Communication, What?!

Top 5 Ways of Communicating:

1. Think Before You Speak. In my eighteen years of life, thinking before speaking is definitely the way of communicating that i can improve on.  I tend to open my mouth before i truly thought about what i wanted to say.  I like to say, "It sounded better in my brain".  Thinking before we speak gives us an opportunity to really think about what we say, or if we need to say anything at all
2. Honesty.  Honesty is important in anything you do.  If you are not honest with yourself, then how can you be honest when communicating with others.  When communicating with a group or with an individual, there must be a mutual trust that must be established.  Honesty establishes trust, and trust establishes open and good communication
3. Listen.  Communication is a two-way street.  Many people tend to forget this idea, we argue, we fight and we think our argument is right.  Sound familiar, don't worry, because it does for me too.  To fully understand a person's point of view, and to truly have an open and free conversation, we must be open to listen and learn from whoever we are conversing with.
4. Care.  The best think you can do is really care about what you are having a conversation about and who you are having that conversation with.  If you really care about what you are talking about, the person you are talking to will absolutely take notice.  Take the conversation as an extension of yourself and truly use it as your own.  In my CTW class, the most important aspect of conversing and writing that i learned was to really care about your topic.  If i write a paper about a topic that i care little about, it will show through my writing   I try to find a way to care about the topics i discuss.  Find a way to bring the topic closer to home, personal.
5. Ask Questions.  Asking questions in a conversation adds a lot to the conversation as a whole.  Not only will asking questions clear up confusing aspects of the conversation, but i will also show that you have taken a real interest in the conversation.  Asking questions will prove to the group or individual that you have been paying attention and are interested in what they have to say.  This goes back to the listening aspect.

Truly, these five ways of communicating have helped me numerous amount of times over the course of my life.  I have learned from experience that conversing with others can be the most rewarding and best experience that one can have.  We can learn so much from one another!  Sometimes, we just need to start a conversation.

I Believe in Repect

http://thisibelieve.org/essay/29294/

In Vint Cerf's essay, he describes the importance of respect.  He tells the story of being driven by a middle aged man and wondering how miserable his life must be, working for minimum wage.  After talking to this man, Mr. Cerf realizes that the driver that he thought wwas just a minimum wage worker, was actually an ex-
CEO for a large corporation.  Why did Mr. Cerf characterize this man so quickly.  I appreciated that Mr. Cerf acknowledged this wrongness on his part.  I really like the essay, when Mr, Cerf says, "I believe that every person deserves respect, and that I can learn something new from everyone." I 100% agree with this statement.  I too believe that everyone has a story to tell, and that is our duty to listen to those stories.  Each person deserves the same amount of respect.  From the minimum wage driver to the multi-million dollar CEO.

                                                               I Too Believe in Respect

     We are all aware to prejudices and stereotypes in society.  As much as we may say we don't give into these stereotypes, they are unfortunately unavoidable.  As humans, we are made to categorize people.  I remember the time when my stereotypes were put to the test.  I often look down upon the homeless.  I try to avoid eye contact, i walk on the other side of the street, i even try not to respond when they ask me a question on the street.  One day, i decided to challenge these stereotypes and saw that i needed to change.  My school offers a homeless immersion, in which we spend seven days experiencing homelessness first hand. I was nervous about what i was about to experience, but at the same time i knew that it was something i had to experience. 

    On the immersion, i was able to meet many incredible and inspirational people.  These people who i looked down upon became my brothers and sisters.  I heard stories of being brutalized, spat on, yelled at, dehumanized and i felt terrible.  The most important thing i learned on this Immersion experience was above all else, food, shelter, water, the one thing that these human beings wanted was respect.  Respect that is deserved by every individual, regardless of their economic status, race, culture, or creed.  

   Respect brings people together.  Civil discourse is a quality that society seems to lack today.  The homeless are no different from you or I, and i wish i learned that sooner.

Commitments

The Setup
It's Eighth Grade, and i am just like any awkward, uncoordinated, confused young adult.  In Middle School, I was (believe it or not) a shy, nervous, quiet kid who liked to keep to himself.  In eighth grade, students were required to meet a certain number of "Christian Service" hours in order to graduate.  I decided to volunteer at Eskaton Senior Center, a retirement home close to my house, where i would accomplish my hours of service.

The What
Immediately, i started to think I was out of my element.  One of my biggest jobs was carrying on conversations with the residents.  Now, i had a hard enough times making friends and talking with people my own age.  So, i was expected to make conversation with people i hardly knew and were my grandma's age? I struggled to connect with the residents, because i wasnt giving my entire self to my service, which i later learned is what makes service so great and exciting.

My Service hours came and went, and i felt as though I had gained nothing from my experience.  To me, service was just something I had to do to graduate.  Then, to my slight displeasure, the High School that i dreamed about going to since i was a kid had the same requirement of "Christian Service".  It wasn't until my Sophomore year, that i finally understood the meaning of service.  After almost a year of volunteering, i made my first friend at Eskaton.  His name was Bill, and he was an elderly man who had a love of sports.  He taught at my High School's rival, but loved hearing about how the sports teams were doing at both schools.  Because of Bill, i feel like i was able to branch out and find what really makes service "worth it".

The So What
This internal struggle of not wanting to be a part of a service community made a complete 180.  I began enjoying every moment of volunteering.  Volunteering at Eskaton became a part of my identity.  It became more than an assignment and became something that felt good and was something i enjoyed doing.  Every Friday i went back to that retirement home and performed many activities, duties, and services for the residents of Eskaton.  I made many new friends and role-models with the men and women who lived there.  Four years later i still volunteered at Eskaton at least twice a week, even after my hours were fulfilled each year.

The Now What
Even though i have seen many friends, including Bill, pass away, what each resident has taught me will stay with me forever.  They taught me to feel for others and give my all for others, not just to fulfill some requirement, but to do it because you want to. Looking back, these almost five years of volunteering, at Eskaton, helped shape me into the man i am today.  Without the guiding wisdom of the residents and the happy memories of helping those in need, I cannot imagine what my life would be like.  I think the "Take Away" message from this blog is to give your entire self to others.  I was so hesitant to do this, being such a shy kid, but when i was able to step out of my comfort zone and experience my "Christian Service" fully, the experience is something I wouldn't give up for the world.  

The Most Astounding Fact

http://youtu.be/9D05ej8u-gU     (sorry, dont know how to put the video in...)

Watching this video, i cannot help but be amazed.  Neil DeGrasse Tyson is my absolute hero and is undoubtedly one of the smartest men of our age.  He makes things that seems so complex and impossible seem fun and understandable.  He has really paved the way for a new generation to be interested and want to be a part of the scientific community.
This video connects to me in many ways.  First, i have always had a passion for astrophysics and space, unfortunately i am waaaaay too terrible at math to go along with that dream.  Secondly, this video speaks a great deal about my own congruence.  My own state of being and the state of being for everyone else is put on the broad spectrum of our universe.
I really feel connected to this video, because of what Mr. DeGrasse Tyson points out.  He says that we all have the desire to feel needed and wanted, and I completely agree with this.  We all want someone to be there for us, tell us we are special, and this someone is the universe.  It astounds me to think just how perfect the conditions must have been for us to begin as tiny molecules and evolve into such complex beings.  It's actually kind of mind blowing.  I also really connected to the fact that everyone on this planet is connected.  We are connected on a molecular level that disregards race, creed,sexual orientation, etc. and this fact makes me happy.  We put so much emphasis on what makes us different, in fact we are built to place people into categories, that we tend to forget what makes each other so similar.
In my own life, i try to realize the human desire to feel wanted.  No matter what, i try to make a person feel wanted.  Whether that involves being there for a friend or saying hello to a person on the street, i am acknowledging that, that person matters.  This is important when you consider how many people feel lost and believe they have no direction, purpose, or connection in our universe.  Connectivity is something we should all strive for.  I urge you to try to connect with everyone you meet, because we are a lot more similar than you may think.