Semestre Trois

It's good to be back home. 

And be back on my blog again. I had a nice little breakup. 

Yet here I am, 1:30 in the morning. It almost seems typical of me to put off my urge to blog till the most inconvenient time. When my fingers have the need to type out some life-long learning lesson. Or a simple quip about something insignificant. 

I should probably review what happened these last couple of months. Third semester in college. Yay! What a blast! It was way hard, mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally taxing. I was stretched in many ways I didn't think possible. I saw miracles happen. I know I was being tested in many ways that didn't involve a Scantron. 

Dude I wish I looked this adorable as a kid! 

I learned about calculus. I learned many things about derivatives and integrals. I know how to make a circle using a polar equation. If I really tried, I could probably make an equation for a smiley face (there was actually a problem in my book that asked that; thankfully, my teacher didn't assign that problem).

 I (somewhat) know how much work it takes to empty out a tank, or pull up a bucket of water with a pulley system. I know how to find the convergence of a series. 

I learned about chemistry. I finally learned what titration and buffers actually are. I learned about radiation, and that gamma radiation usually accompanies alpha and beta decay. Woah! I know more about organic chemistry, and it actually sticks because I can apply it to nutritional science. I know about hydrocarbons and how to name them. Yes, I do how to draw the molecule 3,3-dichlorobutyraldehyde or N, N-dimethylbenzamide. How cool is that?! 

In my other chemistry class, I learned that precision takes patience. I gained a lot of patience re-caliberating my burette, or redoing an experiment that I had inaccurate results for. I also learned that Zinc Sulfide produces a yellow gas when dissolved in H2SO4 and then heated in boiling water. I learned that I am pretty good at memorizing procedures, especially when I need to know what ions are in the precipitate when I add, say, HCl. 

I learned about Nutritional Science. By far my favorite class. After having switched from Cultural Anthropology and then to Civil Engineering, I took this class a little wary that I might not like it as much as I would hope. I was wrong. I learned the many lies that plague the nutrition industry. I learned how to properly balance my diet. I learned that it's not that hard, and it's quite fun! 

Mmm some chicken pot pie

I learned that I should be getting about 2400 calories a day when I am physically active about an hour a day. I know that I should have 3c. of veggies, 2c. of fruits, 6.5 oz. of protein, 8oz. of grain (1/2 whole wheat), and 3c. of milk. I realized I don't drink enough milk! I also realized there are many small steps I can take to help bring more food security to people. Buy locally! Really recycle. Eat more produce. Become more self-reliant, then help promote self-reliance rather than donating goods/money. It's better to teach a man to fish than to bring him a fish. 

I learned about relationships in my LDS Marriage and Family class. This class was by far the biggest surprise class for me. I thought I would hate it! But, I came to understand more about the eternal importance of families, and a spouse. Though I am not married, I got to work on the relationships that I am involved in (talking about my family, friends, and myself). I can't believe how poorly I had treated them! I learned to be a better listener. I learned that all of my dating blunders are only for a moment in time. In the meantime, I need to become the person worthy to marry. So, no rush. I learned how important it is to learn the "love language" of the person whom you love. It's not enough to love them the way you like to be loved. Pay attention to their responses to certain expressions of love. 

I learned that we all have a divine role as a wife/husband and mother/father. We exhibited extraordinary faith in the pre-existence, thus we are blessed with raising children of God. :) Let's all live up to that potential. 

I learned about Christ. In my New Testament class, I learned about the parables and miracles of Christ. More importantly, how they apply to my life. I know that Jesus Christ is real, and he had a mortal experience just like I am going through. How cool is that? I learned that true charity has to cost you something. It's not charity unless you are "out" something. 

One of my favorite stories: Zacchaeus the publican

Think about it. Test it out. Truly stretch yourself. It can't just mean something to the other person, it has to mean something to you. It's not like a white elephant gift. I know that I can ask in prayer for miracles. And they do happen! Dare ya to try! I know that the Book of Mormon follows the gospel of Christ in the Bible. They go hand-in-hand. 

Someday, I'm going to look back at this and truly appreciate writing what I learned from my third semester in college. It's great to get that out of my system! I love this gospel! I love my family, they mean the world to me! 

Life's hard, guys. But, the gospel is not. It makes life better and doable! We are working towards eternal life.