Hey y’all
This week was my most difficult week at Middlebury by far. The week began with a tragic realization that my research was all in vain as the thing I was trying to prove about funerals was not even debatable. Thus, I had less than 24 hours to find a new topic, write a new outline, find sources, and write my introduction. Needless to say, I was extremely stressed. Then everything went south in class. I explained my problem to my professor and asked for an extension only to receive no sympathy about the subject and to find out that I still had to turn in my paper at 8pm that night. As well, I was unsure about the weight of this paper in regards of my final overall grade. Thus, when my favourite professor approached me asking why I was sad, the truth is I began to sob in the middle of that class. I was definitely not the first to cry in the programme nor was it my first time crying in a class so it wasn’t necessarily embarrassing. Nevertheless, I talked to my professors and I realized there’s nothing I can do and I just had to finish in time. In the end I found a new topic and began to do research quickly to meet the deadline. In the end, I finished on time luckily.
This week we also had our check in with the head professor of our level. It was just a catch up on seeing how we were feeling within the program and what ways were we seeking support in times of difficulty. I think this was the week, looking back on my experience, where I finally began to feel close with some of my classmates. I drove my friend and classmate to the Burlington airport at 4am because she had to go to a research convention in Arizona and I wanted to go on a journey. It was times like those that really made a positive impact on my experience within the program. Since that trip, due to us becoming closer, I felt that I had another peer to turn to when I felt stressed.
The last big thing that occurred this week was the beginning of our next clubs. At Middlebury in the Japanese programme you do two clubs (one for weeks 2-4 and one for weeks 5-7). I was sad to leave Sado club but was excited to do a new club. I also got the club sign up time wrong so I was actually the last person in the whole department to sign up. Thus, I didn’t have a choice what club I was in but nevertheless, I really enjoyed origami club. In the first week we made little paper sumo wrestlers and had them wrestle each other within a ring. I gave my wrestler a paper-made sword so needless to say, my sumo was unbeatable.
This wraps up my week 5 update!
Thanks for tuning in.
Yours truly,
Will McC