winter quarter 2021
A screenshot of my first literature review presentation.
Continuing research with the Svoboda Diaries Project, I spent this quarter conducting a series of literature reviews on the topic of Social Network Analysis (SNA). Through this experience of searching for and selecting articles, reading through and making annotations, and finally condensing the main ideas into presentations, I was able to improve in my research, inquiry, and communication skills while increasing my knowledge on the topic of SNA. My main process consisted of using Google Scholar or other search engines to search for network analysis articles relating to Ottoman Iraq. I would then preview each of the articles and check if they truly were SNA related. Next, I would add the article into Zotero, and begin reading the article. I would then go through the article another time (and many more times as I felt was needed) to annotate/write notes, and finally, a few days before my meeting with my professor and another student on the team, I would create the presentation. You can view an example of my presentation from Week 3 here. A month and a half after, I was asked to share a God Sighting during one of my college fellowship's weekly Bible studies. This is what I shared.
As some of you might know, my Grandmother passed away in December. I don’t think anything could have prepared me for it. One day, she was perfectly fine, and two weeks later, she went home to be with our Father in heaven. I know it's cliché, but she really was the most amazing Grandmother to me. She had 13 kids, 19 grandchildren, she lived through the Dutch and Japanese occupation in Indonesia, and spent her whole life loving and caring for everyone before herself. In the days right after she passed, I found myself asking God, "why now?" I had so many things going on outside of this, so many personal challenges that were at their peaks, and I couldn't make sense of why God chose that specific moment to call my Grandma home. But in these last couple months, I feel as though God has slowly been revealing His innerworkings of peace to my heart; he's been provisioning me with perspective. I didn't recognize it when these things were happening, but God had been preparing me all along. Last Christmas was the last time I was with my Grandma in-person. We usually go visit Atlanta every couple years, but there were things about this trip that made it more memorable and different than any other year. The first thing that happened that was sort of atypical was the fact that we took so many pictures. Every time we visit we take a picture or two on the last day, but this time we specifically scheduled it; we helped her dress up, put on makeup, and took lots and lots of photos with the family. The next thing that happened was that my cousin and I decided that year to film a video of my Grandma, sort of like a biography thing where we filmed her and asked her questions about her life; where she was born, where she grew up, some of her stories. This was a vision my cousin had thought of doing for years and years, but would always put it off, until last December. During this trip, my cousin and I also made it a goal to start Face Timing each other every month so we could stay close and check in on one another. Shortly after I came back from the trip, someone stepped up in my life to be my mentor, and we also started meeting monthly. As these things were happening, they didn't strike me as specially timed, let alone significant events, and to be honest, I didn't really think much of them at all. But now, as I look back, they were SO important. God had been watching over me, even when I lacked the foresight and was ignorant to these little events that God had a hand in, He was preparing me, providing me with support systems, providing me with everything I didn't even know I'd need, like concrete memories, but most importantly, He was with me then, just as He was before, and just as He is now. I've realized now that these were ways that God had been preparing me, and our family, all this time, so that we could find our peace apart from my Grandma, and with Him instead. It's in circumstances like these where I am renewed in my awe of how big, how perfect, and how steadfast God is in His love for us. He's been gently guiding me, giving me so much more than I've ever asked, and demonstrating to me, that although I'm unworthy, He is present in every single moment. One of the questions I was asking God was "why now?" As I reflect, I realized that I truly didn't have any regrets about my relationship with my Grandma, which I know is kind of odd, because when someone passes, people usually wish they could have changed something. I called her every Sunday, and I told her I loved her every time I got off the phone with her. There was nothing I wished that I could have said to her that I didn't in this life, and nothing I wished I had done differently. Although I thought I wasn't prepared, God had been weaving this thread, pulling me along, and he waited till then, in his perfect time, to reveal each perfect stitch proving to me that He had prepared me--He had done the work for me already. On that same trip last Christmas, I visited my Grandpa at the funeral home. It had been years since I'd visited, since my Grandma didn't go out much anymore and we wanted to spend most of our time with her. But last year, I was really determined for some reason to visit and go see him. Something I always remembered was how devoted my Grandma was to him, even when she couldn't walk well anymore, she still visited every year on his birthday, she'd bring him all his favorite food and fruits, and she would sing Amazing Grace to him. There was no possible way I could have known that the next time I stepped foot in that place, it would be my Grandma too that I'd be visiting. When my Grandpa passed 14 years ago, she had already reserved a space next to him with the following verses chosen out: 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation." I think this answers my question of "why now?" more than anything. This reconciliation that we have through Jesus, this makes me sure and gives me peace that Popo is in heaven, and that by the grace of God, it won't be much time at all till I see her again. |
This quarter, I began volunteering at my church as a Kidz Klub teacher. Since I had never met any of the children in person before, it was quite the challenge for me to learn how to form connections and build trusting relationships with the children through a screen. However, Kidz Klub has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my time as an undergrad so far. This quarter, I've been able to grow closer to Jesus in a way I never would have anticipated. Through Kidz Klub, I've witnessed firsthand what it means to have a childlike faith. The kids all love Jesus with such purity, simplicity, and devotion. They have such confidence in the Lord, that they answer spiritual questions as if they are common sense. It's hard to describe, but I now understand why Scripture emphasizes that as children of God, we should aim to have childlike faith. I feel so blessed to have been able to help with discussion groups (yay Green group!), lessons, and group games. I am also incredibly thankful for the other Kidz Klub leaders who offered me so much guidance, encouragement, and love throughout this experience. My lab report!
To satisfy pre-requisite courses for Human Centered Design and Engineering (HCDE), I took BIOL 118 (Survey of Anatomy & Physiology) this quarter. Although not required, I decided to take BIOL 119 as well because the content matched up pretty well with BIOL 118 content. BIOL 119 is the lab course that can be taken concurrently (or in a different quarter) with BIOL 118, and basically goes into applications of the concepts we learn in 118. I really disliked AP Biology in high school, so I was surprised to find that BIOL 118 was incredibly interesting to me, and I was also surprised to find that I performed pretty well in the course. One of the most interesting things I learned was that in order for calcium to be effective in the body, vitamin D is required!
For the final in BIOL 119, we were tasked with writing a lab report: I was a little bit daunted by the task, but I ended up choosing something simple that I understood fairly well, pH, and something I was interested in, muscles/muscle fatigue, and paired those two concepts together for my report. The lab report was actually quite fun for me to write, and it was helpful that we were given an example report to look at. Above is my final lab report I submitted, and I received a grade of 50/50! |
This quarter flew by so quickly. I felt like I was doing so many things all at once, and yet at the same time, not enough. Although I didn't write much about it in my artifacts for this quarter, I still attended weekly virtual Bible studies, I attended my girls' accountability group's weekly meetings, I had weekly Tuesday research team meetings, as well as Friday meetings with my research professor, Dr. Chen, and weekly Phi Alpha Delta meetings on Wednesday nights. On top of this, I attended the Svoboda Diaries Project all-team meeting, and I met with my mentor and cousin each month. Looking back, I'm not sure how I balanced all of this while doing well in my classes, so I know that it was definitely by the amazing grace of God.
This was one of the first Christmases in a long time that my family stayed home, and it was wonderful to be able to relax, and take some nice family pictures in our living room. Since we were at home this year, something we decided to do was to try and be more intentional with our gifts. I know Christmas isn't about gifts, but I have to admit it was really fun being able to spend time as a family surprising each other with thoughtfulness :)
Additionally, I've spent this quarter submitting transfer applications. After much discussion, my parents and I decided that if I did not get admitted into a major I was interested in by the end of the year, my next option would be to transfer from UW. I don't even want to think about leaving, but I also know that I am being limited if I stay.
As this quarter concludes, I move onto preparing to apply for HCDE. I know my essay will be really important, so I plan to spend my break drafting it, refining it, and implementing feedback. I know I will put 1000% into this application, but I also know that the odds are stacked quite high against me because I'm not in the College of Engineering. There is so much uncertainty right now, but I have no doubt that God is holding me in His hands. I need to trust His plans for me are greater than I could ever imagine.
This was one of the first Christmases in a long time that my family stayed home, and it was wonderful to be able to relax, and take some nice family pictures in our living room. Since we were at home this year, something we decided to do was to try and be more intentional with our gifts. I know Christmas isn't about gifts, but I have to admit it was really fun being able to spend time as a family surprising each other with thoughtfulness :)
Additionally, I've spent this quarter submitting transfer applications. After much discussion, my parents and I decided that if I did not get admitted into a major I was interested in by the end of the year, my next option would be to transfer from UW. I don't even want to think about leaving, but I also know that I am being limited if I stay.
As this quarter concludes, I move onto preparing to apply for HCDE. I know my essay will be really important, so I plan to spend my break drafting it, refining it, and implementing feedback. I know I will put 1000% into this application, but I also know that the odds are stacked quite high against me because I'm not in the College of Engineering. There is so much uncertainty right now, but I have no doubt that God is holding me in His hands. I need to trust His plans for me are greater than I could ever imagine.