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Oh yes. and in case you were concerned about the 13-day lapse since my last post. i do apologize. i miss my blog.
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One thought on that.
* ahem *
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CLINICALS IS TAKING OVER MY LIFE!!!!!!!!...
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No complaints. it's been fun. remind me [not really] to tell you about the runaway child, the several meltdowns i've come across, the topless girl and sockless boy, the patchy-balding student with parents who refuse to shave his hair/lack of, the teacher with ADHD in a class of pre-k students with disabilities, and the bar that i've been eating lunch at.
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It's been fuuun.
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No, it really has. i'm just messin witchu. i love it. i love that i have chosen this to be my working life. it suits me so well. i have compassion towards 100% of these children. 85%+/- of them are super cute. the other 15%, well....they bite. literally.
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And dina, my COTA is awesome. great mentor. i can tell she likes her personal space and privacy though so i hope hanging out with her constantly isn't wearing her too thin.
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So bring on the spring break!
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Week 3 clinicals to commence on April 9.
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And biggest news of ALL!! i'm going to general conference this weekend! for the first time in my life. i will now say it again: i will actually be t.h.e.r.e.

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I wonder if blow horns and glow sticks are permitted.

47 years (& counting)

Thanks Cindy for sharing this. perfect timing in my book.

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"You will have significant experiences. I hope that you will write them down and keep a record of them, that you will read them from time to time and refresh your memory of those meaningful and significant things. Some may be funny. Some may be significant only to you. Some of them may be sacred and quietly beautiful. Some may build one upon another until they
represent a lifetime of special experience. " - Gordon B. Hinckley

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Last night i was so tired. but literally with one eye open, laying down, and my head half wrapped in a blanket I made an unconvinced decision to read something out of the march ensign. it took much effort to read, but as i got further along in an article called "Have I Done Any Good in the World Today?" both eyes were open and it had my full attention.

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There was a lot of interesting stuff in it about how the person who wrote Pres Monson's biography came about doing it. some things stood out more than others. and this brings me to what i want to share with you right now. I found out that:

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President Monson has written in his daily journal for 47 years.

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Forty seven years.

DAILY.

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If i start now, i might be able to catch up.....and accomplish it when i turn __.

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"Put simply, President Monson does what most people only think about doing."

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If you already write in your journal every day, i wanna be like you.

Marjorie Pay Hinckley

I came across this today. adding to it would just be taking away. so i leave it and love it.

the week that ends it all

It all boils down to this folks. the last week of my school days. I have class on Monday, class on Wednesday....then i'm off on my own.

After being with my class homies for two years, sometimes spending more time with them than with my own family, they have become family to me. i have an emotional attachment to these guys, needless to say.

Especially since i am the baby of the class, my older classmates have taken me under their wing. i was the young grasshopper for some, the techno-savvy powerpoint adviser for others, the i'll-try-your-strange-filipino-food person, the observant listener for all, the one with crazy socks, the comment-contributor in conversations, the mediator [it's true], the encourager, the one to email random catch phrases and inside jokes to....I played my part well.

There were so many times that i just wanted to rip my hair out because of my annoyance towards some of my classmate's tendencies [i.e. complaining]. it's the sisterly, child-parent relationship i have with them. i could talk about every one of my classmates on such a personal level though. for great and bad. and i've gotten to know myself more. that's what happens when you get put through the wringer for various reasons over the course of two years.

Like i said, we've gotten close from experiences we'e had together. from teacher's being fired for being unethical, to teachers taking vengeance out on students, insane classmates that literally had some mental disease, field trips to Touro and other places, hoarding wheelchairs against our will, contracting for fieldwork placements, mystery classes, financial aid, teacher's stepping up and taking responsibility just when we need them, confession sessions, not accepting a 2nd year class for probationary accreditation reasons (there was an article recently in the Las Vegas Sun that did a great job describing that situation)....all this? REALLY!!
Great career! needy program. it's had some definite improvements throughout the past year and is on the path to recovery (thanks to some amazing instructors and to us! the students).

This picture is old, we need a more updated group photo.


This is cheesy, but i don't realize how much people mean to me until i see my relationship coming to an 'end.' sure, we'll keep in touch. we'll see each other in the real world. but we'll never be together in a class setting like this ever again. the L-building where we've laughed, yelled, studied, ate, played [seriously, the OTA program owns toys and a swing set], chatted on multiple emotional levels, and even bawled our eyes out/teared up a little at the appropriate times [the happy, the frustrated, the stressed...all of it]. i love these guys! i'll get over it, but i'm going to miss them. i see a lot of nostalgia in my future coming up after this week.

Sue, Tia, Lucy, Amer, Maria, Jeremy, Dave, Carmen, Erika, Kate, Jessica, Kristin, Wendy, Thom, Leanne, Michelle....

WE DID IT!

It's the end of the road. this is our last week together. we have clinicals now and will go our separate ways. but we will need to get together to study for the board exams later this year. so we'll still be there for each other....won't we? i have small moments of fear that we'll all move on and never "need" each other again. that must be the Manasseh in me.

But. we're here. here at the end of all things (ahem, what movie is that from?)
This is what we've been waiting for!
Let's DO THIS!!