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Monday marked the first day of school for the winter term, as well as our first Beyond Borders seminar of the term. Somewhat to my surprise, I found myself rather excited to spend a day with a group of 10 other students, who a mere four months ago were complete strangers. Going home for the holidays is usually a rather grounding experience for me as I usually spend time with old friends, and find myself reflecting on just how much I have changed while at school. This holiday in particular showed me how much I actually have changed over the past four months, and this was in large part due to the Beyond Borders program, and working with my fellow participants who in many ways are quite different from myself. For those that know me, I am not usually described as being a people person, and it typically takes me a while before I warm up to someone. I have been deeply humbled by how effective our class discussions and fundraising initiatives have been at uniting the group, despite our differences. It was a refreshing realization when I came back that this group is going to be there for a pretty significant moment in my life - in all of our lives really.
But back to the seminar...
The day began with a personality testing workshop, which I'll be honest, I was initially quite skeptical about. While I do enjoy doing personality tests (who doesn't enjoy a good set of survey questions to answer from time to time?) I don't usually find they reveal much about my temperment that I don't already know. And on top of that, there is a part of me that feels like personality testing has the ability to hinder self improvement, in the sense that it gives us an excuse to avoid confronting our flaws. Instead test results allow us to just chalk up our rudeness or choice to not include someone, on our personality - "it's just who we are". I was able to overcome my reservations though, and actually found some value in the workshop. My personality was found to fit the "Inquiring Green" category the closest. According to the test, my core needs are knowledge and competence. I was also found to be extremely introverted. I wasn't surprised at all with my results, but where I found value was in the discussions that followed after we all presented our results. In particular, I was rather appreciative of the discussion surrounding introverted and extroverted temperments - specifically the definitions that were provided for each of these categories. Introverts were explained as individuals who derive energy from introspection and personal reflection, while extroverts derive energy from interaction with others. I have a tendency to chalk my introversion up to just another case of the grumpies, but understanding the complexity of our basic tendencies I feel will make it easier for all of us to work together in the coming months, and especially while abroad. We may never understand why someone needs those 10 minutes just to recharge, or why someone else just really needs that hug, but after this workshop I think we are all a little closer to being able to just accept and respect these qualities in others.
The second part of the seminar featured a self defense workshop - which I thought was an absolute riot! Not because I thought it was particularly useful - to be honest if it comes down to it, I will probably resort back to the moves I used in my childhood in an attempt to fend off my older brother's attacks - but because I saw it as one of the first times that everyone, including our program director, Joanne, was able to just let go and not be inhibited by the somewhat academic nature of our class. There was plenty of laughter and giggles (and some brusing too!), and I felt as though our group really started to become unified in that moment. By the end of the day I found myself rather excited for the next time the whole gang would be together again.
For me, this whole Beyond Borders journey finally feels real, not just because we all have our placements (although that does help quite a bit), but because I finally feel like our group has come together as a team; uniting over our desire for change in the world, change in others, and change in self. This seminar was a great start to the term, and while the road has been difficult at times, I can't wait for the changes and challenges that are sure to come!
-Cat
But back to the seminar...
The day began with a personality testing workshop, which I'll be honest, I was initially quite skeptical about. While I do enjoy doing personality tests (who doesn't enjoy a good set of survey questions to answer from time to time?) I don't usually find they reveal much about my temperment that I don't already know. And on top of that, there is a part of me that feels like personality testing has the ability to hinder self improvement, in the sense that it gives us an excuse to avoid confronting our flaws. Instead test results allow us to just chalk up our rudeness or choice to not include someone, on our personality - "it's just who we are". I was able to overcome my reservations though, and actually found some value in the workshop. My personality was found to fit the "Inquiring Green" category the closest. According to the test, my core needs are knowledge and competence. I was also found to be extremely introverted. I wasn't surprised at all with my results, but where I found value was in the discussions that followed after we all presented our results. In particular, I was rather appreciative of the discussion surrounding introverted and extroverted temperments - specifically the definitions that were provided for each of these categories. Introverts were explained as individuals who derive energy from introspection and personal reflection, while extroverts derive energy from interaction with others. I have a tendency to chalk my introversion up to just another case of the grumpies, but understanding the complexity of our basic tendencies I feel will make it easier for all of us to work together in the coming months, and especially while abroad. We may never understand why someone needs those 10 minutes just to recharge, or why someone else just really needs that hug, but after this workshop I think we are all a little closer to being able to just accept and respect these qualities in others.
The second part of the seminar featured a self defense workshop - which I thought was an absolute riot! Not because I thought it was particularly useful - to be honest if it comes down to it, I will probably resort back to the moves I used in my childhood in an attempt to fend off my older brother's attacks - but because I saw it as one of the first times that everyone, including our program director, Joanne, was able to just let go and not be inhibited by the somewhat academic nature of our class. There was plenty of laughter and giggles (and some brusing too!), and I felt as though our group really started to become unified in that moment. By the end of the day I found myself rather excited for the next time the whole gang would be together again.
For me, this whole Beyond Borders journey finally feels real, not just because we all have our placements (although that does help quite a bit), but because I finally feel like our group has come together as a team; uniting over our desire for change in the world, change in others, and change in self. This seminar was a great start to the term, and while the road has been difficult at times, I can't wait for the changes and challenges that are sure to come!
-Cat
