Nearing the Finish

Christmas time is almost here! This time of year always brings back fond memories of steaming hot chocolate, crackling fireplaces, and my favorite - holiday music. This is also about the time when everything begins to become hectic as final exams and project deadlines sneak up. One thing that is easy to do in anticipation for the holidays is letting the holiday fever set in a little too early. We begin putting our tasks off until the last minute, not working as diligently for upcoming CDE's as we should, or not giving 100% effort in all that we do. We start shutting down before break is even here. I can think of multiple times when I have done exactly this - giving up before the finish.

I remember in Junior High during track practice I would always hear the coach yelling the words “Finish! Finish! Make it all the way to the finish line!” Too many times our coach would catch my teammates and I slowing down right before the end or stopping just inches away. Those few inches felt like miles every time I neared the finish line, so I just choose to quit. At the time I figured that none of it mattered. It was just a few inches right?

When I think back, it would have taken just a few more seconds of hard work to make it to the end. The extra work that I should have put into my running to make it to the finish was minimal, but I chose to give up anyways. It took time for me to realize that those few steps were extremely crucial my success. In any situation if we stop trying before we reach the end we are not reaching our full potential.

If Usain Bolt were to quit just inches before the 
finish line he would have lost his chance at 
winning an Olympic Gold Medal.  

This holiday season don’t let the holiday fever set in early! I know that these last few days before break may seem like years just as those last few steps seemed like miles to me, but this is the perfect time to stay ahead of the game and make those last few inches worthwhile. Stay motivated by rewarding ourselves each time we check something off our to-do list. Hold ourselves accountable by studying with friends or asking our friends to quiz us over information for our next CDE. We could even have them listen to our speeches and the creed. Let’s make it our goal to not quit before the finish line. Then when Christmas Break finally comes we can fill it with hot chocolate, holiday music, and friends and family!  Happy Holidays!

Don't Stop Believin'

The theme the National FFA Organization has proudly displayed this year is “I Believe.” How perfect is that?! This organization is all about believing! During National Convention this year, we heard the song “Don’t Stop Believin’.” Just look at those three words. The song isn’t simply called “Believin’.” It’s called “Don’t Stop Believin’.”

How easy is it to believe in something, whether that be a goal, an opportunity, or our own abilities, just as long as the path is easy? It can be much more difficult to keep believing as soon as, suddenly, we find a roadblock in our path.

Maybe we decide that this semester, we are going to achieve a perfect grade point average at school. Then, an exam sneaks up on us, we maybe do not study as much as we probably should, we take the test, our grade immediately drops, and we give up on that goal for the semester. Or, maybe we set a goal to win a Career Development Event, but experience some conflict on the team, and decide it is too difficult to keep everyone on the same page. Or, perhaps we really want to earn a proficiency award, but our schedules become hectic with all of our activities and we just give up on dedicating enough time to our Supervised Agricultural Experience program to earn it. In other words, we quit believing we can do it.

Think about how far our organization has continued to grow, simply because so many members and supporters believe in it!

• The FFA started with thirty-three members in 1928, and is proudly represented by 540,379 members today.
• The first official dress that was worn in 1930 later became the corduroy jacket we wear with the same kind of pride.
• In 1937, the organization took action to establish an FFA camp in Washington, D.C., that we know today as the Washington Leadership Conference that thousands of members attend each year.
• The Future Farmers of America Foundation was formed in 1944, and has raised more than $232 million for the organization ever since.
• The organization grew to merge with the New Farmers of America and allow females to become members and continues to increase in membership each year.
• The Future Farmers of America changed its name in 1988 to the National FFA Organization so that it could encompass the growing opportunities in agriculture and the organization.

The FFA experiences constant growth in so many ways. Why? Because the organization and all who are involved never stop believing it can find new and better ways to serve all members and the entire industry of agriculture.

“Don’t Stop Believin’.”

 The blue jacket keeps believing… will you?

Just Add a Little Sunshine

Sunglasses. The ocean. Popsicles. Flip-flops. Waterslides. Green grass. Sunburns. Can you say, “Spring fever?!”

One of the aspects of the season of spring that I like the most is the feeling that comes with those days in which the sun really shines. I don’t know about you, but I just cannot help but be happy on that kind of day.

With all of the sunshine lately, my thoughts keep flooding back to a little less than a year ago, when my senior class boarded a plane bound for Orlando for our senior trip before graduation. This trip was the cause of the epitome of sunshine-derived happiness. I spent almost a week with my family of classmates. At Universal Studios, we rode countless roller coasters and other rides, and even toured Hogwarts at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (Okay, so maybe there wasn’t a lot of sunshine in the castle, but it was a major cause of excitement and joy nonetheless)! At Sea World, we watched whale and dolphin shows and rode even more roller coasters. Then, we spent a day by the ocean. It was sunny every single day, and we returned home sunburnt, relaxed, and full of smiles and laughs.

Thinking back to that week made me think that the sunshine really has a way of giving us a positive attitude, doesn’t it? For example, one day last week, I had an exam in class that I was really nervous about taking. I am rather ashamed to say that normally, I probably would have been the definition of grumpy until that test was over. However, that sun was shining. For some reason, I just couldn’t help but feel as if I were having the absolute best day, just because the world around me was, well, happy.

Now, to me, that’s just silly! Why in the world should I be relying on the sun outside my window to tell me whether I would enjoy my day? If that sun had not been streaming through the windows, would my attitude have been so negative just because of an exam that I would have caused others to look at their day as gloomy as well? On senior trip, would my class have still had fun if the sun was behind the clouds all week, and even if we hadn’t had the opportunity to ride a bunch of roller coasters? Of course we would have, because we still would have spent the week with our fellow classmates who were our best friends all through high school.

For those of us who are Harry Potter fans, remember when Professor Dumbledore said, “Happiness can be found in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light?” Whether we are actually going through a rough time or whether it is just a normal day, think about how true this is. We do not have to rely on the weather to be happy; we can just add a little sunshine into our day ourselves.

Thinking about it, I know that for me, calling home to my family, taking a fifteen-minute break to run to Sonic with a couple of friends, checking off my to-do list something that I wanted to complete, Skyping with friends who do not live nearby, or going for a quick run around campus can be all the sunshine I need to make my day feel great.

Think about those things that just never seem to fail to bring a smile to your face. Maybe it’s spending time with your family or friends. Maybe it’s going for a ride on your horse or going for a run. Maybe it’s sitting down to read a good book. Whatever it is, it can be the cause of sunshine on a cloudy day.

Next time you’re feeling a little bit of gloom, don’t let it get to you! Catch a little bit of that spring fever and just add a little sunshine!

Got Cheese?

Recently, in one of my classes at K-State, we were asked to read the book “Who Moved My Cheese?” Now, I’ll admit, I had no idea what this book would be about, and honestly didn’t expect much. However, what I found as a read through the pages was a pretty cool perspective on change and dealing with change.

The storyline looks something like this.

There were four mice, named Sniff, Scurry, Hem, and Haw. These mice spent their time in a maze, looking for their own, personal cheese, or what they believed would make them happiest. One day, the four found a corridor in the maze that provided all of their types of cheeses. They made a routine of coming to that particular corridor until it was completely depleted of cheese.

Sniff, who had a tendency to discover when things were about to change before it actually happened, was prepared. So, he and Scurry, who has a talent for reacting to change in a positive way and taking action, set out to search the maze for more cheese. However, Hem was not comfortable with change, so he chose to stay in the corridor to wait and see if more cheese appeared where it was previously. Haw remained with Hem for a while, because he had a tendency to wait and not address change until absolutely necessary. Meanwhile, Sniff and Scurry were successful in finding a new corridor with even more cheese than the first. Eventually, Haw, who was unsuccessful in changing Hem’s mind, faced his initial uncertainties and set out for more cheese. He too found the new corridor of cheese. He returned to the first corridor to invite Hem to come along, but Hem insisted that he did not want to experience any cheese that was different than that of which he was already used to.

We can learn so much from this book!

Which character are we most like? Are we like Hem, who insists on having familiarity and routine and cannot seem to adapt to change when it occurs? Or, maybe we’re like Haw, who might like the routine and familiarity, but will eventually adapt to change when necessary. Or, are we like Scurry, who reacts to the change by taking action and making the most of the situation, or Sniff, who actually sees the change coming and is prepared to make it a positive outcome long before it occurs?

What is our “cheese?” What is it that is most important to us, that motivates us to succeed the most?

Finally, how do we react when something changes? Do we give up, or continue to pursue what is most important to us?

“If you don’t like something change it; if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it.” –Mary Engelbreit

Advice for All Ages

It was mid-December, and approaching at an alarming rate were the most dreaded days of the semester for almost any student. In just five days, finals week was set to begin. I was sitting in the very last class for the semester for one of my courses, and the professor asked us whether we were nervous about our exams (um, yes?). Before leaving, she said she had just a few words of advice, and that the advice would be the same words she told her children every morning before they got on the school bus. She wanted us to keep these words in mind, not just during our final exams, but throughout the remainder of our time at K-State and throughout our careers. She said,

“Be nice. Do your best. Be teachable.”

It seems easy, does it not? But, how easy is it to become caught up in our day-to-day activities and forget something so easy? Often, we can follow this advice in the simplest situations.

Be Nice. This one seems to be the easiest to act upon, yet can also be the easiest to forget. However, we know that the simplest act can make the greatest impact on someone else. We can brighten another person’s day simple by being kind. Think about that moment that I’m sure many of us have experienced where we pass someone going in the opposite direction, make eye contact, and just awkwardly turn away. Well, I’m here to save us all from future awkward situations such as this with a single-word solution: smile. Smiles are contagious. Smiles can turn a person’s gloomy day into a brighter one. What about that person who seems lonely or left out? It sounds like a golden opportunity to make a new friend. And, isn’t it a nice feeling to receive help on something when we need it? Well, isn’t it an even nicer feeling to give help when someone else needs it? Sometimes, by making an effort to simply be nice to others, we make our own day just a little bit better!

Do Your Best. Let’s admit it. Sometimes, we just have a lazy day. It’s easy to do just enough to get by on some days, instead of striving to give it our 100%. Let’s say that we know we have a quiz tomorrow. We should probably dedicate at least a few minutes of our evening to studying for that quiz, shouldn’t we? So, we glance through our notes until we think we have enough of the information stored in our brains to pass the quiz. I mean, studying for a few minutes, hoping for the best, and spending the rest of the evening watching our favorite television show seems like a much more enjoyable way to end the day. However, by doing this, are we really doing the absolute best that we can do on that quiz the next day? Are we really challenging our minds to truly understand what we are taught in that class? Are we helping ourselves by doing just enough to get by? It’s all about striving to be the best we can be whenever we have the opportunity to take that extra step.

Be Teachable. The art of learning doesn’t simply involve attending class or listening to the information someone presents us. To truly learn, we must be teachable. We must be open to accept the suggestions or information coming our way. It doesn’t sound too difficult, but I will be the first to admit that personally, I can be stubborn. A few weeks ago, I was getting into my car to run a couple of errands. Now, I am still trying to learn my way around Manhattan, and do not particularly enjoy driving when I don’t know where exactly I am going. So, I turned on my trusty GPS, fondly named Lucy Lou. However, just because the GPS told me to turn one direction doesn’t mean I listened. I thought the GPS had to be wrong, and because I refused to allow the GPS to teach me how to successfully reach my destination, I drove around pointlessly for much longer than I needed to. Sometimes, it is easy to pass up the opportunity to learn by simple not allowing ourselves to be teachable.

The advice that my professor gives to her children before they go to school everyday is advice we can all take to heart everyday! Be nice. Do your best. Be teachable.