Let me start by admitting: While I find politics fascinating, I am temporarily-in-my-young-adulthood too jaded to keep up with politics. What does this mean? I barely know a darn thing about the government shutdown.
But when I woke up on Monday morning to find that our Congress hadn't pass a resolution and had let the government had shut down, I felt a wave of emotions. First was malaise. Same ole same old, different day. Of course! Why would our Congress, maligned with a despicable track-record, be able to get it together? Ho-hum, nothing new here. Second was anger. I realized that this wasn't just another day. I'm a young adult, and ever I can work out my qualms with my coworkers and peers. How could the "adults" who I'd entrusted my nation too let politics get in the way. In the way of what? Of the freaking nation working!! Fine, be irresponsible on pity topics gun-control and the farm bill (obvious sarcasm), but don't let the political system screech to a halt! Third was mindfulness. As I'll discuss significantly more in this blog, I've been working on being emotionally cognizant of my feelings, what is externally influencing them, and what I can do to control my own emotions. And so, likely I've become accustom to, I mindfully chose to not let my elected politicians decide the fate of my emotions, morning, day, week...
Fourth was inspiration. I asked myself - if Congress can't run this country, it's up to me and the rest of my compatriots to keep the ship on track. That was it, time to rock it!
This is not to say that I am a slacker, but last week I was invigorated with a strong sense of purpose, motivation, intent, direction and profound resolve. Since starting at MIT, I haven't been able to find or grab hold of a clear purpose. MIT hasn't effectively handed down a leading beacon. My peers were engrossed in a myriad of worthwhile pursuits, though nothing has gained popular momentum. My professors, while wildly intelligent and supportive, didn't exactly provide leadership in any particular direction. Last week, I felt resolved vigor. Who cares "what" I was working on. More importantly, last week I knew "why". I, me, Sam Nicaise, had to pick up the slack. I was inspired.
The National Science Foundation currently fuels my graduate schooling. I'm a NSF Graduate Research Fellow, an NSF grant is paying for my research materials, and my projects revolve around two NSF research grants that I helped to write. That's THE National Science Foundation! I'm not simply a player in this game we call the USA. Due to my attachment to the NSF, I'm a huge USA-cog. I'm milled from my nation's belief that technology, scientific understanding, and the pursuit of education are fundamentally important to our future. While the nation's political future was flipped upside down last week... my cog? let's spin.
Ready to rock it? - I say that line way too often. But when I ask that question - a teammate before a race, a coworker before a meeting, or a roommate before cooking a delicious meal - I really want an answer. I want to know that they're all-in, fully committed, and have their sights set high. Now, this week, I'm "ready to rock it". Who knows how long how long the shutdown is going to smolder, but I'm not giving up. With all my might, now, more than ever, I'm inspired to shine. Not for myself, not for my adviser, not for my future, but for my nations future.
No comments:
Post a Comment