De-stress Honeychild

I'm telling myself to de-stress tonight. It's 12:44am and I am finally taking it easy. I finished reading 10 long articles and wrote the second analyses paper (due every Thursday). I'm hoping that I won't be swimming upstream by next week. The course-work for this graduate program is very rigorous and demanding of quality work, not necessarily quantity. In addition to reading assigments and writing papers, I have to also fulfill a 20-hour service learning at any non-profit community educational program here in the Bay Area. This was a bit unexpected so I really had to re-shuffle my class schedule. In fact, I am down
to four classes, after dropping the Women, Poverty & Globalization Course since that course also required a 20-hour service learning. I really want to dedicate myself to service learning, but to tackle two service learning requirement at the same time just doesn't seem realistic and practical.

And, to top it off, my mom starts her chemotherapy treatment on Feb. 19 for 12 weeks. Although her prognosis still looks good, I do want to make actively show her I am available in case she suffers from any side effects. She has picked out a nice black mohair hat just in case she has hair loss. She's as brave as anyone would be in preparation for chemotherapy. The goal is to build up a strong immune system in the body by eating the right foods. Thank you to Kai Ye and the home nurse who had provided extensive food information for mom. Those materials are so valuable and important. Knowledge is power and putting that knowledge into action is fighting cancer.

Back to another stressful area for me is this Friday & Saturday is the first meeting for a new class taught by Dr. Flowers. After meeting and conversing with classmates who are in their 2nd, 3rd semester into the program, I learned that this professor may not be the 'best' one to teach the course. But, due to the State University budget cuts, there aren't too many courses in the schedule this year. So, I wanted to keep an open mind and see how it goes this Friday. I really would like to finish this Masters degree in 1-year's time. And, if this Friday's instructor isn't 'good' then I have to reluctantly consider dropping the course. I'm trying to weigh in on the quality of the instructor, my current rigorous course-load versus my own crunch for time to finish the program. What's more important? A good course taught by a good instructor, being practical and not push myself too hard or graduating in one-year's time? That thought is where the stress is coming from.

In addition, I have to hone in on my Thesis and start my research paper soon. Luckily, I am taking Dr. Lee's Community Development Class. I see her every Thursday and she's also my advisor, a very knowledgeable and supportive one too. She's witty and has a wicked sense of humor in class, which makes class pretty fun.
The recommendation to have Dr. Lee as my advisor came from Barbara Perea. I really wouldn't know how to go about it and who to pick.

This week, I am just getting comfortable and re-acquainted with academic, formal writing. Last week, I really didn't feel good about the first analyses paper to Dr. Duncan-Andrade. I felt the paper wasn't good enough. I am not aiming for a good grade, just want to produce 'good' work that I could feel good about. I was glad he said, that it's where I am now, and we go from here. His words were re-assuring. And, Dr. Duncan-Andrade is truly one of the youngest professors I've met at SFSU, and a real passionate one. I think the right word to describe him is 'authentic.' His class is interesting, engaging, and his lectures are powerful and inspiring. The ideal teacher in every way. ;-)

And, it occurred to me just slightly today since I have such a full plate, maybe the marathon is way too much. But, I told myself I am not going to let the stress kill me or stop me from wanting to achieve something that has to do with health and fitness. It'll be the biggest regret if I abandon the marathon now. i just know it. So, I'm not giving up on the training. And, i'll just have to deal with the stresses that goes with grad school. It's what I want, it's a gift, it's an opportunity, and it's a journey and it's going to make total sense later on in life.

Time to de-stress moment by moment. A deep breath and/or a yoga pose will do it. My favorites are the warrior II pose and the child's pose. Then, a bubble bath, 2-3 minutes of meditation and jump into bed for a good night's rest. Hope everybody has their own way of de=stressing and come back to yourself and start over. Thanks for reading!