit Lions and their coaches. This “inside scoop” is something that probably didn’t happen very often in the periods of the 1950s and 1960s.

Having someone who is willing to put their life on the line to tell a story is crazy, insane, brave, and adventurous all at the same time. Plimpton, in my opinion, brought participatory journalism into the spotlight with this book. He is a writer that is not afraid of what’s happening next. He’s a writer that is going to go along the adventure and see what happens.

One response so far

Nov 26 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Profile Sketch

My plan for my profile article is to interview/talk with either Dr. Valerie Hennings or Dr. Barbara Prince. They are two of my teachers this semester.

Dr. Valerie Hennings is the head of the political science department at Morningside College. She also runs the Col. Bud Day’s Center for Civic Engagement in the library.

For Dr. Hennings’ profile, I want to show how she is helping students engage in politics by knowing what’s going on in Sioux City, in Iowa, the Midwest, and the national levels of elections, behind the scenes of campaigns, and helping students understand the importance of voting.

For Dr. Prince’s profile, I want to talk about how she is a new professor on campus, what the transition was like to adjust to Morningside College, her backstory before Morningside, and what made want to come and teach sociology in Iowa.

One response so far

Nov 23 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Happy/Angry-Working and School at the same time

Filed under Assignments

Having a part-time job and being a full-time student at the same time makes me angry.  College students cannot do everything and balance the world while trying to get a higher education.

College students should not have to worry about trying to pass their classes while going to their part-time jobs to pay for their bills. It makes it harder for students to focus on what’s first or most important.

For most of this semester, I worked part-time at Thinker Toys, go to school full-time, taking 18 credits, and help out any way that I can for the Mass Communication Department. I worked every Tuesday and Thursday and every other weekend.

Weekends are where I can do a lot of homework to catch up or get ahead in my classes. It all worked out fine last semester but this current semester has been my worst.

I started my job at Thinker Toys on January 1st. I initially thought that this job would be straightforward and able to work very well with my school schedule.

There was just one big problem that was looming, the holiday season. The holiday season is the busiest time of year for Thinker Toys.

This time of year is where they make most of their money. The same can be said for almost to every retail store in the country.

When it came to school, this semester is the first semester that I feel like I’m falling behind and not being able to stay up-to-date on my classes and assignments. I have never felt this way before about school.

The problem started in August of 2018 when school started; it was easy to balance school and work. It stayed this way for over a month until the beginning of October.

The balancing of school and work is challenging for most college students. We, as college students, shouldn’t have to deal with the whole world being placed on our shoulders.

This feeling is familiar, and unfortunately, it will not go away for a very long time. College students need to spend their free time after class doing homework and enjoying the college experience.

From the beginning of October until now, my schedule has been mixed into a giant pot of stew. It started as a ball of confusion trying to contain it for as long as I can.

The store was getting busier, and school is for more of my time for activities outside of class. School comes first is the statement everyone has been giving me when I talk about the struggle of juggling school and work at the same time.

I finally decided to quit my job at the beginning of November. I told my bosses that I’m giving my two-week notice and they were expecting me to leave, which made telling them a lot easier.

I completed all of the days that I had left to work and my last day was November 19th. When my last day came, I didn’t have to work because I wasn’t scheduled to work that day.

When the next day came, it was a relief not to run around with my head cut off like a chicken anymore. I still have to deal with the last couple of weeks of school.

But, the great thing is that I’m not as stressed as I was earlier this semester. It will be a lot easier to finish all of the homework I have left for my five classes and pass those classes.

Being stress-free is excellent for college students because they don’t need all of this stress at such a young age. College students need to be in the now instead of the future. Time can’t turn back, so enjoy the present while you still can.

 

 

 

One response so far

Nov 15 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Article #3 College Culture- Basketball Game

Filed under Articles/Stories

When you go to college, there are events that students go to have fun, be with friends, and support their college. One category of activities on a college campus is sports events. There is football, the biggest sports event attraction for college sports.

Football is the big sports event in the late summer to early winter or, in school terms, fall semester. Some other ones are baseball, softball, soccer, volleyball, and many more. One sport that comes to mind is basketball.

Basketball is second in the sports event attraction for colleges. Basketball is the sport that goes from middle of fall to early spring, or both semester of school. The basketball season lasts longer than football but doesn’t have the attention level like football. The scale goes up once the football season is officially over.

For Morningside College, the ranking for attraction and attention level for their sports is football, basketball, baseball, softball and then the rest of them. Each of the big four sports hand off the attention to next one after their season ends.

Sports events are a big part of the social scene for Morningside students. They get to see their classmates play their sports and cheer them on. The students also hang out with their friends at the games.

This scene is played out big at the men’s varsity basketball game, which was also their season opener game. They played against the Benedictine Ravens on October 30th, 2018 at Allee Gymnasium Rosen Verdoorn Sports Center on the Morningside College campus.

When you enter the doors for the Sports Center, you have to buy a ticket to see the game. For adults, it’s five dollars and for children, k-12, three dollars. But for Morningside students, they are free as long as they have their IDs.

Once inside of the gym, the thought of seeing the men’s basketball players from both teams warming up gives the audience a good chance to see them before they play the game and what to expect from both sides.

There is a student section for every home basketball game. That’s the same for other Morningside College sports that have home games on campus.

The gym was filling up very fast of fans, Morningside students, Benedictine students, and friends and families of both of the men’s basketball teams in every section. The student section was almost empty for about ten minutes, and then it filled up quickly.

To put it in better terms, it went from the Sahara desert to downtown New York City in a matter of minutes. That’s when the wave of fans and students showed up. So, arrive early to get a good seat before it’s gone.

For Morningside students, sit in the student section, you won’t regret it from the perspective of entertainment and memories. The student section at the basketball is the loudest, most energized, and most honest about their opinion people in the crowd.

The men’s basketball players came out of the locker rooms; the crowd cheered in excitement as their favorite team comes out to do warm-ups. Each of them performs their warm-ups on the opposite side of where their bench is in the gym.

The teams have about 10 minutes to warm up, stretch, and get a feel for how they’re going to shoot baskets in the game. The national anthem was played seven minutes before the game started.  Then, the starters for each team were introduced to the audience.

After that, the teams talked to each other to discuss the plan for the first half of the game. The starters went onto the court, and the game began. During the first half of the game, people in the student section were talking to each other and on their phones not paying attention to the game.

For the game itself, the Mustangs was making sure that their defense was improving from last season. It was one of Morningside’s most significant problems last season. Their offense was excellent with the score being 41-24 over the Ravens by the end of the first half.

When sitting in the student section, there are a group of guys who are very, very loud and can be heard outside of the gym and into the lobby of the Sports Center. They’re the hardcore fans and are the heart and soul of the student section. They can be heard throughout the entire game, which pisses some people in the student section off.

Katie McClintock, a Morningside student, had been to a couple of games last season. She said that she’s “sick and tired of that guy (one of the hardcore fans) always talking.”

She also said that it bothered her because she was trying to watch the game without any annoyance. But the reality is that there will always be those profoundly dedicated fans that are the loudest and most annoying.

During halftime of the game, the dance team went out and performed a dance routine. The audience was not that interested in the dance team’s performance. So some people stood up from their seats to go to the concession stand to get some food for the second half of the game.

Some of the student section didn’t get up to get food from the concession stand. They decided to sit and talk with their friends more. The thick smell of pepperoni pizza from Jerry’s Pizza filled the entire basketball court.

The teams came back out of the locker rooms with around 10 minutes left in halftime to rewarm up and try something different when shooting the baskets. The game resumed and the second half began.

During the second half, the hardcore fans became louder and harassed the refs hard every time they called a foul on either team. There was also a group of softball players that walked over people as they watched the game to find seats in the student section.

The Mustangs’ scored 41 points in the second half, but it was the Ravens that had the turnaround rally to try to take the lead. But the Ravens had no chance in the second half to catch up to the Mustangs.

The Mustangs’ defense pressure towards the Ravens was felt more in the first half than the second half. The Ravens were able to score more in the second half than in the first half.

The final score was 82-59. The Mustangs will get the first win of the season. The Morningside men’s basketball undefeated home streak is still alive.

After the game ended, people quickly got up and left the gym to go to their cars and leave. Some people stayed longer to wait for the basketball players to come out of the locker room or for the traffic to go down.

It went from being a mostly filled Allee Gym with lots of people making noise and watching the game to becoming empty and quiet as the nighttime. The gym becoming empty gives the janitors a chance to clean up the bleachers and basketball court floors.

Their next game is against the Dordt Defenders from Dordt College on November 10th at 3 P.M. in Sioux Center, Iowa. The next home game for Morningside students to attend on campus is against the Northwestern Red Raiders from Northwestern College on November 17th at 7 P.M.

Sitting so close to the action on the basketball court and the Morningside men’s varsity basketball players when they’re playing brings out the feeling of starstruck. The sense of excitement lasted the entire game shows how amazing it is to be a college student and enjoying the best years of your life.

That kind of energy brings out the joy of supporting your favorite team and wanting to see them play again in person. Every time that the men’s basketball team has a home game, there is always a nice to a considerable size of a crowd that comes out and supports them.

But for some people, the sense of excitement was there for them. For others, there was no sense at all. There was the feeling of when is this game going to be over and how long is this game.

Lindsey Smith, another Morningside student, said after the game that she “didn’t know how long the (basketball) game was supposed to be.”

Expect this thought process out of those who haven’t gone to a lot of sports event or don’t like sports in general.  Lindsey also said that this basketball is “one and done” for her.

That is understandable, and it’s O.K. to try something new or go to an event that you don’t like. The fact that you’re exploring new things and sports is what makes the college life what it is.

The basketball game is just one example of what it is like to experience a part of the college culture. There are more parts of college culture to be seen and heard, but believe that sports will have the biggest piece of this culture.

When the men’s basketball coach notices the crowd and how good they are, it shows how much means to the team to have that support from their fans. Going to a basketball game as a student means that you’re showing school spirit and that showing them that, as a fan, you have their backs in supporting them.

Coach Jim Sykes, head coach for the Morningside College men’s basketball team, said it best in an interview with Morningside College after the game. He said that the crowd was “good and fun night all the way around. You can’t ask for more.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments Off on Article #3 College Culture- Basketball Game

Nov 08 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

My America- Voting Poll Precinct

Filed under Assignments

The front side sample to what the ballot looked like on election night.

 

The backside sample ballot to what voters will see on their ballot.

 

The sign voters see when they first walk in to vote in the midterm election, Iowa’s Voter ID Requirements.

 

The voting booth with a sign that is too out of date for voters to make their votes.

 

Voters put their ballots into the ballot box collector, and it counts their vote. If there’s a mistake on the ballot, the machine rejects the ballot.

Comments Off on My America- Voting Poll Precinct

Nov 01 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Article #3 College Culture-Men’s Basketball Game First Draft

Filed under Articles/Stories

Lindsey Smith- “I didn’t know how long the (basketball) game was supposed to be.” “One and done for me.” Camera work for basketball. Maybe use?

Katie McClintock – been to a couple of games before last year “I’m sick and tired of that guy always talking (next to us). It’s bothering me.”

Softball players walking over me just to sit next to me.

Story: As a mass communications major at Morningside College, going to a men’s basketball game was, in a way, typical for me. Helping out the video crew by seeing if they need any additional help setting up the cameras, have them connect to the director’s computer screen, etc. I haven’t gone to a men’s basketball game as just a fan. This basketball game is a college culture experience that I never thought I would be a part of in my college life.

I went with my close friend, Katie McClintock, to the game, the season opener for the men’s basketball program against Benedictine Ravens. My plan was not to go to the game alone. I arrived early to Allee Gymanisum and found out that the Morningside students go to the basketball home games free. I thought that I check on the video crew after checking up on the control room person, who is in charge of making sure that the game goes over the air. When I went up to the second level of Allee Gymanisum, the video crew had everything set up and waiting for the pre-game show to start.

I spent about 10 minutes hanging out with the crew and talking to two of the Intro to Mass Communication students observing the production of the broadcast. A Morningside fan came up and asked if the link to stream the game was working. The director, Jonathan Covert, checked and said that he hadn’t heard any other complaints about the link not working.

I went back to the first floor of Allee Gymanisum to find a seat for Katie and myself to sit in the student section. The first floor filled quickly with students and fans for both teams. The Morningside student section went from being a desert to downtown New York City in a matter of minutes. Both teams came out and performed warmups of shooting basketballs into the hoops.

I have never been this close to any basketball team before, even though I’m sitting in the middle of the Morningside student section. Sitting in the student section gives a new perspective on what the fans want to hear on the radio, what the broadcasters see on the basketball court.

Just being in the student section made me feel for the first time, an actual student at Morningside. The student section gives life and energy to any home game.

Looking around the basketball court before the game starts, there are people in every section of the gym.

(More to add)

Coach Sykes said in an interview for Morningside after the game that the crowd was “good and fun night all the way around. You can’t ask for more.”

Comments Off on Article #3 College Culture-Men’s Basketball Game First Draft

Oct 30 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Morningside College Photo

Filed under Assignments

A Morningside fall morning with no one in sight and no leaves on one tree while leaves are all over the grass.

One response so far

Oct 15 2018

Profile Image of Reilly

Article #2 My Mother-Daughter Relationship with my Mom Final Draft

Filed under Articles/Stories

These last two years of college has brought the thought into my head. “Why don’t I have a boyfriend?” There are two answers to this question.

One, I am very focused on my education and want to graduate from Morningside College with a bachelor’s of arts degree in Mass Communications.  Two, my social life is going to work, to the grocery store, and helping my mom clean the house and yard.

I have this debate in my head almost every day, and I always pick school over having a decent, healthy social life that includes having a boyfriend. Ever since I came to Morningside, this feeling of loneliness is dominating my mindset. But I feel like I’m not the only one with this feeling on campus.

There is this sense that having a boyfriend will be fun and exciting. But, there is also the sense of trying to juggle a romantic relationship and school at the same time. You’re in college to earn a degree not to get a boyfriend. Focus on yourself is what my mother tells me everytime that I’m thinking about wanting a boyfriend.

She says, “Everyone will feel lonely.”

College is supposed to be fun and exciting, not worrying about going on dates with your boyfriend or trying to find time to spend it with him. College is also supposed to be about your education and your future. My mom wants me to focus more on getting a degree than finding a boyfriend.

I’m just too focused on my future and not looking at the present. I mean I have checked out a few guys on campus; it’s not like I’m not looking at all. It just I’m not checking out or dating the first guy that I see.

My dearest and understanding mother says, “For you, you are goal-oriented.”

That I know, for sure, is true. My mom is my best friend, and I can go to her for everything and anything. So going to her about this lingering problem was much more challenging than I thought. My thought was that she would feel that I’m odd and weird, but as it turned out, she’s having the problem of not going out like me but in the early-50’s version.

She has been divorced for five years and hasn’t gone on a date in over 25 years. I haven’t had a boyfriend and haven’t been out with a guy in six years. The “sad” part about all of this is that my gram and my aunt have boyfriends before my mom and I do.

My mom and I don’t go out a lot. We are too focused on work, paying the bills, and for me, school. We are almost like the same person but different at the same time.

She has to get out there and have a healthy social life too, like me. As people say, “Like mother, like daughter.” She puts it best about why I am in college and not to have a boyfriend or even a social life.

“You’re there to get a piece of paper, a significant piece of paper, that will stay with you for life.”

Having a college degree is very important for that dream job I always want. Especially in the money that I will be making in the position.

“It makes a big difference in your income.”

I wish that I can have the best of both worlds. I want to have a great boyfriend and be successful in school and out of school. The thing is that I have a crush on a guy that I saw in the library a couple of times. I know that it’s weird, but that’s life for you.

It all depends on what my mindset is and what I want my life to be at this point. I am more worried about my happiness than making others happy. But it is what it is. Life will always be complicated, and that is something that I will have to live with forever.

My mom says, overall, “It’s what you want in life.”

My mom and I’s relationship wasn’t always the best. There are a few reasons why starting the big one with me going through puberty. There is also the fact that my parents’ divorce was not a pleasant experience. I didn’t know the full extent of the reason behind the divorce until years later.

Every relationship goes through ups and downs in a lifetime. For me, I couldn’t understand why she left my dad. I was living in a bubble, and when the separation happened, the bubble burst like a balloon popping.

I had to learn to go with my gut instinct, and I have my mom to thank for that quality. The divorce was a life lesson that I didn’t know that I needed until I look back on it. My mom gave a chance and opportunity to find out about me and who I am.

She is someone that I look up to and having the strong bond with her is incredible. The ups and downs don’t change the fact that she will always be my mom. A relationship works both ways, and that’s the beauty of it.

The constant factor in talking about dating, school, the future, and past experiences in my life is my mom. She is the one factor that I can go to for everything and anything. Our relationship is similar to others because there are many factors and pieces that anyone takes from looking at us.

Moms will always be there to support you and love you no matter what. Every child learns that at a young age. The love and support from moms will never leave. I’m very thankful that my mom is always there for me and that our relationship is stronger than ever. I honestly wouldn’t be here where I’m at in life if it wasn’t for my mom.

 

One response so far

Older Posts »