Paper Snowflakes

Photo by Jackie Prozsynski

I think the art of folding and cutting paper snowflakes is a fun way for anyone to create art. You don't have to be a creative genius or talented artist to fold a piece of paper and cut random holes in it. Anyone old enough to use a pair of scissors can participate in paper snowflake creation.
This year my roommate and I decided we wanted to hang paper snowflakes from the ceiling of our dorm room. As decoration for the holiday, we already had icicle lights streaming across the ceiling over our beds; but we wanted more. One lazy Sunday we dug up scrap paper from our first semester classes that we would no longer be using. We turned on Christmas music and began to cut snowflakes.
Time flew by and after about two hours we had enough snowflakes to decorate about three dorm rooms. As we were unfolding our creations, I noticed that all of her snowflakes actually looked like snowflakes and were much prettier than mine. I got frustrated and tried to make new ones that looked more like hers. I asked her why mine were so ugly and hers were much better, and she just replied that none of them are better than others, they're just different. I was still unsatisfied with that answer, but as I started thinking I realized she was right.
My snowflakes didn't have to be perfect, the ones that fall from the sky aren't. Now that all of the paper snowflakes are hanging from our ceiling together, you can't even tell who made which ones. They're all beautiful in their own way, and together they make our room nice and cozy for the holiday season.

Self Reflection

This semester in English 15 went by quicker than I had ever imagined. It honestly seems like just a week ago I was getting up bright and early on the first Monday of classes to hike 20 minutes down to Willard at 9am. Although our time in class seems so short lived I have definitely learned a lot. Not only have my writing skills improved, but I have learned a lot about Penn State as a school, the arts in general and myself as a person.

         First off I would like to reflect on how my writing has changed. In the past I had only written papers on books or following specific analytical prompts given by my high school teachers. I had never really explored blog posting or memoir writing like I have in this class. I have actually found that I like writing like this a lot more than formal essay writing. There is more freedom of personal expression.

Before this class, I had never thought of my self as a creative person. My favorite subjects have always been math or science. Now, I realize that I can be creative in my own way. It doesn’t have to be a painting, sculpture or musical number to be considered “art”. I can write a memoir paper such as the one I have written for this class and consider it my own work of art. It is my storytelling, my expression. It is also very interesting to write about myself and past experiences in great detail. Realizing new things about myself and my personality everyday as I write is truly an exciting experience.

As I begin my life in this new place at Penn State, I have realized there is so much more this school has to offer than I though. I knew that there would be widely popular football games and a ton of new people to meet and hang out with outside of class. I did not realize I would be going to gardens, plays and museums as graded assignments. Although they were all mandatory, I enjoyed each new experience. Seeing In the Red and Brown Water, which featured my fellow Penn State classmates was really cool.

Some additional things that I have gotten out of my time in English 15S are friends. This class is my only one that is not a lecture of 150+ students where I walk in everyday and see a new, unfamiliar face. I think this class served as my comfort zone of familiarity as I eased into my new life at college. I could walk in the classroom every morning and know exactly whom I was going to see. Now, I know almost every person by name. Some people I have actually grown really close with over the semester and I’m sure our friendship will continue in the future.

At first I was nervous about having to take and English class because I was never confident in my writing skills. I always thought I was a bad writer and there was no way I could improve, that this class would just bring down my overall gpa. Surprisingly, throughout this course I have definitely gained confidence and acquired new skills that I will use in future writing assignments through the rest of my college years and beyond. I am glad I took this class and can’t wait for future experiences like this that lie ahead of me here at Penn State.

2. Blog Comments

Week 1: http://daniellegordonmartin.blogspot.com/2012/09/sarah-bernhardt.html#comment-form

Week 2: http://theartofanargument.blogspot.com/2012/09/blog-post-2-palmer-museum-visit.html?showComment=1348630940387#c2255204332524318897

Week 3: http://quirkyconfessional.blogspot.com/2012/09/flowers-on-flowers-on-flowers.html#comment-form

Week 4: http://imporvedartsmarts.blogspot.com/2012/10/social-network.html?showComment=1351606596823#c7296944938383463122

Week 5: http://rfatherly.blogspot.com/2012/10/scream-2-movie-review.html?showComment=1351607215902#c8078917695124635654

Week 6: http://jrose412.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-graduate-timeless-college-tale.html?showComment=1351608103501#c6990230260947451230

Week 7: http://jenniferlongdancingart.blogspot.com/2012/10/higher-learning-movie-review.html?showComment=1351608788618#c4577657166371114011

Week 8: http://haileyhere.blogspot.com/2012/11/in-red-and-brown-water.html?showComment=1354333123150#c3500854565630299080

Week 9: http://dcbornandraised.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-social-network.html?showComment=1354333707792#c5156198322682375007

Week 10: http://jenniferlongdancingart.blogspot.com/2012/11/catch-22-marathon-reading.html?showComment=1354334418961#c8788274161229308087

3. I completed my SRTEs!!