The month since my last post has been incredibly busy. For those of you who are currently in school you will know what I'm talking about. The final papers, presentations, evaluations...and of course the thesis!
I also was lucky enough to have my best friend from back home come down for a weekend and then more recently my Mom came down to visit. Everyone is trying to see Boston while they have a free place to stay and I'm happy to play tour guide!
I finally submitted my thesis this past weekend. A great accomplishment and I'm very proud of the final product. Now just a few more papers and presentations left and then I'm done! It's less than 3 weeks now until graduation and my move back to Canada.
This will probably be my last post until after graduation as there don't seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done.
Thank you my readers out there for all your support throughout this journey! This chapter of it is almost over but stay tuned for what will come next.
Tuesday, 28 April 2015
Sunday, 29 March 2015
Paint Brunch
Yesterday I seized the opportunity to attend a paint brunch hosted by one of the student associations at Lesley. It was a step-by-step painting class and the end result was a painting of the Boston skyline. They have been offering these workshops once a semester as self-care time for students and I'm so glad I finally got to one. I've been hesitant to attend since I have never painted before! Pretty proud of my finished product and it will be a good reminder of my time here in Boston once I return to Canada.
(48 days until graduation...not that I'm counting!)
Monday, 23 March 2015
Final Stretch
Sitting in the Toronto airport waiting for my flight back to Boston for the home stretch. In less than two months I will have graduated from Lesley with my Master's....exciting (but also a bit terrifying if I'm being honest). There is so much to do in the time that remains including finishing up my thesis. I've finally completed my data collection and now to write it up.
Today I had the interesting experience of explaining to the border customs agent what dance/movement therapy is. He gave me the impression that he thought I was making it up. After being grilled for about 15 minutes he seemed to be satisfied with my answers although he still seemed skeptical. Doing my part for the field today and spreading the word!
Monday, 9 March 2015
Dancing with Parkinson's at Canada's National Ballet School
Follow the link to see Dr. Joe DeSouza and Rachel Bar discuss their program and research investigating the effects of dance on the brain at Canada's National Ballet School.
Sunday, 8 March 2015
Reminders
As this last semester approaches the half way point I thought I'd share a few things I am being reminded of.
1. Even though you're a student, you cannot live off of Ramen noodles. You need to remember to nourish your body!
2. Sleep really is important and whether you get enough makes a difference. There's always some kind of school work to be doing and yes you probably could stay up until 2 am every night working on it but you shouldn't be sacrificing sleep to get it done.
3. It's OK to take a couple hours off to watch a movie with your roommates. I know it is easy to feel guilty about taking a break when there is so much to be done but hey you need to nourish all parts of yourself including your social self.
4. You can only stare at a computer screen for so many hours before you need to give your eyes a break. Go outside, get some fresh air and soak in that sunshine!
5. Finally, you will have some rough days where it seems like the world is against you. But guess what, tomorrow is a new day and it will be better. Call on your muses for inspiration, call a friend who can remind you how great you are and most importantly take a deep breath.
It has taken me 7 years of post-secondary education to finally buy into these things. I used to get frustrated when people would say "make sure you get enough sleep" or "take time for some fun". I'd think sure let me get right on that after I finish the readings, papers, presentations and online posts for the week. There never seemed to be time.
I still struggle with these things but I have come to realize it's a balancing act. Sure you do need to lose sleep, I think every grad student would say that's just part of being a grad student. But instead of getting 2 hours...make sure you get 6. Yes your social life takes a beating but chances are your friends understand (or at least the ones you've made in grad school) because they're in the same boat.
1. Even though you're a student, you cannot live off of Ramen noodles. You need to remember to nourish your body!
2. Sleep really is important and whether you get enough makes a difference. There's always some kind of school work to be doing and yes you probably could stay up until 2 am every night working on it but you shouldn't be sacrificing sleep to get it done.
3. It's OK to take a couple hours off to watch a movie with your roommates. I know it is easy to feel guilty about taking a break when there is so much to be done but hey you need to nourish all parts of yourself including your social self.
4. You can only stare at a computer screen for so many hours before you need to give your eyes a break. Go outside, get some fresh air and soak in that sunshine!
5. Finally, you will have some rough days where it seems like the world is against you. But guess what, tomorrow is a new day and it will be better. Call on your muses for inspiration, call a friend who can remind you how great you are and most importantly take a deep breath.
It has taken me 7 years of post-secondary education to finally buy into these things. I used to get frustrated when people would say "make sure you get enough sleep" or "take time for some fun". I'd think sure let me get right on that after I finish the readings, papers, presentations and online posts for the week. There never seemed to be time.
I still struggle with these things but I have come to realize it's a balancing act. Sure you do need to lose sleep, I think every grad student would say that's just part of being a grad student. But instead of getting 2 hours...make sure you get 6. Yes your social life takes a beating but chances are your friends understand (or at least the ones you've made in grad school) because they're in the same boat.
So don't be so hard on yourself and remember in the end that it will all be worth it!
Sunday, 22 February 2015
Thesis Thesis and More Thesis
It seems like this semester went from 0 to 90 in the blink of an eye. We're heading into our 5th week of classes and we have yet to have a full week, partially due to snow days but we've had a couple holidays thrown in there too.
We've got assignments piling up and of course those of us doing our thesis have also kicked that up a notch. I'm in the midst of collecting data for mine and am loving every minute of it. At the beginning of the year my thesis professor promised us this experience would be life changing. I reflected back on my undergraduate thesis experience and thought the only thing life changing about it was that I learned how little sleep I could function on.
Now as I begin data collection, and the writing process, I understand what she meant. This process has changed my prospective on my place in the field as a professional and how the field fits into Canadian culture. All this and I'm not even at the halfway point yet!
We've got assignments piling up and of course those of us doing our thesis have also kicked that up a notch. I'm in the midst of collecting data for mine and am loving every minute of it. At the beginning of the year my thesis professor promised us this experience would be life changing. I reflected back on my undergraduate thesis experience and thought the only thing life changing about it was that I learned how little sleep I could function on.
Now as I begin data collection, and the writing process, I understand what she meant. This process has changed my prospective on my place in the field as a professional and how the field fits into Canadian culture. All this and I'm not even at the halfway point yet!
Sunday, 8 February 2015
Memory Boxes
As the second semester gets underway for myself and my clients, some of them are also thinking about what comes next after graduation. One way I have decided to help facilitate discussion around this is to have them create a memory box. I found these wooden boxes at Michael's craft store and thought they could decorate them in our time together. After the box is decorated, I am hoping that with writing and drawing prompts we can then use our time to create items to go in the box.
This has inspired me to create a memory box of my time here in Boston!
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