Day One

Today marked the first day of the new semester, and I am excited to see how things and classes develop. Once hearing more about my Memory and Photography Honors class, I can't wait to get started on our projects and working with the residents of the Mayflower. I loved how, even though I know most of the people in our class very well, we got to share a photograph that was significant to us and explain why. It's awesome to see the creativity of my close friends displayed in a different setting. Featured above is the photo I shared in class today. This photo is of a dragonfly in Zion National Park in Utah. I absolutely love this photo because it reminds me of the trip that I took with my family to Las Vegas and Zion/Bryce Canyon/Grand Canyon National Parks - I even remember the exact moment that I took this photo. It was about 107 degrees outside and we had started an early morning hike with the goal to get to the highest "Emerald Pool," a freshwater water system that ran throughout the mountains, before the heat got too intense. Throughout our hike, we kept seeing these beautiful vivid blue dragonflies flitting around us. As we stopped for water near a small stream, a dragonfly landed by our side on a cool rock. I snapped the picture, and am still amazed at how the natural lighting manages to fall on the dragonfly so it looks like it is under the spotlight - God's way of highlighting his creatures, I suppose! Not only does it remind me of that moment and that trip, but it also leads me to think about other memories as well. This picture is a gateway for me, one that triggers something in me that makes me think about other trips and family times, in turn making me feel happy. I can't wait to learn more about this concept - how one picture can trigger memories and emotions, even if you weren't the one to take the picture. 
To get back to our class, I am very excited to learn more about how the mind processes memories and how photography relates to that. I thought the reading about the myths that we did today was really awesome, and I can't wait to spend more time on those. I also can't wait to learn about how the brain processes memories and why some memories seem to be distorted, or why you can't remember certain things at all (for example, when I give a presentation, sometimes I get so nervous that I go up front and babble on, and when I sit down, I can't remember a word that I've said). The service learning aspect of this class is something new to me, but I can't wait to get started. I have no idea what working with the residents of the Mayflower is going to be like; I have, however, heard many cool stories about the residents there from my peers and am going in with an open mind. I love interacting with people - I am a big people person - so I am excited to hear what the residents want to share about their lives with me. Dr. Queen mentioned in class today that some of the residents are working on autobiographies - this hits close to home for me because my Bon Papa (Grandfather) wrote a book about his early life and his escape from Nazi Europe. He passed away late this past May and I am fortunate that he has left his legacy behind in the form of a book that I can share with my loved ones and children someday (he also left behind the memories we have together, but those are a little less reliable ;]).