Review: Tree-ly Good Advice

My favorite announcement from this week was "Advice From a Tree." The graphic was so cute and the advice is very good as well. The puns made me chuckle as I read them. I think the most important one is "Be content with your natural beauty."

Advice From a Tree:

Stand Tall and Proud

Go Out on a Limb

Remember Your Roots

Drink Plenty of Water

Be Content With Your Natural Beauty

Enjoy the View

Graphic of quote above. 

Online Course Announcements, January 2017. Source: Link.

Famous Last Words: The Last First Week of Classes

The first week of classes went relatively smoothly, so yay! I got full participation point in one of my classes that requires a lot of public speaking and that makes me happy because I am not comfortable speaking freely about my thoughts yet. Even though it was mainly introduction of self and a simple topic, it felt like a milestone to me!

All of my professors this semester are women for the first time ever! They are very nice as well so I'm glad. There's not much going on yet since this was only the first week, but I know that in the weeks to come, more and more assignments will build up. I hope to get a head start on most of my classes so as not to stress myself too much in the middle of the semester. I also managed to finish all of Indian Epics homework along with the extra credit assignments. It never hurts to get extra points!

I haven't exactly done a lot of reading and writing as of yet. For my first story, it was a repost of my story from Mythology & Folklore and one that I was quite proud of. I hope that my group members enjoyed reading it and that it inspired them to love their parents even more!

Next week, I am planning on buying a FitPass since they're on sale ($15 off!) and start exercising more. My mum always tells me that although it is important to learn and do well in classes, your health needs to be the top priority because if you're too sick to study, then you won't be able to do anything else. I want to try out the yoga, hip hop, and Zumba classes that OU offers at the gym! Hopefully I can make it into a habit for the rest of my life since I've been sedentary for a long period so far.

Image of a T-Rex chasing a person. "Exercise. Some motivation required." meme.

Best Exercise Memes. Source: Flab2Fitness.net.

Wikipedia Trails: from Jack Kornfield to Abhijna

I always find myself with weird Wikipedia trails so I am so excited that Dr. Gibbs has decided to add this as an extra credit assignment! I saw Jack Kornfield on one of the newsletters so I will start there!

1. Jack Kornfield. Jack Kornfield is an American author and teacher in the Theravada Buddhism tradition. He studied under the master Ajahn Chah and is one of the few meditation teachers who helped introduce meditation to the Western world. He also became a monk for a little while and I am assuming he left monkhood to teach others. I found it was interesting that he studied under Ajahn Chah too because one of my favorite monks, Ajahn Brahmavamso, was one of Ajahn Chah's disciples. I also have heard to different kinds of meditation but never really looked into what distinguishes them. ONWARDS~

Photo of Jack Kornfield. 

Obtained from Jack Kornfield's personal Twitter account. Source: Twitter.

2. Vipassana meditation. Meditation that is focused on the mindfulness of breathing and of thoughts, feelings and actions that are used to gain insight into reality. It looks like that the practice is different under the different major Buddhist traditions like Theravada and Mahayana but the underlying purpose is the same: to gain insight. The few times I was able to practice meditation, it was mostly to pay attention to the breath and nothing else. I would like to give this a try soon.

3. Deva. A deva in Buddhism (I am assuming it is pronounced like diva... I hope I don't offend anyone by doing so) is a non-human entity that has god-like characteristics but are not gods themselves. They are said to be more powerful, longer-lived, and happier than humans. I think it's interesting that they are invisible to the human eye. Would that make them similar to benevolent ghosts or just spirits in a sense?

4. Abhijna. This is the Sanskrit word for "knowing" and it is a type of power that the devas can have. There are 6 types of higher knowledge "powers": higher power (such as walking on water), divine ear, mind-penetrating knowledge, recalling one's past lives, seeing the future, and extinction of mental intoxicants. Through meditation, the first 5 listed powers are achievable and the sixth power is the ultimate attainment. These powers would be cool to have. Maybe I should practice meditation more seriously!

Growth Mindset

I have heard of Carol Dweck before in a few of my classes! I learned about it in my Social Psychology course (which I really enjoyed, so if anyone is wanting to take that class, I definitely recommend it!), Mythology & Folklore, and Biochemistry. My Biochemistry professor, Dr. Sims, really was into this concept that he even included a large paragraph about it in his syllabus! In Social Psychology, we learned about the implications of a growth and fixed mindset and how that affects one's ability to make decisions about the present and the future. I also learned that it was best to have a growth mindset and that there are ways to nurture one at a young age. For example, instead of endlessly praising a child when they do something well, one must praise them in a way that makes them want to develop that skill even further. 

For myself, I think I have mostly a growth mindset. There are times when I do have a fixed mindset, but it doesn't last very long as I think that nothing is impossible. For example, when I first started studying for my PCAT, the review book was so big and daunting that I never thought I could get through it or even score very well on my PCAT. Then later on, I thought back about how important it was to do well and that it was worth a try even if it didn't work out. Also, it's best to give your everything in something that you can do as long as you can do something. So then I buckled down and studied the book cover-to-cover and got a 91st percentile on the PCAT. It's moments like these that give me faith in myself and that push me to be my best, to be honest. 

Throughout my four years at OU, I found that everyone has the ability to learn and do well in classes. It's just entirely up to their ability to push themselves--myself included. When I am faced with an unexpectedly difficult class, I make it my goal to do well regardless. And even if I fail, it was a good experience and I learned something new from my failure that I can apply in the future. For this new semester, the majority of my classes are public-speaking based with lots of solo presentations. I am not someone who is comfortable with public speaking and so I think that it will be difficult at first. However, like they say, "practice makes perfect" so I hope to gain a new skill this semester with all the presentations I have to do. Growth mindset will help me with this because even if I mess up in front of a large crowd, it's okay! 

Terrified cat on a raft in a swimming pool.

"All the good stuff is outside our comfort zone" meme by Laura Gibbs. Source: Growth Mindset Memes.

Time Strategies

Knowing how to manage your time is an important life skill that most people, in my opinion, have not mastered. I've always wondered why that is. Time management has become a huge thing for me these days. As I am nearing graduation, it has become much more difficult to push myself to the finish line. As a freshman, I was super "into" college and I would rush to do my coursework ahead of time without having to convince myself it was necessary. Nowadays, it's literally a struggle and "I just can't even" most days yet I always make sure that I meet deadlines in regards to my schoolwork. It's just the motivation to do so has reached an abysmal level.

The article I chose to read was The Important Habit of Just Starting by Jory Mackay. This article really put into perspective the reason as to why procrastination is so hard to shake off. The author showed an equation that determines how much motivation we have is proportionate to the odds of an outcome that we'd like to achieve and how rewarding that outcome may be as well as inversely proportionate to how easily distracted we get and how long we have to wait to obtain the outcome. So as you can see, the longer it takes for us to obtain the goal we have set for ourselves, the harder it is to be motivated to carry out the tasks essential to obtaining that goal. It was interesting to see that put in an equation-form because it makes sense if you really think about it. Contemporary society relies heavily on instant gratification and so much so that it impacts our motivation towards things that require time and effort to achieve. I, too, am a victim of the desire of instant gratification which sometimes has led to negative impacts on my future and life goals.

In regards to all the classes I have this semester, I hope to break down my tasks into small goals in order to emulate a shorter time frame instead of thinking that it's a super long task that I need to work at in one go. One time management strategy that I have is to write in a planner every day to make sure I don't forget deadlines for anything. It helps to see it all in one place and it's also quite nice to be able to cross off an item on your list of to-do's.

Image of a man taking small steps.

"Traits of a Motivated Leader" by Daniel Goleman, April 2014. Source: Link.

Reading Options

For my Ramayana choice, I am going to read option two, the Public Domain Edition. My reasoning for this is mostly because it is free and readily available online. Due to the nature of this course, it is best to choose this version since I am able to access it at any time to carry out my assignments thus making it easier for myself. Although I liked that Nayaran's version of the book read more like a novel, I think that the recorded version by Dr. Gibbs will help make it more useful. That way, I can read the book with my eyes and my ears! :) Of course, the fact that the public domain edition uses old-fashioned language will make it harder for me to digest the stories. However, this will be a good challenge and I can eventually make it a skill to read old-fashioned language if I ever do need it in the future.

I have taken a class about epic literature throughout high school and college. In college, I have already taken Mythology and Folklore, sort of the 'sister' course of Indian Epics where I had the opportunity to read various literature from throughout the world. In high school, I have had experience with Greek epic poems such as the Odyssey and Iliad. I have even had the chance to read Beowulf in my first year of high school. I have to say, digesting Beowulf as a fourteen or fifteen-year-old is not an easy task, but looking back I would have to say that I enjoyed it. I do enjoy epic movies and TV shows such as Forrest Gump and The Great Gatsby (according to Wikipedia, these movie are categorized as 'romantic epics'). As a hopeless romantic, of course these would be the ones I enjoy the most!

I have not had any classes about religion before BUT I, myself, am a Buddhist (I was born into a family of Buddhists, but continue to practice it by choice). Recently, I delved a little further into Buddhism where I learned a little more about the teachings and the way of life that buddhists follow. I have meditated before and it was an interesting experience. Meditation is much easier said than done but with more practice, mindfulness will be mine to claim!

I am not quite familiar with Indian culture such as the music and the movies, although I have heard of the world of Bollywood. Bollywood definitely caught my eye because of the beautiful costumes that I have seen around the Internet, though. I hope that through this class, I can learn more about Indian culture and history.

The two characters I recognize the most among the images are Siddhartha and Ganesha. Prince Siddhartha, or otherwise known as Siddhartha Gautama the Great Buddha, was the figure whose teachings helped create the religion of Buddhism. In addition, Ganesha, although he is mainly a Hindu deity, is one of the religious figures that is also recognized in Buddhism as a bodhisattva. His main role as a bodhisattva is to protect buddhist practitioners in mainly the Mahayana tradition.

"Prince Siddhartha beneath the tree." 

R. Wilson, Indian Story Book, illustrated by Frank Pape, 1914.

"Ganesha Grafitti. Graffiti en el barrio del Raval de Barcelona"

Indian Epic Images: Link.

Storybook Favorites

There is a great variety of beautiful storybooks under Indian Epics. These 3 were the ones that caught my eye and piqued my interest the most!

Storybook 1: "Through the Page: One Girl's Journey" by Grant Schatzman

When I first clicked on the storybook link, I was surprised to see an amazing layout that the author created using a Wix site. The navigation, layout, images, and everything--absolutely perfect. The majority of the other storybooks had utilized Google sites, which of course, works very well for our intended purposes. However, I found that the wix site allowed for a much more aesthetically pleasing look and added a mysterious touch to the storybook in general. I would like to look into this in the future for my own storybook. I am not familiar with the story, but I enjoyed how it was introduced. The tone was rather casual and easy to read. The use of first person point of view also made it a more personal experience.

The images above are screenshots of the images found in storybook favorite 1.

Link to the storybook: Through the Page.

Storybook 2: "Love Through the Eyes of Nature" by Nikki Smith

The design and layout of this site is rather common and it is simple to navigate, which I like. What caught my eye was the title of the introduction that mentioned "Gossip Squirrel." I was confused as to what a gossip squirrel was and soon realized that it was alluding to the Gossip Girl series. And of course, being a fan of Gossip Girl during my younger years, proceeded to enjoy myself as I read the introduction. I like that the author took a modern twist to the stories she chose and I may do that myself. I also like her titles for each of her stories which very much mimicked the original GG series.

Storybook 3: "Not Myself" 

This storybook, like the second one I chose, was also created using Google sites. However, it used a different color scheme. I realize that I can change the colors of the site to match the theme and atmosphere of my own storybook in the future. At first glance, the introduction was rather simple until I realized that the author chose to write the stories in a patient-doctor point of view. As a person who enjoys scientific experiments and studies, this was interesting because not often does one see a story written in a way that portrays a medical point of view to tell a story. I really liked that and found that it was quite creative.

Introduction: Hello! (Tech Tip: Embedded YouTube)

Hi, everyone! My name is Phoi Nguyen, but I go by Michelle. People have always questioned the origin of Michelle, but even I am not too sure where it came from since it's not my middle name or on my birth certificate or anything. To be honest, my parents have called me Michelle instead of Phoi since I was a wee baby. Hm.. weird right? Whenever I was young, I always questioned it and they would just say "We liked the name."

I am currently a Senior at OU. This is my last semester here! I'm from Tulsa but I definitely like Norman more than Tulsa since it's closer to OKC. I just like OKC because there are more things to do there than in Tulsa. Going to college was a rough transition for me because I came from a pretty sheltered family, but I'm used to everything at this point! I am majoring in Biology, with a minor in Psychology. If all goes smoothly, I will graduate in the spring and, hopefully, be attending OU's College of Pharmacy this coming fall. I am also part of an Asian-interest sorority on campus called Phi Delta Alpha. Here are my beautiful sisters!

Photo of the sisters of Phi Delta Alpha.

Personal photo, 2015.

If you have read my "Favorite Places" post earlier, you will have already figured out that I was born in Vietnam! I came to the States when I was around fours years old and I have visited once or twice since then. I hope to visit Vietnam again soon to see how much the country has changed since has been around ten years since I last visited.

I enjoy reading, watching movies/TV shows, eating (I'm definitely someone who lives to eat, not the other way around), and singing! My passion for reading has dwindled a bit since the beginning of college because of the amount of work piled on me doesn't let me curl up with a good book, but I'm hoping on remedying that this year. My favorite genres are science fiction, romantic comedy, and the occasional horror. If you have any good recommendations, let me know! I also love animals, especially when the animals are little baby animals. That's when they are the cutest!

Photo of me with Reid, the kitten at Second Chance Animal Sanctuary.

Personal photo, 2015.

I am an only child so it gets pretty lonely, but luckily I have my dog to keep me company. He's a miniature pinscher and I don't have a picture of him since I'm not too good with cameras and the only pictures I have of him are from when he was a few months old. He turned seven years old this summer. But this one will suffice since he looks like this.

Photo of miniature pinscher during in front of Christmas tree.

"Xmas 2010" by Leonardo Dasilva, December 2010. Source: Flickr

Week 1 Story: Love Your Mother, Hinny

Photo of a mother kissing her baby.

"Mother Kissing Her Baby" by Larisa Okhtienko, April 2014. Source: Flickr.

LOVE your own, kiss your own,

Love your own mother, hinny,

For if she was dead and gone,

You'd ne'er get such another, hinny.

~~

“Learn to pick up after yourself! Once you’re in college, no one will baby you as much as I do!”

There she goes again… I can’t wait until I’m out of here… Just four more months, thought Mark. With a slight groan, Mark quietly told his friend Joshua about how annoying his mother was and that he had to go before she comes at him with a wet towel. Instead of being his usual cheery self, Joshua suddenly got very quiet. As Mark hung up the phone, he was slightly confused. Why was Joshua so sensitive when it came to mothers? They were constant nuisances and anyone can attest to that. All they do is nag, nag, nag all day and talk about how “you’ll never be good enough.” Forget about it. He probably just lost another game of League. 

The next day, he met with Joshua for lunch and it seemed Joshua was still bothered by this comments about his mother. In an effort to resolve the tense atmosphere, Mark decided to ask him what the issue was. After a moment of silence, Joshua finally spoke up. 

“My mom died yesterday,” he said. Mark took a deep breath. He didn’t know what to say in this situation. He was one of the lucky few that did not have to experience death yet.

“I didn’t want to tell anyone outside of my family because it’s still extremely difficult for me to talk about,” continued Joshua. “When I woke up this morning, I got up and waited for her to burst into my room… To tell me breakfast was ready and to get my lazy bum off the bed and wash up. But… she wasn’t there. All I heard was the sound of my own beating heart as I cried to myself and realized that I was never going to see her again. I’m no longer going to get to chance to tell her how my day went or what I plan on doing with the rest of my life after high school… or tell her that I finally got accepted into Stanford today.” 

Tears were streaming down Joshua’s face at this point and Mark was left speechless. Joshua was always calm and collected no matter what the situation, and to see his friend in such a state, Mark was frozen with uncertainty in how to respond. 

“I don’t mean to antagonize you for complaining about your mom, but you’re one of my best friends and I want to make you realize that your mother is human too and she loves you more than anyone ever will. Those times when you roll your eyes at her or make negative comments about her, you’re just hurting her feelings. She will always want the best for you, even though she will sometimes express it in odd ways. Blood is thicker than water, so try to listen to her and cherish the time you have together because once she’s gone, you’ll never get another,” said Joshua as he wiped his eyes with a tear-stained napkin. 

Joshua’s words had an enormous impact on Mark. As soon as he arrived at his home, he went looking for his mother only to realize that she wasn’t home. This is weird, he thought. She said she would be home all day before I left.

Mark checked his phone and finally noticed that he received five missed calls and two text messages from his father. With a heavy sense of dread, he opened to the text messages to find that his mother was at the hospital after a car accident. In a state of panic, Mark rushed to the hospital to find her and prayed that she was going to be all right. Once he arrived and gave the receptionist his mother’s name, the nurse escorted him to her room. At this point, tears began to well up in his eyes as his heart began beating faster the close they got to the room. Please, please let her be okay, he thought. 

The nurse opened the door and he saw his mother on the bed and he let out a yelp. There she was, looking perfectly fine, with a huge smile on her face. The only injury she sustained was a broken leg. With a huge sigh of relief, Mark walked to her side and gave her a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. 

“Wow,” said his mom. “I haven’t gotten a kiss or a hug from you ever since you left elementary school. Maybe I should break a leg more often,” she joked. Mark smiled through his tears and vowed to himself to always treasure his mother and… to give her kisses.

~~

Author's Note: The story was based upon the nursery rhyme "Love your own, kiss your own" quoted after the picture in this post. For this story, I did a complete makeover. I added characters such as Joshua and Mark. I also added in a dramatic element that created tension between the two characters, which ended in a lesson learned by Mark. The lesson was that he should treat his mother better and love her more, just like the nursery rhyme indicates. The image I chose for this story was a picture of a mother kissing her baby instead of a child kissing his or her mother. This is to show that mothers have so much love for their children, but some children don’t see that. I found that I could relate to this nursery rhyme on a very personal level because I love my mom and it's a shame some people don't. I’ve seen instances where children are ungrateful and treat their mothers like nothing at all, even though mothers have to go through nine months of, quite possibly, hard labor just to bring them to this world. I wanted this story to be dramatic because I felt it would have more of an impact on my audience.

Book: The Nursery Rhyme Book

Author: Unknown, edited by Andrew Lang

Year Published: 1897

Book Source: Project Gutenberg

Favorite Place

Photo of a bridge and surrounding houses at night in Hoi An, Da Nang, Vietnam.

"Hoi An (Japanese Bridge)" by Hühnerauge, April 2013. Source: Flickr.

Hoi An will always be a special place to me not only because of its raw beauty, but due to the fact that it is my hometown. Although I left this place at a young age, my memories will never fail to bring me back. I especially loved the night scenes and how the river would always hold the reflection of the moon in its flowing arms. People were always out and about once the sun had set because there was less heat and so there was a cheerful atmosphere from the hustle and bustle (imagine lots of children running around while giggling, grown-ups conversing, and occasional voices and sounds from the night market), albeit rather crowded. It has been a long time since I have returned, but looking at pictures of Hoi An brings back a sweet kind of nostalgia as I reminisce about my childhood.