A Little Appreciation Never Hurt

             So I was sitting in the library studying for my final midterm (FINALLY!) when I started thinking about how many bad things have been happening not just in the world, but also to the people around me, and that have happened to me. And then I thought about how before each of my midterms I always said, “Lord please help me pass this test, I know I should have studied better but please help me get a semi decent grade.” Now for those of you who don’t know me I was born Catholic, personally I don’t identify with it, I’m more of a spiritual person, but then what hit me was that after I would get my results back (I passed 3 out of 5, haven’t gotten my grades for the last 2 yet) I never really said thank you. And then it hit me, I haven’t really shown my appreciation for all of the blessings in my life in a while, and that made me really sad, so I felt what better way to show my appreciation for it than with a blog post! So here are just a couple of the myriad of things/people I have no words to express my appreciation for.

1.     My parents (yes both of them equally)- honestly I don’t know where I would be without these two. They could not be any more different but both have helped form me into the woman I am today, and both have done everything in their power to equip me with all wisdom and opportunities that they felt would help me become the most successful and self-sufficient woman I could be. I will never be able to fully express the gratitude for all of their sacrifices for me over the years.

2.     My friends/family. Yes I set both of them up in the same category, why? Because my best friends have become members of my family, they’ve shown me nothing but unconditional support and have accepted me completely as I am, and to me that matters more than blood.

3.     Anyone and everyone that told me that I couldn’t do something. You pushed me harder than any of my supporters could…why? Because there is nothing I love more than a challenge, and proving someone wrong, for me the sky isn’t even the limit.

4.     All of the mistakes and bad choices that I have made in life. Yeah it sucked in the moment, and the consequences of the aftermath of those choices had to be worse, but ultimately each mistake I made helped shape me and led me to where I am today, and to be completely honest at this point in my life I love where I am, what I’m doing and the future looks bright, so how could I not be thankful for those mistakes.

5.     All of the people who have supported me throughout the years. To be honest this category is mainly made up of family and friends, but I’m beyond thankful for the teachers and professors who have offered me nothing but unconditional regard over the years, pushing me to work harder through their constructive criticism and never letting me bullshit a paper or test, I will never be able to fully show my appreciation for that push.

I think sometimes we (or at least me) get so consumed and busy with our everyday lives that we forget to be appreciative for the little things that keep us going. And this doesn’t just apply to the big gestures, the same appreciation can and should be shown when someone waits a little longer to hold the door open for you, or when someone gives you a genuine compliment, hell even a small smile when you’re having a bad day should be appreciated (I mean come on Philadelphians are known for many things, kindness is not one of them). And we should definitely remember to show appreciation for the people who play central roles in our lives, because although they know you love them, feeling that someone notices and actually appreciates the things you do for them everyday makes life all the better.

A Reso-Promise

     So today’s blog post is going to be a promise of sorts, or maybe a halfway through the semester, no where New Years, New Years resolution…well you can interpret it in whatever way you would like lol. And I have a specific reason why I want to share this not really a resolution but basically a resolution with you, which I will make clear at the end of the post. So ready for the resolution/promise?

     The resolution/promise (legit don’t know how to define it) I want to make is to stop being on my phone so much. Now you might be wondering (well those of you know me semi well lol) why would a person who is studying communication want to not be interacting with the technology that makes communication so accessible? Simple. I want to be more involved in my own life, and be more involved in the lives of the people I love. Say wha?

     Being on campus and doing some assignments involving media use, I’ve come to the conclusion that those devices that once made speaking with a relative that is so far away so feasible, is not the reason that relationships fail and the basis on which we construct our culture. Sitting in a lecture hall for 85 minutes I see students who cannot even put their phone down for 15 minutes to absorb at lease a segment of the lesson that is being taught to them because they need to constantly check what is “going on in the world” when ironically they’re missing what is going on in their own worlds! As a society we have become so engrossed in the need to be updated all the time on what we think we’re missing out on that we actually miss out on the moments that make the best memories, because they are our own moments that should be something we could look back on and we don’t, because we did not take advantage of it.

     Before this semester I felt like I could talk to say my mom or my friends in person and check my Instagram feed or respond to a text message because I could multitask and not miss anything. Well it turns out I was wrong. Now you can say that maybe it’s just me, that I lack the skills to efficiently multitask, but the fact of the matter is you miss the whole point of the face-to-face communication process when you just listen with your ears. Along with hearing what the person is saying, their body language and facial expressions are also contributing to the conversation and that has been completely missed because you were sending that “quick text,” therefore a possible memorable moment is gone.

     Okay so now the reason I’ve put this reso-promise (yes I made the word up since I still can’t decide what to call it) I want you guys to help me ensure that I stick with it. If you’re with me and see me pull out my phone just to scroll call me out on it. If you see me [failing] at multitasking because I’m consistently checking my social media accounts say something. I want you guys to call me out when you see that I slip up and that I’m not going through with my reso-promise, because I really want to follow through with this.

     When I reflect back later on in life I want to ensure that I have a plethora of amazing memories to laugh about because I know that I was able to fully live my life to the fullest, which I know will not happen if social media plays such a big part in my daily life, so it’s time for a change. And who knows maybe I’ll even become a more productive student….wellll one can always dream (;