So the first of 15 weeks of this semester is over...
Classes have been allright so far. Consumer behavior should be a "doable" class, Psychology as well. Principles of Marketing is an evening class. I'm the only one living on campus. Many parents or older people in that class.
English 104. To be honest - a joke. So I sat in consumer behavior wednesday morning. it was 11am when i realized that this assignment we had for homework said we actually have to "discuss" the three "this i believe" articles from the npr.org website.
Autsch, so I had to skip lunch, when to the lab and worked on the assignment. i had like 50 minutes. List 5 features in every article and discuss how they arose interest. features sind in dem zusammenhang stilmittel gewesen - hab ich aber erst spaeter gecheckt. Well, i basically jsut summarzied the three essays. in deutschland theamaverfehlung. So we got our assignments back yesterday... really, i germany, i probably woudln't have handed that paper in. here - 10/10 points, nice work!
mkay... i think my personal I believe essay got along pretty well...we'll get them back on monday and then we have to chance to correct it again in order to get an even better grade... i might post the essay on my blog for those how are interested... give my feedback :)
So school should be allright...Around 17th september we're gonna have our first exams...after getting back the results I can adjust my studying-style ;)
Since Wolfgang is renting a car right now we've the chance to get around a bit. So we went to this one liquer score. und was faellt einem als erste ins auge? ein ayinger fuer $3,29. Well, of course there are other well-known german beer brands like St. Pauli Girl beer (mit m dirndl!)... but they also had spaten, becks, warsteiner, bitburger and stuff... and weihnstephan...but since we have to experience the different culture we got some Miller Genuie Draft beers...
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Essay: This I believe…
Taking the lows for the highs or “bonum through malum”.
I believe that by going through hard or difficult times, destiny gives us the chance to encounter new, wonderful experiences.
When I was 16, I decided to spend one year at an American high school as an exchange student. I chose a German non-profit organization to help me going through all that paper work. I planned on skipping 11th grade in German high school –that’s just the best time to do such a year abroad. In August 2001, I literally had my bags packed when I received a letter from my exchange organization telling me that they went bankrupt. Since they were supposed to be my legal guardians for my visa – I couldn’t go.
I already said goodbye to many friends, thought I’d never have to take French classes at school – but in early September I was back at German school. Those weeks were pretty sad.(11th grade in Germany is basically a transition grade – what really counts are the final 2 years) I felt like I was wasting my time at school – especially with that additional (required) year of French.
In the end of October 2001, I went jogging. It was a really cold day, foggy – really depressing.
I was thinking to myself "allright, you’ve been down for a long time, you gotta be optimistic about the future."
A couple of weeks later I was a pretty happy guy again. “Remaining” at home provided some advantages. I was in my first “real” relationship with a really nice girl. If I had been studying abroad I wouldn’t have been able to date her.
Then, around winter-break, I was picked for our school’s short-term exchange with Eden Prairie High School in Minnesota. Our group consisted of 25 students and two teachers.
In March 2002, I had the opportunity to live in an American host family - at least for two weeks - and then continue to New York City and Washington, D.C. for sightseeing. It was a great time; I got along with this wonderful family really well. Time flew by so fast.
If the exchange organization had not gone bankrupt – I would never have met the Truitt Family.
On our flight back to Germany, I read this little note Gina, my “host mom”, wrote me.
She invited me to spend my senior year at their family. I was overwhelmed – but I had a girlfriend back at home and I would have had to repeat a year at German school since you can’t credit in the States for your final two years at German high school. So I wasn’t considering spending a year in Eden Prairie, at all.
In mid-April, things looked quite different again. My girlfriend and I broke up. I guess it’s always hard to give up to give your first real love. After two of my closest friends decided to spend a year abroad I felt pretty weird. I should be the one who’s gone. I was thinking about the Truitts’ offer to spend a year with them – it first was like an escape option. But not much later, I decided to go to Eden Prairie for a year.
It for sure was the best year I ever had so far! I went traveling a lot, played varsity in the high school tennis team, developed friendships that still exist and above all - I now have two families!
The non-profit organization that went bankrupt couldn’t have found a better host family.
Though I’m still very mad at them – I have to be thankful that they didn’t do good business!
I have experienced many good things after going through not-so-pleasant times.
Two days before I was checked for the military service (male Germans have to do military service or some kind of community services for a year!), I twisted my ankle really bad. I barely could walk. This helped me –among other problems like several food allergies – to be “ no use” for the military. Eventually, I “saved” a year since there is this strange law in Germany that - when you can’t be in the army - you’re “disqualified” for community services as well.
I don’t wish anyone the pain and the swollen ankle – but it “worked out” for me. I was able to start college right after graduation from high school in 2005. So I was done with my Vordiplom (first two years of my college studies) this summer – so I was able to come to MWSU this year – so I’m in this class…
There are several other examples in my life where I first had to “suffer” before I was successful however I want to show the example of a German soccer team. Bayern Munich tragically lost the 1999 final of the Champions League to Manchester United. They were up 1:0 until the 90th minute. But Manchester scored two goals in injury time. To be honest, I was close to tears after the game.
But the Munich squad learned from that bittersweet experience stuck together and came back even stronger to win the Champions League in 2001 in an exciting penalty kick shoot-out.
They now stayed focused for the entire game and eventually went from “malum” to “bonum”. And I found myself celebrating even more – also because the unlucky defeat 2 years ago is now forgotten.
Unpleasing experiences only make us stronger – and if it’s just because we learn from a mistakes in the past. No one really wants to go through hard times. But sometimes you have to taste the lows to really be able to experience the good and/or the really important things in life.
Odo Marquard, a German philosopher, believes that “the good needs the bad to be good”.
It might sound weird, but I believe that the no-fun experiences in my life have shaped the optimistic, positive view of life that I have.
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