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Birth
I was born! Since my birth, my parents have been the biggest influences on me and my morals, decisions, and goals. They have supported me and helped me make every major decision, and have always helped me get through tough emotional times. They helped me develop socially by encouraging me to meet new people. -
Meeting My Brother
When I was around one I started to interact with my brother more. He is two years older than me and I followed in his footsteps in a lot of aspects. We both did the same sports, had the same friends, and took the same classes. My brother is the reason why I am who I am today- he allowed me to hang out with him and his friends so I was always sociable and athletic. He also helped me understand certain situations that he has experienced before I did, and was always there to give me advice. -
Cultural Artifact: Rover
My great-grandmother gave me a beanie baby when I was around 5. His name is Rover and I still take him to swim meets with me today as a good luck charm. He means a lot to me because my grandparents have never been very involved in my life, so this gift of the beanie baby showed that they cared about me and were sociable wit me. Also, it taught me how to take care of something that I thought was valuable, which helped me develop emotionally. -
Becoming involved in sports
My parents have always cared a lot about physical fitness and sports. Therefore, they started me in sports very early in life. Around 5 I went to my first swim practice and started competing. Sports gave me an outlet for emotional stress and made me feel good about myself, which helped me emotionally. They also allowed me to meet the majority of my best friends, which helped me develop socially. I also gained a hard work ethic. -
Reading
When I was younger, I really enjoyed reading. My parents always read to me when I was younger, which I think had a big effect on why I still love reading so much. Reading benefited me because I became a good student and was able to have alone time to relax with a good book. This helped me emotionally because I was able to forget about my worries for awhile, and helped me socially because I joined book clubs and met people. -
Elementary School Teachers
The teachers I had in Elementary school really influenced my learning. They made me want to go to school and learn. This helps me now because I remember the good qualities I saw in them, and makes me want to incorporate them into my teaching. They helped me develop emotionally because I grew up a lot while learning from them. Also, they made the students interact a lot, which helped me emotionally. -
Meeting 3 of My Best Friends
When I entered a new swimming program when I was 10, I met three girls who still remain my best friends today. These three girls went through middle school, high school, and college by my side. They helped me develope socially because they taught me how to have a good time, which helped me meet people. I am typically a very structured person, so they really taught me how to relax, which helped me emotionally. -
Traveling
When I was in middle school, I started to travel a lot for swimming. Traveling is now one of my favorite things to do. I love seeing new places and learning about other cultures. This helps me socially because I am able to appreciate other people's cultures. This helped me emotionally because I was able to be away from home without being homesick. -
Therapist
When I was in about 8th grade I began seeing a therapist because I had a lot of anxiety issues. Although swimming helped me relieve some of the issues, I still had some problems that were affecting my social relationships and school work. Therefore, I started to see a therapist to help me understand and get past my anxiety, to help me emotionally and socially. -
New Jobs
When I was in high school I began working. I babysat, taught lessons, and lifeguarded. Babysitting effected me because I now understand how difficult it can be to work with children. However, it also taught me, along with teaching lessons, how children can be extremely rewarding. These experiences helped me develop emotionally because I had to be patient. Jobs also taught me how to be responsible and work hard, which helped me socially because I understand that I can't be late. -
Working With Special Needs Children
Throughout high school once a week I worked with children that had special needs. This helped me learn that children love to see that you geniually care about them. I learned this because when the kids would hold my hand and laugh at something I said to them, it would make my day everytime. This experienced helped me develop socially because I learned how to interact with children with disability. It also helped me develop emotionally because I realized how much little kids value friendship. -
Met My Current Best Friend
I met my current very best friend during my second year in high school. She will be my maid of honor in my wedding, and has a very important role in my life. Throughout the stress of selecting a college and dealing with the combination of swimming and going to school in college, she has helped me learn how to take a step back and not be as much as a perfectionist which has helped me emotionally. She brings me out of my shell, which helps me develop emotionally. -
Elected Swim Team Captain
During my junior and senior years in high school I was the captain of my high school swim team. This was a great experience for me because it helped me understand how to work and communicate with people, which helped me socially. Also, it helped me develop emtionally because I learned how to control my emotions so I could be a good leader. -
College Recruiting Process
During my senior year of high school, college coaches were able to start contacting me to come and swim for them. This process was one of the most stressful experiences I have ever gone through. However, I learned a lot from it. I learned how to communicate with adults about my goals and their goals for me, which helped me with my social development. I developed emotionally because I learned how to not let my stress effect my schoolwork. -
College!
My first year of college was where I think I developed the most socially. This was my first time away from home and living with people my age. I learned how to tell a good friend from a bad friend. I also made mistakes, but they helped me learn what not to do later on. I developed emotionally because I had to learn how to be away from my family. -
Transferring Colleges
After my freshman year at the University of Maryland, I decided to transfer because they cut the Women's Swimming and Diving program. I had to go through the process of picking colleges again. This was the most stressful time of my life and I learned a lot from it. I learned how to handle my emotions better and not think about things I can't control, which helped me develop emotionally. Talking to the coaches again helped me devlop socially because I had to send professional emails. -
Cultural Artifact: Tattoo
I got the tattoo of the ASU sun the summer before my junior year in college. I was not very confident in myself, and I thought that a new tattoo would make me a new person and become more confident with the choices I make and who I am. I do not regret my decision, and I became more emotionally developed because this helped me understand I can't worry about what other people think. -
First Major Relationship
My first major relationship happened during my second year in college. My social development improved because I began to understand how to meet someone else's needs, and how much I can be there for another person. It also taught me a lot emotionally because I learned that it is exhausting becoming emotionally involved with someone else. -
Student Teaching
I started my first student teaching placement during my junior year. My class was a Kindergarten class, and I loved the experience. I developed a lot emotionally because I had to become more patient. Also, I developed socially because I learned how to converse with adults on a more professional level.
