Oh you ickle firsties!
I never thought I had a maternal bone in my body until this week. Last year was so busy that I never really got a chance to meet or know the '10 class, but I am so glad I'm getting a chance now. If someone had told me freshman year that I'd be giving out classes/concentration advice, I would've laughed them off - but hey, apparently I do know something about the system here.
Am doing GIGs (Groups Investigating God) with J-chen and Adrian officially this year. It's odd how in a school as intellectual and as supposedly "open" as Harvard (the motto is veritas after all), certain topics are still taboo - discussion of religion and faith and related issues, for instance. I remember it took some guy in my frosh entryway running around seriously telling certain people they were destined for hell before our entire entryway got together to hash out the topic for once and for all. All 32 of us frosh, crowded into one room thumbing through the Bible and other religious texts and debating issues of predestination and free will until 4 am. (Someone showed up with cannoli at one point, I think).
...It really shouldn't take something that drastic to happen for a friendly forum of that sort to open up. After all, people usually have an opinion on religion, faith, etc., and are capable of discussion without bashing everyone else.
First practice was awesome. I think there must've been about 30 or something newbies that showed up - we ended up using the concrete basketball court at the QRAC instead. Sarah and Allen had the bright idea to meet the newbies in front of Boylston Gate and all catch the shuttle to practice together and that really helped boost numbers, I think.
And yeah, sure, they were all rough around the edges, but their enthusiasm! The kiai was good (one of them was actually Japanese; two were Koreans who had done kumdo for over 3 years), Brian actually looked and sounded really professional and captain-ish, and Kofi, Chit (!!!) and both Daves were there.
...They really liked it. Practice, I mean. A lot of them told me afterwards they were really looking forward to the Friday practice and the pizza party. None of them seemed to have any reservations about hitting people (unlike last year); in fact, they asked when they'd get bogu.
Wow. We must have done something right recruiting this year.
I am so thrilled about this semester.
It is going to be awesome. I know it.
Am doing GIGs (Groups Investigating God) with J-chen and Adrian officially this year. It's odd how in a school as intellectual and as supposedly "open" as Harvard (the motto is veritas after all), certain topics are still taboo - discussion of religion and faith and related issues, for instance. I remember it took some guy in my frosh entryway running around seriously telling certain people they were destined for hell before our entire entryway got together to hash out the topic for once and for all. All 32 of us frosh, crowded into one room thumbing through the Bible and other religious texts and debating issues of predestination and free will until 4 am. (Someone showed up with cannoli at one point, I think).
...It really shouldn't take something that drastic to happen for a friendly forum of that sort to open up. After all, people usually have an opinion on religion, faith, etc., and are capable of discussion without bashing everyone else.
First practice was awesome. I think there must've been about 30 or something newbies that showed up - we ended up using the concrete basketball court at the QRAC instead. Sarah and Allen had the bright idea to meet the newbies in front of Boylston Gate and all catch the shuttle to practice together and that really helped boost numbers, I think.
And yeah, sure, they were all rough around the edges, but their enthusiasm! The kiai was good (one of them was actually Japanese; two were Koreans who had done kumdo for over 3 years), Brian actually looked and sounded really professional and captain-ish, and Kofi, Chit (!!!) and both Daves were there.
...They really liked it. Practice, I mean. A lot of them told me afterwards they were really looking forward to the Friday practice and the pizza party. None of them seemed to have any reservations about hitting people (unlike last year); in fact, they asked when they'd get bogu.
Wow. We must have done something right recruiting this year.
I am so thrilled about this semester.
It is going to be awesome. I know it.