Metacognition: My Dresser

I have a habit of piling things on top of my dresser.

My dresser isn't small, it's just narrow. Tall, but not wide. My habit is pretty bad when I hoard a bunch of things I don't need. I decided to tackle my dresser top so I can actually reach my jewelry box and see the picture in the frame that is placed nicely next to it. I walked up to my dresser and stared at it for a while, questioning myself about actually cleaning it off. But I did.

I started to clean it off and noticed I had a bunch of nail polish I didn't even know I had, along with jewelry. I had old notes from friends and I read them before I tossed them or set them aside, and it was nice to go back in the past for a little bit. It made me think of easier times that I wish I could have back. I couldn't believe how much stuff I was hoarding on the top of my dresser. It's not because I'm too lazy to clean it off or anything, I just can't bring myself to throw them away because it brings back memories and I don't know what to do with it, so I put it on my dresser for "safe keeping."

To my surprise, I threw away most of it. It felt weird, but it also felt good. Some of the notes I kept were painful to read, whether they were rude or from a friend I am no longer friends with, so I tossed them and it feels like a huge burden was lifted from my shoulders. I know it's weird to say that cleaning off my dresser made me feel better, but it really did. Those notes kept me together in a big mess kind of way. Just like people who have messy rooms know exactly where everything is..that was me. A person held together by so many bad memories, but I now know what it all is, and I can get rid of it.

Change of Mind: The Art of Thinking and Learning

Learning about Metaphorming and amplitudes was something new to me. I've heard of amplitudes before, but not in the ways of thinking. Ada Monroe wants to find someone with "amplitude—of thought, of feeling, of being" and she wants to be involved with a man who thinks, feels, and lives deeply and widely. I've never heard of amplitudes in this way.

On the Metaphorm page, Mr. Allen lists some questions that had me in deep thought about my friends and the people I hang around with. I don't know what I look for in people, I just stick around with people that have enough courage and tolerance to annoying people to put up with me and the way I act when I'm comfortable.

I started questioning myself like am I hanging around the right people? Do I really care about these people enough to spend all of my time with them? And I think I am, and I'm pretty sure I do, but thinking about these things made me realize that some of my friends weren't good for me. Learning about Metaphorms changed the way I think of people and situations for the better.

Best of Week: Starlings

When we learned about the Starlings, it made me think of how beautiful the world really is. Watching the Starlings fly around quickly and not run into each other was amazing in my opinion. These birds are very smart and being able to track seven other birds and do the same thing, making it seem like a show, is phenomenal.

Creating myths to go along with the Starlings was pretty interesting as well. We had the opportunity to use our imaginations to come up with an explanation for the Starlings, and all of the myths that were shared were pretty cool and seemed legitimate. I love mythology and having the chance to create a myth with a nice group of people was a great experience for me.

Without having looked at the video of the Starlings, I wouldn't have created a myth and had so much fun with it. I didn't even know Starlings existed, I just saw a bird and thought it was a normal bird, I didn't care what kind. I found myself becoming more interested in the types of birds there are and the habits and lifestyles they have.