Comunication Practicum Day 1

I have been up since 5:30 a.m. after sleeping in the back seat of my car. Yesterday I drove 8 hours and I am thinking the prettiest part was in the dark. I saw the blackness of the Salmon River and what seems to be beautiful forest. The drive itself was exhausting. Between the twists, turns, rain, and snow/sleet my neck and back muscles were supper tight.

So, between that and today I am exhausted. We have been in classes since 9 a.m. this morning and sitting for most of it. We are going to be doing several projects while here and over the next eight weeks. Thankfully there isn't any reading, but I have a feeling this class will still require a lot of work.

There have been some great things that have come out of the day. Some quotes I want to share:

Introduction Workshop:

What is it that you do as a college professor?
⇒ I get paid to think out loud.

Why obtain information if you aren’t going to share it?

It’s where you go with all this stuff in the end!

The concept of leadership is inherent in giving information away.

One cannot lead if they aren’t an effective communicator.

Ars elequente – the ability to speak, write, and communicate effectively.

Culture shock is usually the reason people return home early from their stays away from home.

Communication, Community, Common -> they all share something

Community is a choice, a voluntary coming together -> openness, not intimacy

Like tightrope walkers, if we lean too much in one direction we begin to loose our balance. To regain our balance, we must lean back the other way and find a happy medium.

Community is critical to peace…

Principles for building community:
- Be committed
- Be mindful
- Be unconditionally accepting (we’re not always the best at it, but that’s what we’re called to do)
- Be concerned for ourselves and others
- Be understanding – recognizing how culture and ethnicity affect the way we think
- Be ethical
- Be peaceful

Writing workshop:
It's thinking about the slight differences in words and choosing the right one.

Take time in whatever it is ou chose to write.

If you have to leave while you're writing, leave mid-sentence.

All writing is re-writing.

First drafts are often the dump of what we know.

Create fabulous images in very few words.

The thing about story is that is makes us feel less alone.