Natural Sciences Sympathetic Imagination

When I awoke today I found myself in some sort of development or township inhabited by the humans. There were tall buildings and the majority of the population seemed to be dressed in burnt orange. When I got over my initialfascination with the culture, I made my way toward a building called the Natural Sciences building. This museum stands as a tribute to time periods and creatures that we have some knowledge about but still want and need to know more. I imagine that the immense size of the dinosaur items is symbolic of the amount of knowledge that is yet to be discovered about the past. There is so much still unknown to the humans! Once I made my way into the museum I was drawn in by an Entelodont skull and mandible from Persidio County, Texas. The skull was eerily familiar. It resembled the skulls that our herd has in honor of our dead elders. Maybe an entelodont is a distant relative or ancestor of mine. It is my thought that this display was some sort of tribute to an entelodont elder. It did not really hit me until I reached the third floor and encountered a white-tailed deer. I felt as though I was looking into some sort of a mirror. My reflection stood frozen in time, absent of a twitch or even a breath. He was surrounded by friends, neighbors, and predators alike. A turkey vulture, rock squirrel, and ringtail all stood frozen. I tried to identify and introduce myself and there was no response. What was this? Was this some sort of funeral? Are they dead?How morbid! Horrified, I rushed to up the stairs to the fourth floor, the Hall of Biodiversity, hoping to find something less offensive. I found myself drawn to a skull of a Pakicetus, a 48.5 million year old whale. Some of its features reminded me of land mammals. Its teeth were specialized for tearing and chewing food, much like my teeth. Leaving the fourth floor, it was still unclear to me whether this museum is a tribute the humans have made or some sort of tomb? I do know that I will take this encounter as a warning and stay clear of this building in the future.

Katie's Story

I am familiar with Katie’s history after she was put in the shelter, but like so many of the dogs and cats who end up in the Town Lake Animal Shelter Katie's name was put on the books there with little or no information about her past. Katie does not have the words to tell me what happened to her before the Shelter. So I will speak for her as best I can. I know that she was either homeless or neglected by her family. Let's assume her family abandoned her and that her story was something like this.

I awake this morning just like every morning to doors slamming and voices of anger. I check on either side of me to make sure that each of my three kittens is safe. They are still sleeping soundly and I’m glad that for now at least they can be spared the stress. I see Ernest more frequently than normal now, which can only mean one thing: he’s lost another job. Ernest and Mae weren’t always this way. In fact, Ernest used to be sweet, gentle and kind. I was a gift to Mae on her birthday last year, but much like Ernest forgot that he loved Mae, Mae forgot she loved me. Their relationship became strained as they attempted and failed to have children. Mae pressured Ernest to make more money and Ernest pressured Mae for children. Thankfully I was more fortunate in producing offspring, offspring who became my main focus as the house became a battlefield. I check them again. Their noses are still nuzzled in each others fur as they sleep intertwined. Mae starts throwing dishes and shards of her wedding china come barreling towards us. What has always been somewhat of an emotionally cold environment has turned into a neglectful, dangerous and barren wasteland. In a pivotal moment I make the decision to grab my kittens and leave for good. The outside world had to be much better than this I thought. A mother always trusts her instincts.

The streets of Austin were full of others like us, families on the run, companions that have been abandoned. We found refuge in an alley behind a restaurant on 53^rd and Avenue G. We grabbed scraps from the garbage and found shelter in some overgrown bushes. Life was not ideal, but it was better than life with Mae and Ernest. Day in and day out we tried our best to be invisible. Being invisible is what we did best. In fact we done such a good job of being invisible in the past that we managed to escape from a home completely unloved and unnoticed. At night while my kittens slept, I dreamt of better for them. I wished that they could have known the happy home that I once knew when Mae and Ernest were different--happy. I wished that they could have stability, warmth, and love.

My pleas were heard, or so I thought. One faithful day, a man exited the back of the restaurant and I could see him pointing in our direction and throwing his hands in the air in frustration. Three men followed him into the alley. In a whirlwind, they had grabbed each of us and before I knew it we were bouncing in the back of a crowded truck with other cats from the neighborhood. Some I recognized as regulars from the alley and others were strangers. All of us, however, were afraid. We arrived a building with blank walls, blank expressions, and blank hearts. I know it now to Towne Lake Animal Shelter. We were all placed in cages as a man walked up and down the line and made marks on a sheet of paper. I wondered he what wrote about us, and then I wondered about Mae and Ernest. Had I made the right decision in leaving them? What sort of fate did we face not that were in this…cat prison. Did they miss us? The conditions were unbearable. The shrill cries of confused and frightened cats and distant dogs were the sounds that filled each night. Every once in a while some cats would go on long “walks” down the line and would never return. I had to explain to my kittens that those cats had simply gone on vacation. I feared the day that myself, or any of my kittens would take that “walk.”

More men came. More men came and were pointing at us again. Only this time the men were not waving their hands in frustration. Their eyes were gentle and their demeanor calm. They shirts had very bold design on them. They themselves were quite a contrast to the blank walls and blank expressions. Again we rode in the back of a truck, slightly less bouncy this time around. We arrived at the most beautiful and lavish store I had every seen. They carried every type of cat toy you can imagine. Pet smart, I heard a man call it, had rows of food that seemed to stretch on for miles and the most comfortable beds we’d ever napped on. Why had we been taken to this lavish cat community? It seemed that our luck had finally changed; yet I remained skeptical. We made ourselves comfortable in our new cat condo. We made friends with cats named Toodles, Forest, and Rhapsody. Just as we had settled in to our new surroundings they began to change. Before we knew it Toodles had left us and then another. Cats would leave on ”walks” and more would take their place. Only this time I had a feeling that these “walks” were different. Mothers came with their children, husbands with their wives, and as they each left with one of our friends in tote, they were smiling. Making new friends with the other cats began to seem pointless and further, it was painful.

When I pictured the day of our adoption, I had always pictured us going together as a family, but that was not the case. Children would come and anxiously point and clamor for chance to take home one of kittens, which had now grown into maturity. Sure enough one by one, they left our home at the condo. Although my heartache at the thought of never seeing them again, I took comfort in the fact that they had found a new mother that could give them more than I could. They were better off, I reassured myself. Each day I would groom my fur and try to look my best for my potential new family. Families filed in and filed out in regular fashion some of which would glance at me, only to look away and chose a kitten. I have not given up hope that someday I will share a fate of my children. I too, will someday find a good home. I will someday be the apple of someone’s eye again. I see students that come in and hear them say they are from Professor Bump’s class. I am unsure what their intentions are but whatever it is, it seems promising. For now I am content in this cat condo, but I hope that one or more of these students can see all of the wonderful things that I have to offer.

Word count: 1215

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Appendix:

Katie

Things really do get better with age and I’m the best example! My name is Katie and I am 1 year and 4 months young! I am an affectionate, and laid back orange tabby looking for a place to call my own. I’ve raised three kittens into maturity and now that the kids are all grown up, I’m ready for someone to take care me. I am loyal and protective, and although I haven’t been around human children too much, give me time and I’m sure my motherly instincts will kick in! A seasoned mama cat like me is ready to kick up her paws and relax in the comfort of a forever home. I’m a blend of keen senses and mild nature and taking naps is one of my favorite past times. I’m a lounge buddy, guard kitty and confidant all in one! My big hazel eyes have seen a lot in this world, but my heart is a stranger to unconditional love. If you’re looking for a low maintenance yet loving companion, you’ll find it in me. I’m a strong female feline would be the perfect addition to any willing family.

Word Count:194

Elijah

Adventure is my middle name, but my first name is Elijah and I am grey tabby on a mission to find a forever home. I’m a spunky little kitten that will crawl my way right into your heart. I like exploring, lounging, and playfully pretending my roommate’s tails are toys. Although I’m small, I’ve got big dreams and an even bigger heart. I’ve got a pair of eyes that would warm even the coldest of hearts and a zest for life that is unmatched. My free spirit is only surpassed by my curiosity---curiosity about the world, and curiosity about my potential family. I’m an independent boy who likes to do all of the things that boys normally do! I love to play with toys, pounce around and stay active. Although sometimes I think I’m invincible, I could use somebody to look out for me and show me the ropes. At a young 10 weeks, I’ll be sure to adapt to any loving family’s dynamic and hopefully be with them for every week to come.

Word count: 176

P1 Project

As this institution’s core purpose is to change lives for the benefit of society, I feel that the University of Texas would benefit from an organization on campus that worked to close the achievement gap in the education of minority girls through mentorship. We as students of this university are readymade leaders in our own right and I feel that certain students on this campus would serve as ideal role models to youth in underprivileged areas of Austin. Students, ascended from similar backgrounds can be beacons of hope and testaments to the fact that no goal is out of reach.

Adolescence is a uniquely difficult time and being a young minority female is an experience unlike any other. Austin hosts a population of young minority girls that aren’t reaching their full potential academically in comparison to their male and non-minority counterparts, simply because they haven’t been told that they could. A lack of resources, support systems and role models could all be contributing factors to this discrepancy. These girls are in danger of accepting society’s perpetuated and inaccurate stereotypes as their reality. Pictured above is the poster from the film “Precious.” The film follows the story of an illiterate, 16-year old African American girl who is emotionally and physically abused by her mother. As a result of her dejection, Precious has broken ambitions and is pregnant for the second time. An integral part of the story is Precious’ teacher and friend Ms. Rain. Ms. Rain helps Precious push herself and together they find the courage Precious needs to foster her newly found literacy. It is in this uniquely different time of female adolescence, that I, much like Ms. Rain, would like to provide an ally.

I drew further inspiration from Bonnie J. Ross Leadbeater’s Urban Girls Revisited in which she highlights the psychological plight that plagues young girls in these settings:

Urban girls are frequently marginalized by ethnic and racial discrimination, political neglect, poor education, poverty, parenting as adolescent, dating violence and high-risk behaviors. However, despite their higher risks for maladaptive outcomes, the majority of girls who are “marked” by such stereotypes show remarkable strengths in the face of these adversities. [1]

I want to show these girls with “target-bearing” young women that their strength is not in vain.

My vision will manifest itself in the form of a campus organization named S.H.E., an acronym for Sustaining Her Education. That acronym is representative of my aspirations: to support and enrich the education of young underrepresented girls. S.H.E. mentors won’t serve in the capacity of teachers or counselors; we will provide an audience, solicit advice, tutor them in subjects we feel most comfortable, and facilitate several activities that will boost their self-esteem and self-confidence. Hopefully this investment will positively affect their academic performance.

We will also strive to promote the formation of identity and goals through group discussions and activities. A potential activity would involve a 4 ft sized photograph of a young female. The facilitator would read a scenario and every time something negative is mentioned, a piece of the girl’s photograph will be ripped down. The participants are then asked to evaluate what’s left of the young girl’s self esteem. This exercise would encourage young women to explore the things that impact self- esteem as well as its byproducts.

The full realization of this vision will require a great deal of enterprise on my part including the development of a concrete plan to execute. First I would like to establish a partnership with a local philanthropy to make our impact more concentrated and measureable and to also help with a structure for volunteering and logistics. The success of S.H.E. depends heavily on the aid and involvement of the several service driven individuals our campus has to offer. Groups that are already culturally centered such as Bilingual Education Students Organization (BESO), Minorities in Education (MIE) and students with aspirations of being an educator or social worker will serve as an excellent recruitment pool.

Next I will seek to establish a campus identity. Because being a registered student organization affords that body certain privileges and opportunities, I will go through a registration process, in hopes of becoming more formally recognized. Through achieving this formal recognition, we increase the likelihood of receiving faculty and departmental support. I also find it important to establish community ties and invaluable relationships with deserving girls in the area. While the focus is frequently on changes that can be made on a global scale, there is so much that can be done locally. Further, an initiative such as this will shine a positive light on the University as it’s name will be associated with a community edifying project.

The University already boasts various mentorship programs as well as outreach programs, but I feel that these groups deal little with how emotional struggles and self-esteem affect academics and more specifically in young minority girls. S.H.E. will cater to an otherwise overlooked population.

Tangible goals include regular meetings to get the group set up for mentoring, various fundraisers, bake sales, carnivals, and car washes. All of these activities will last throughout the year to subsidize the larger goal of awarding a scholarship to one girl that made the biggest impression on the group ad whom we found most deserving. Our culminating large-scale event will be our “Girls Night Out.” This event would take the form of bowling at the Union Underground, and be a very informal chance for the girls to get out and have the fun which they may not be able to have regularly for whatever reason, financial or otherwise. Much like the girls pictured left, I want to provide a safe haven for camaraderie and positivity, if only for an evening.

As with every potential project, there are goals, which will most likely exceed our means. We will not be able to reach every girl in need, change all of the lives of the girls we do reach and we won’t be able to close the achievement gap all on our own. It is my hope, however, that this organization will inspire young minority girls to reach for higher ground and for UT students that have become complacent to do the same. It is also my hope that this organization will not lose momentum once I’ve graduated. I wish it to even go as far as other chapters sprouting up in university campuses across the nation and that more students become inspired to participate in something “greater than themselves.”

Looking beyond the credentials these “seemingly meaningless courses” throughout my college career have provided me with to earn a degree, they have also harvested seeds if service and responsibility: responsibility to myself and to the society in which I live. This class in particular has emphasized that point as well as the notion that my successful manipulation of the English language in reading and writing is crucial if I am to be considered for any leadership role. If I am able to communicate effectively and profoundly there is conceivably no limit to what I can achieve in the future.

Word Count with quotes: 1181

Word Count without quotes:1131

Images:

http://happysamsoon.blogspot.com/2010/06/precious-movie-vs-reality.html

http://girlstartblog.wordpress.com/2008/10/

http://www.harrycutting.com/photos_people/minority-children-picture-66-FC5058.htm

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[1] Ross Leadbeater, Bonnie J. and Way, Niobe. Urban Girls Revisited: Building Strengths. New York and London: New York University Press, 2007.

Orpheus Charming the Beast

This is an oil painting by Sinibaldo Scorza entitled Orpheus Charming the Beast. It is dated around the year 1615 and depicts a young boy in nature playing his violin to an audience of all animals. A deer, wolf, bear, cat, monkey, turkey, puma, sheep, rabbit, cow, horse, duck and peacock are all in attendance with an elephant in the distance, that seems to be on its way to the gathering. Where the viewer is situated, it's almost as if we are seated in the performance, alongside the bear, who has acknowledge our presence. The young man is in a relaxed pose as he plays his instrument, which suggests that he finds comfort in the presence of nature. In this scene man, nature and animals are in just as much harmony as the imagined notes coming from the violin. This collection of beasts, human and otherwise, are not group that you could typically find all in the same place anywhere in nature, be it due to climate, region, wild or domestic nature, or predator-prey relationships.

What this work shows is that despite these boundaries, man, animal and nature can find common ground, literally. In this case that common ground is music. As the old adage goes, “music soothes the savage beast.” In some instances, especially those explored in our class, it is hard to distinguish which party is really the “savage” one, humans or animals. The animals in the painting are juxtaposed in a manner to suggest that they all are showing somewhat of a respect and reverence for one another. Warm blues, greens and browns suggest that the tone of the painting is soft and calm. Fear, hatred, and malicious intent are absent, as they have been replaced by trust, respect and community. Overall the viewer is left with a feeling of serenity and gratitude for having witnessed such a display.

UT: The largest leadership manufacturer in Texas

It has been said, “luck is when preparation meets opportunity.” I couldn’t say with certainty that every UT graduate that has gone on to do notable things and achieve national renown purely out of luck. I do, however, believe that the unparalleled academic, social and mental preparation they received at this institution allowed them to become fully amenable to make opportunity’s “acquaintance.” Reading these alumni reflections made me feel as if I was reading testimonials for a weight- loss program, in which I was enrolled in and a few steps shy of successful completion. These reflections were inspiring anecdotes with an overall message of “you can too.” Margaret Cousins, an English major in the 1920’s said this of her learning experience, “I was introduced to ideas and became aware of their potential. It was then, indeed, that I first became aware, which inevitably changed my life”(p.891) I think that when we adopt that awareness, we mark the beginning of who we are going to be. I feel that no other learning atmosphere would have facilitated such a growth in leadership initiative in me. As of late I’ve experienced somewhat of a rebirth. As children we aspire to be astronauts, ballerinas, presidents and doctors until we reach a point in higher education when we must abandon possibility for practicality. I have come full circle and returned to possibility. I feel as if now more than ever, there are so many things that I’d like to do but beyond that, I am capable of accomplishing them all.

I am initiating a new campaign for myself called “No Dream Left Behind” and it is effective immediately. I am UT’s ball of clay. I am being shaped and molded; undesirables are being taken away, upgrades are being added, and what I have is being modified. I aspire to one day be featured alumni in Professor Bump’s anthology and have students read of my journey to what will hopefully be a bright future. UT’s scaffolding environment inevitably produces a competitive culture. Students continue to push themselves as well as each other. “Competition became tough. And as often happens in such circumstances, the process of education became challenging and exhilarating” (p.901). On Monday, I met with Manuel Justiz, the dean of the college of education, and I was taken aback when he told me that UT was lucky to have me. I found his statement flattering, yet in my heart disagreed. I am more than fortunate to have the opportunity to attend this institution of higher learning, higher standards, and higher plateaus of achievement. “ I feel like everyone who goes to The University of Texas is blessed and lucky to be there because they’re getting a chance to be as good as they can be”(p.926).

Images:

www.etribute.lib.utexas.edu

www.facebook.com

The Many, The Proud, The Longhorns

As I read these passages, my mind kept going to what being a Longhorn truly meant to me. I feel that I attend a university where both academics and rich traditions are unparalleled. Longhorn students have grown to be very similar to the animal for which they are patrons. " The cattle I am thinking of made their reputations in fierce, hardy, persistent,resourceful, daring efforts to maintain freedom. They refused to be the 'dumb driven cattle'"(p 148). Characteristically , we all got into this university because we were the cream of the crop from our high schools. We refuse to the take the path that most travel and make our own. We are the "outlaws" of conformity and mediocrity and constantly reaching for higher ground in academics as well as athletics.

Mustangs, like longhorns have resilient spirits that are not easily broken. I often envied the images of wild horses that I had viewed in past. I resented their freedom and their lack of barriers. When I actually think about it, as a student longhorn, I am more like a mustang than I realized. I have freedom of thought and my creativity is what no knows no bounds. It's important as students to never lose that spirit. When we lose that spirit, we lose our beauty--our essence. "When he stood trembling with fear before his captor...made submissive by choking...he had lost what made him so beautiful and free" (p. 168). "He relied upon motion, not covert, for the maintenance of liberty" (p.169). I will rely upon my constant movement and will not become complacent. I want to always strive for better and that's how I will maintain my liberty.

Images:

http://www.newdarkroom.com/public_lightboxes.php?cmd=photos&id=42

http://www.myspace.com/barnettfromtexas

Time Flies...

When the opportunity arose to be the discussion leader for this topic, I jumped at the chance without hesitation. I love the challenges I find in leadership roles. Evidence of this is found in my involvement in Sweethearts, Student Government, Senate of College Councils and Education Council. However one problem remains, I am serial procrastinator. The was a quote that rang true with me from the anthology, "Now people seem to have become dependent on stress to motivated, to get started, to keep going, to get things done, to feel challenged, to feel excited, to feel busy, to feel important, to find meaning, to feel validated by being in constant over demand" (p.87). In past semesters I have felt like I was the most important out of my roommates because I "needed" to pull all-nighters and I had to stay up the latest, but in reality I had placed all the pressure on myself by waiting until the last minute. I did in fact feel receive validation from feeling in demand. Maybe I volunteered to the discussion leader because in a way I knew I would wait until it got down to the wire to pull things together. I thought that the added pressure would increase the integrity of my work. I had started the work for this assignment Thursday evening. I sat down at a coffee shop and did all of my readings and planned some discussion topics because I had plans for the weekend. Now I find myself no further in work, because I spent the whole day on a party barge. In the past I have relied so heavily on the last minute study sessions to get me through and I am laying a terrible foundation for later in life. I enjoyed reading some of Covey's analyses," Satisfaction is a function of expectation as well as realization. And expectation( and satisfaction) lie in our Circle of Influence.Rather than focusing on things and time, fourth generation expectations focus on preserving and enhancing relationships and accomplishing results--in short, on maintaining the P/PC Balance"( pg. 150). Balance--I think that word captures it all. Time management is essentially a juggling act, you have the keep the right balls in the air ( your main priorities) at the right time and if you find that you can keep those in the air you start tossing in a few more balls ( friends, fun etc). It is definitely a trick which requires practice to master.