Week One

My first blog post as part of MCOM 320 Section 006! In the syllabus this is referred to as an “Application blog,” a place to apply what was taught in class that week and answer these questions for ourselves: “So what? Now what?”

All we have covered in class so far is introductions and basic sentence structure. As I sit down to write this post, what stands out to me most is Monday’s class, when we each went around the room introducing each other. It was so fascinating to me to sit back and watch my fellow classmates introduce each other. I love this beautiful world God has given us and I LOVE the diversity he’s thrown into life just to keep it interesting. No two presentations were alike---and I’m referring to more than just the information that was presented. The WAY it was presented varied tremendously from student to student. I could tell that some of my classmates were really confident with the activity. They sat up straight when called on and were excited to share what they had learned about their neighbor. Their voice was a little louder, it carried farther across the room and they didn't bother to look at their partner for affirmation when sharing a tidbit of information—they knew what they were talking about. On the flip side, some students dreaded this introductory “fluff.” They spoke quietly and kept looking at the white board to remember which item they were on or looked at their partner after each fact to get confirmation via eye contact. Or perhaps they’re just more introverted and being in the spotlight made them feel uncomfortable. Regardless, it was a great exercise and a good reminder to me just how different we all are. Our spirits are all so unique and we each bring something different to the table. That’s what makes this mortal experience so challenging sometimes…but also so very wonderful.

So what? Why did I focus on this for my first entry?

As we are put into teams for the semester there are inevitably going to be people that we do not “mesh” with. People that we would always choose last for our sports team or rather claw our eyes out than spend an evening with. Our task is to not only look past our differences but embrace them—realize that other people’s brains work different than our own and because of that, we should consider ourselves lucky to hear their opinions and get a little insight into how they see the world.