Famous Last Words for Week 8

This week was just a reflection week so I did not do any new writing this week. Although it wasn’t required, I decided to continue reading or watching the next portion of the Mahabharata: Karmic Revolution. I got through part D, which told the story of the Pandavas meeting and marrying Draupadi. It then led into Arjun’s exile and began telling about his journey in exile. I’m really glad I decided to watch the karmic revolution videos because the visualization along with the story telling method has helped me really understand what is happening in the story. I don’t know if it’s just because I am hearing the story for the second time or if it is just told in a clearer fashion but I definitely feel like I have picked up on some details I missed in the original version. I plan to continue the series for my extra reading until I finish it!

I was very relieved that this week was a reflection week. I was beginning to get very nervous about the amount of work I had to get done this week and additionally knowing that spring break would have an effect on my motivation. Luckily every thing seems to be falling in place and I am just about done with everything I need to get done. After this post I will be done with all of week 8, which is the earliest I think I’ve ever finished a week.

While I still have a presentation tomorrow and two reports due, I’m one step closer to finally being on spring break mode! I am going on a cruise with a group of my friends and have been counting down to the trip for a very long time! Hopefully I will come back from my trip relaxed and rejuvenated to continue on the semester.

Spring Break
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Wikipedia Trail: From Karna to The Lord's Day

Karna is a central character in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He is one of the greatest warriors, whose martial exploits are recorded in the epic and the only warrior believed to be able to defeat Arjuna. He was the son of Surya and Kunti.

Surya means the sun in Nepal and India. It also connotes the solar deity in Hinduism. Surya is one of the nine heavenly houses in the zodiac system of Hindu astrology. Surya is the basis of Ravivara or Sunday in the Hindu calendar.

Sunday is the day of the sun as the name is derived from Hellenistic Astrology. For most Christians, Sunday is observed as a day of worship and rest holding it as the Lord’s Day.

The Lord’s Day in Christianity is generally Sunday, the principal day of communal worship. Most Christians observe it as the weekly memorial of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Shri Surya Bhagvan, bazaar art, c. 1940's
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Wikipedia Trail:

Karna

Surya

Sunday

Lord's Day

Week 8 Review: Feedback

Feedback
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This semester and specifically this class has helped me realize that feedback is an extremely valuable tool. Taking criticisms is not always easy and I used to be offended by it but now I gained the mindset that it is truly given to help me improve. Giving effective feedback is also a skill that I feel like I've improved on throughout this class. Feedback is simply means for improvement! It is not to be feared. 

Learning Challenge: What To Focus On

I loved this meme. For me, it is sometimes soo easy to get caught up in things out of my control. I can get so anxious and stressed out and its takes valuable energy out of me. This picture is so simple yet makes such an important statement. While I will never be able to only spend my time on what I  can control and what matters, I think it's important to keep everything in perspective. If it's out of your control it's not worth the energy spent worrying. This is something I will keep in the back of my mind when I begin to feel stressed out. 

Growth Mindset: Difficult Is Not Impossible

This is something I have learned to accept after studying engineering in college. So many times I run into difficult problems that really do seem impossible to fix or impossible to improve but there really is always a way. Everything can be improved regardless of difficulty. I just have to keep reminding myself of that!

Growth Mindset Meme
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Tech Tip: Google Reverse Image Search

I used the picture below in a reverse google image search. I found out that this picture is an Indian painting showing Ravana posing as an elderly hermit and abducting Sita in his chariot.

Ravana Tricking Sita
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Reading Notes: The Mahabharata: Karmic Revolution, Part D

Drupad announced that to win Draupadi in marriage, one had to watch the reflection of a revolving fish in a bowl of oil and shoot an arrow to penetrate the fish’s eye. None could even lift the bow until Arjun rose to string the bow. Arjuna fulfilled the challenge.

Karna tried the challenge but because he was the son of a charioteer Draupadi refused his do the challenge. He was humiliated and furious.

The pandavas were attached numerous times but fought them all off. Kunti, thinking the boys had brought food, told them to share what they had brought equally. Having brought Draupadi, they had to obey their mother’s orders and each marry Draupadi. Draupadi was also destined to have five husbands.

The pandavas have Vishwakarma build a beautiful palace and create the city of Indraprastha. The pandavas were warned by Narad that Draupadi might cause trouble among the brothers. They decided to give each brother one year being Draupadi’s wife. If some failed, they would be exiled for twelve years.

Arjun heard that there was a thief in Indraprastha. His weapons were in the palace and it wasn’t his turn with Draupadi. Arjun went into the chambers to get his bow to help the Brahmin. Arjun walked in and knew he was sentenced to twelve years in exile. Arjun still attacked the thieves and rescued the cows. He set out for exile with a group of Brahmins.

He set forth towards the Himalayas. They built shelters and lit fires. Arjun bathed in the holy water of the ganga river. When he was bathing, he was pulled down and opened his eyes to Ulupi. She told him he loved her. They spent months together on the lake until it was time for him to leave to head to Bharatvarsh.

He reaches Manalur where he marries Chirangadha who bears him a son. He then leaves and continues to travel. Krishna and Arjun spent days together at the Rivaataka Mountain. Arjun told Khrisna about his adventures. Krishna told Arjun to make Subhadra fall in love with him and then kidnap her. He abducted her on the day of the festival. He pulled her into the chariot and speed off. 

Arjun's Exile
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Bibliography: The Mahabharata: Karmic Revolution, Epified TV (India), 2015-2016

Week 8 Growth Mindset

I have really enjoyed the structure of this class. Since it is so flexible and based off a point system, it is not necessary to complete every assignment. However, because I set a goal for myself to finish this class by week 10 so that I will be able to use the second half of the semester to focus on my capstone, I have worked hard to complete every assignment and almost every extra credit. From this I have learned that I am most effective in a goal-oriented situation. I think I am equally motivated whether someone else or myself sets the goal as long as it is reasonable.

One thing I hadn’t had much exposure to until this class was giving critical feedback. I tend to be a perfectionist to a point and often if something I was apart of, like a group report, was not up to my standards I would just redo it myself. Through both giving and receiving feedback, I feel I have gained a method in which I can provide feedback to other.

I've really enjoyed doing the extra credit growth mindsets each week. It's nice to stop for a moment during the week to reflect on my behaviors and what I have and have not been successful at and why. I also really enjoy scrolling through the growth mindset memes because most of them are extremely relatable and it's triggers my acknowledgment of my behaviors or motivates me to improve. 

Growth Mindset
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Week 8 Reflections

Throughout the semester I have switched up my reading notes style a few times. At first I only took notes on the 2-3 areas in the story where I felt really inspired to write my own story. I now have begun to add in some smaller storylines and details from within the stories I'm reading incase I am not satisfied with the story ideas I had come up with as I was reading. So far this method has been helpful to me when I am trying to come up with my story ideas. 

At the beginning of this semester, I probably hadn't written a nontechnical paper in close to three years. That being said I was extremely rusty and have never been known to be a spectacular writer. After reading several other people's stories, I decided I really wanted to improve my ability to incorporate dialogue into my stories. In my last few stories I have slowly increased the amount of dialogue and I am pleased with the progress I have made towards creating effective dialogue. I also really enjoyed reading other people's stories that had used characters or themes from an outside source. This week I decided to give that a try and was pleased with my result. 

I think I have improved as a writer since the beginning of the semester and have gained confidence to be creative when writing. I am looking forward to continuing to improve as the semester continues. 

Creativity Meme
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