STEP Post- Project Reflection Prompts

1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.
   1. My STEP signature project was a four-hour Photography Class at Glacier National Park in Montana. I worked one on one with a professional photographer who showed me how to take professional landscape photographs. After the four-hour session, I hiked the rest of the week and used the skills that I learned from my class to capture more beautiful pictures at Glacier National Park.
2. What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP signature project? Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.
   1. This experience was life-changing. I was never one to step outside of my comfort zone. Planning this trip without any adults was a great experience. I was in control of everything and I discovered that I like to be in control of things. I like to be the one that is in charge of something. I feel like I became more extroverted after this trip. From the Meyers Briggs test that I took during my STEP class in the fall semester, I was more introverted. After this experience, I was talking more to individuals I would not normally talk too. Asking questions or recommendations for great hikes.  I also found a new passion for photography. This trip allowed me to grow as a person and discover something new.
3. What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/ transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/ transformation.
   1. One event that led to my transformation was setting up this trip by myself. This was my first trip without any adults. I was in charge of making the hotel reservations, finding my flight to and from Montana, how I was going to get around the park, What I was going to eat and to budget the 2,000 dollars. It was a bit uncomfortable for me because I am not one to step out of my comfort zone, after this trip I know that I am capable of doing so. After planning this trip, I also discovered that I like to be in charge of things, and I like to be in control. I know this will help when I am looking for a job in the future. This trip also showed me what it is like to have a budget and what life is like in the real world.
   2. Another event that led to my transformation was talking to individuals who I normally would not talk too. I am one who will talk to close friends and family. I tend to keep to myself. I normally will not ask a lot of questions. This trip changed that. I had to talk to a bunch of people because in the park there was no service. I could not use my phone to look up the best hikes or to find directions. I had to talk to locals to figure out where I was going next. In the airport, I had to talk to the ticket agents and figure out some flight information. Eventually, I began to just talk to families asking what they thought of the different hikes and if there was anything they would recommend. This definitely was out of my comfort zone and I enjoyed every second of it.
   3. I discovered a new passion for photography. I learned there is so much more than clicking a button on the camera. The best time to take landscape photos is when it is very cloudy and gloomy outside. The lighting is very good, and you can do a lot with your camera. To take pictures of running water you must focus on the different shutter speeds to capture that perfect picture. I really enjoyed learning about photography. I love that I found a new hobby after this trip. I am glad that I was able to pursue something that I have always wanted to do. I feel more comfortable now that I know how to use my camera and I am so excited to plan another trip to practice my photography and get better.
4. Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/or relates to your academic, personal, and or professional goals and future plans.
   1. This was very valuable to me because I learned that I like to be in charge of things and to be the one planning something. This will help me in the future when I am looking for a job because I can look for something that involves making plans or someone who is in charge. This experience also fulfilled my values of traveling and living a life full of happiness. I loved seeing the beauty of Glacier National park and experiencing through the lenses of a camera allowed me to capture images one would not normally see. I found a new hobby and I would love to travel the world and take pictures like my photography teacher. I discovered a lot about myself with this project and I am cannot wait to see what the future holds.

1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.
   1. My STEP project was a photography class for one day and then hiking the park taking pictures for the remaining days. In my class Sarah and I started out at the Red Rock lookout point. We started taking pictures and then from there we traveled down the mountain to other locations throughout the park. I learned about various techniques on my camera and how I should be taking landscape photos.

2. What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.
   1. My STEP project helped me realize what I value most at this point of my life right now and that is a healthy planet. I want to protect our planet against Climate change. Throughout the school year while I was working with my STEP advisor I realized that I am someone who likes to set goals and I have this strong desire to solve the worlds problem. When I was at Glacier National Park I really saw this side of me when I took my photography class with Sarah. I was able to see the world through a different lens. I took some pictures of nature that the human eye cannot see and it allowed me to see the beauty of our planet. I am a communications major and many courses I have taken we discussed how powerful a picture can be and how they are able to tell a story. I believe pictures can be very powerful in making in impact in life.

3. What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation.
   1. I think that one of the biggest things that led to my transformation was reading about the history of the park. After every hike once I got to the destination there would be plaques with history of the different glaciers. Climate change has had a big impact on this park and scientists have predicted that by 2030 all the glaciers in the park will be melted. This broke my heart when I was reading this because this will all wildlife that lives there. I felt this desire to want to do something about it because I don’t want this park to lose its beauty. I want the animals and plants to be safe and in a healthy environment. I also believe that my photography class with Sarah led to my transformation.
   2. This class really had a big impact on how I see the planet because I was able to view the world through a different perspective. In my Class I learned various techniques about my camera, but one thing that really stood out with me was using the different lenses. For example a 50mm is a normal lens and so the camera is able to see what the human eye can see. A lens from 70mm-400mm+ allows you to magnify certain objects and it makes them see like things are bigger than they actually are. I really liked in my class when we worked with a lens from 70mm and above because I was able to get close up shots of different plants. I was able to see and notice things that I would not have noticed without this lens. This has allowed me to view parts of nature differently because you are able to see the tiniest of details on different plants. A quote Confucius said was “everything has beauty, but not everyone can see it”. I was able to see the beauty of our planet with this class. This beauty has made me want to do more to protect our earth against Climate Change. I also believe the different hikes that I took on my Trip has led to my transformation.
   3. There would be many times during my hikes where I would be in a quiet space with no other people around. In this moment I was able to gather my thoughts and think about what I want to do with my future and what I want out of life. I got to admire our beautiful planet and have a lot of time to myself which helped me a lot figure out my next goal in life. Not only was I able to gather my thoughts but I also was accomplishing tough hikes. I walked a lot of miles while I was there and so every day I had the satisfaction of accomplishing a new goal when I finished a hike. In was in those moments when I realized that I am someone who likes to have goals in life. I like working towards a goal and then achieving it because I like the feeling of accomplishment. Plus having goals makes me feel busy and that I am doing something great for me.
4. Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/or relates to your academic, personal, and/or professional goals and future plans.
   1. This change was very valuable for my life because I have been struggling a lot with what I want to do career wise once I leave college. Since being at the park I figured out that I want to go into a job that is going to help protect our planet against climate change. I was thinking maybe environmental PR since I am a communications major, but there are still many other options out there. I know that this trip as motivated me to protect our planet and I have always wanted a career that will mean something to me and to future generations. My photography class has allowed me to learn a new skill that I will continue to use for the rest of my life. I believe that photography can be very powerful because it can make people emotional. I want to use photography to show people how beautiful our planet is and to get more people on board with trying to fight climate change.

Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.

Over the course of my STEP project, I was able to experience the beautiful grounds of Big Sur, California. At Esalen, I participated in many yoga classes, an art class, and soaked in their hot springs.

 What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project?

While I was at Esalen, I had many eye-opening experiences. Specifically, I started to understand myself a little more. This past year, my life has been filled with stress and grief, but also has been filled with passion and hope. This week long retreat gave me a chance to take a step back and look at my life with new insights. I realized what I need to change in my life in order to be the best person that I can be. Since the retreat, I have started to become more aware of what I put into my body and have begun making healthier choices both in diet and fitness. Also, I have reconnected with some of my family members and friends. Due to stressful factors over the course of this past year, I shut out certain people that were important to me. This was the most benefitting insight I learned on the trip.

I have always been an active person, but since I have been an OSU student, I found it difficult to find time to go to the gym. Also, I have lost the importance of eating healthy. I had a wake-up call on my trip. Esalen believes in clean eating and getting their food from local sources. For an entire week, I ate healthy such as consuming lots of fruits and vegetables and whole grains. I also have starting a new passion for drinking tea. I have always hated tea, but Easlen’s tea is something else! Esalen didn’t offer chips, candy, or soda. These three foods are my favorite, and I thought I would struggle more with not being able to have these foods. But, being around such health-conscious people, I forgot about my old habits, and embraced clean eating. In that week, I have never had so much energy since I was a kid. I woke up every day around 8 AM and went to bed around 10 PM. That week’s sleep schedule was extremely foreign to me because I am used to only getting approximately 6 hours a night.

Going off of clean eating, fitness was also something vastly present at Esalen. Two 3-hour yoga classes were arranged for everyone on the grounds. I was instructed by my mentor, Deb Snode, to only partake in one yoga class a day because of the intensity of the class. Over the entire week, I participated in 18 hours of yoga class. On Monday and Thursday, I went to two classes because I had high interest in both of the classes presented on those days. It seemed every time I walked around Easlen’s campus, I saw people doing yoga, going on a hike, going for a run, or stretching. This environment was somewhat foreign to me, and it gave me the drive to work on my physical health and well-being throughout and after my trip.

On the second to last day at Esalen, my friend Hannah and I decided to explore the ground more. We hiked for 3 hours, and during this time I was able to look at my life and see where I can make changes because what I was doing prior was ineffective and/or negative. While Hannah was busy scaling a huge hill, I decided to stay back and meditate for a while. I thought “I am unhappy with where I am. What can I change in my life that will ultimately bring me happiness?” I came to the conclusion: 1. Stop trying to compare myself to other people’s body and financial or school success. 2. Find healthier habits in order to drop the unhealthy ones. 3. Accept my mind and body wherever in my journey that I may be. I will say that some parts of my life have changed since these insights, but I am still striving to overcome these habits. Something that has helped me with these goals is by talking to my sister. I’ve always looked up to my sister for her self-awareness, and she has held me accountable to complete these goals. Lastly, I realized that I need accountability from others in order to complete tasks.

Out of all of the things I learned or realized throughout this trip, it all comes down to discipline. Over my last two years at OSU, I let myself do whatever I wanted to do, and in turn, I lost drive and discipline over factors in my life. I believe this is extremely important in my life in order to grow as a person. I like to see change in myself, and I always want to deepen my understanding of myself. I also believe that week-long trip was crucial for my mental health, and I am extremely grateful for this opportunity and my mental clarity.

Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project.

My STEP Signature Project including taking a screenwriting class at The Second City in Chicago, Illinois and creating, developing and writing the first draft of a sitcom pilot script. I stayed in Chicago during the eight-week course, which involved reading existing pilot scripts and watching how they were depicted on screen, workshopping our scripts and a Q & A session with a working screenwriter. The class served as both an educational and motivational boost in the process of writing my pilot.

What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? 

During my time in Chicago at Second City, I was able to officially commit to working towards screenwriting as a profession for the first time. I’ve struggled with committing to this dream of screenwriting because of all the classic reasons (it’s not a secure job, I have no guarantees of even breaking into the industry, it takes a lot of time to accomplish things and isn’t always rewarding early-on, etc.). So just the act of traveling to Chicago, as well as each subsequent step out of my comfort zone and into my future, was a scary development that I knew was pushing me in the direction I needed to head in. 

Through this project, I was able to take the vague ideas I had in my head regarding not just how to achieve a career in screenwriting, but even simply finishing a script, and come out the other side with a plan for those aspirations, a means of achieving that plan, the confidence/perseverance to go about doing the work and a finished first draft of a script. 🙂

What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? 

Though many things across my project impacted me and helped in my transformation, the main factor was definitely my screenwriting class.

In my screenwriting class, I was surrounded by a group of nine other writers who were both eager to write and to help by giving quality notes each week. This group of writers helped motivate me to push through procrastination, mental blocks and any other obstacle in my way. Though I didn’t always complete my pages for the deadline, I was constantly supported and encouraged by others in the class and this pushed me to write more. I wanted my writing to be included in our readthroughs so I could continue to get encouragement and great feedback.

Also, each writer in the room had a unique background, life story and voice. Coming from Ohio and Ohio State, a predominantly-white state and university, respectively, I’ve spent most of my life in rooms with people who look just like me. Being in a room full of voices and stories that have historically been silenced, censored or ignored was such a rewarding experience it’s hard to even quantify the value into words. I was able to experience a room filled with stories that I’ve never heard before, stories that have rarely if ever, been portrayed onscreen. The way the industry is trending, these stories have as good a chance as any to finally be told to a worldwide audience and having the pleasure to listen to and collaborate with these talented writers was one of the greatest parts of my signature project.

Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? 

The significance of my transformation lies in the transformation itself. It’s not like I went into this project not a writer and came out a writer. I didn’t go into this project as a slacker and come out as some productivity fiend. I wouldn’t even say I came into this project as some insecure doubter and left it a confident believer.

I didn’t really gain any new skills or learn any new tricks. The one takeaway from all this is that I had it all the whole time. I’ve always been a writer, I just needed to take the time to write. I’ve always been productive, I just needed to recognize the mental blocks for what they were — fear. I’ve always been confident, I just needed to dispel the lie I’ve told myself for years that confidence is arrogance. 

I’ve always been who I am, I just had to get out of my own way and give myself permission to be that way.

1)Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.

My step project was an experimental watercolor class at Ox-Bow School of Art and Art Residency. The class was one week long and explored technique, improvisation, and color theory. Class took place from 10-5 everyday with open studio every evening.

2)What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.

While on my trip, I really gained a lot of confidence in myself and my abilities to do things on my own. I was so afraid to fly and to go stay at a place in the middle of nowhere that I only discovered because of the internet. I could only think about what would go wrong instead of what I could gain from the experience. Once I arrived, I really tried to focus on fully immersing myself in what Ox-Bow had to offer, and on making friendships, making art, and spending time outdoors on the scenic campus all without the distractions of everyday life and social media. By the end, I was disappointed to leave new found friendships behind. I will never forget the artists who I was able to meet and all of the talent they possessed.

    In addition, the campus has so many diverse people taking classes. I have never seen an environment so accepting of all people. There was no gender discrimination on campus and everyone was made to feel comfortable no matter where their gender or sexuality fell on the spectrum. The food was so diverse and allowed me to discover new dishes I never would have tried. Overall, it made me reflect on how we treat those who are different from us, and exposed me to how much happier society would be if we were more respectful of others beliefs, culture and sexuality. This was a lesson I never expected to learn from an art class.

3) What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP  Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation.

    Prior to taking this trip. I had very little travel experience. I was initially extremely nervous about flying by myself and staying somewhere unfamiliar and without anyone I knew. By the end of my time at Ox-Bow, I felt at home and made lifetime friendships. Not knowing anyone really pushed me to create friendships I never would’ve known to pursue.

In addition to planning a trip entirely out of my comfort zone, I also participated in a very intense class that I had no previous experience in. Each day my class ran from 10 to 5, and we were always instructed to make 5 more paintings in the evenings, so I usually stayed in the studio until 10 pm. My classmates were all very talented, and I was intimidated by the incredible skill around me and the new medium of watercolor. They all challenged me and inspired me to try new things. After lots of practice and experimentation, I feel much more confident with watercolors and plan on incorporating them into some of my other artwork. The style of painting that my class focused on was heavily abstract, which was pretty much a foreign concept in my previous pieces. I learned so much from Hannah Barnes and Susan Klein about letting the watercolor take over and giving up the control I am so comfortable with in my usual realistic works.

The diversity on campus made me question why society is so judgmental of other backgrounds and cultures. The students taking class were of all ages, nationalities, sexualities, etc. When it came to sleeping and bathroom arrangements, there was no discrimination. The campus made all feel welcome and respected. It exposed us to many foods that I would have never known about. It really opened my eyes to just how happy society would be if everywhere was so accepting.

Also, I met so many incredible people who I would have never known. Many of the friends I made attend the Chicago institute of art, and hearing about their experience as a full time art student was eye opening, and made me appreciate the time it takes to become a versatile artist. In addition, they made me realize the extent of the buckeye community. I met so many people who have a relationship with Ohio State whether it is through other family members or their own experience. A man in my class named Marc Dombrosky was the painting instructor at Ohio State 25 years ago and he told me about his experience at the school as well as so many things I didn’t know about Columbus and Ohio State. I am so thankful for this friendship and others which would have never begun if I didn’t take the risk and decide to attend this class.

4) Why is this change/ transformation significant or valuable for your life? Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/ or relates to your academic personal and/or professional goals and future plans.

This whole experience has shaped my life in a variety of ways that are applicable to both my college experience and my future. I now feel much more comfortable with abstract art, painting, and color theory. I am less possessive of my work now, and find myself being less afraid to edit my works and take risks to ultimately make something better than what I began with. The lessons I learned can help me expand my portfolio and prepared me for taking painting classes within my studio art minor. This is the first art class I’ve ever taken where I learned true technique and had the ability to learn from artists. Also, I learned a lot about budgeting and planning that I can use when planning future trips whether it be for fun or business. I now understand how much planning goes into even the shortest of trips, and why it requires preparation when you have a set amount of money to work with.

Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project

For my STEP project, I spent a month in Los Angeles taking dance classes from several famous dance studios. During my stay, I was mainly taking classes from three dance studios: Movement Lifestyle, Millennium Dance Complex and Playground. This dance intensive project allows me to improve my skills and meet dancers all around the world.

What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project?

Learning dance in top dance studios alongside professionals was a very humbling experience for me. I grew up watching many of these choreographers and dancers on YouTube and finally watching them in person was mind-blowing. Dancing in these studios also showed me that everyone is equal and if they are given a chance to shine, anybody can rise to the top. People from all over the world, people of all different body types, and people of all ages could come into the studio and absolutely kill it. The main studio in Millennium Dance Complex even has “Unity is Diversity” plastered in the back.

What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you?

My first masterclass experience was with Kyle Hanagami. There were about 100 people packed into the main studio with half of the class unable to see the choreographer the majority of the time. The professionals in the room mastered the choreography while barely looking at the choreographer and could essentially be talked through the moves. Not only that, they were able to add in their own personality and emotion into the performance after only an hour.

It was actually very discouraging seeing people younger than me breezing through the choreography that I can barely keep up with. I felt awkward and embarrassed dancing with them in the same class. But nobody ever made fun of anyone for how they danced and was always very positive to each other during all the classes. The teachers themselves were very encouraging as well. This made me feel better over time and more comfortable in my own body. Eventually I started noticing improvements in myself and I was picking up choreography much faster than before.

I also had the privilege of taking classes with Phil Wright while I was in Los Angeles. He has a very unique teaching style as well as a unique dance philosophy. His classes were very high energy and he always had the music blaring over the speakers. He also never really talked during the class and instead chose to show the moves instead of talking through them. He told us that given the same amount of opportunity, anyone can be a star. And by almost exclusively showing moves he leveled the playing field for non English speakers. He also gave everybody a chance to be on the camera. During his class, I saw people that didn’t really fit the image of a dancer absolutely kill it during the performance. Kids, curvy girls, and even a girl in a wheelchair showed me that everyone is equal and anyone can dance.

Why is this change/transformation is significant or valuable for your life.

I believe I will benefit from this experience for a lifetime. Through this STEP project, I’ve improved my dance skills and gained more body coordination. With a deeper understanding of dance, I believe this change will help me excel in my dance minor. For my personal life, dancing has always been my biggest hobby. Being able to learn dance from choreographers I look up to and dancing alongside professional dancers that I only watched in fulfilled one of my dreams, now I have even more passion about dance and will always benefit from the ideas behind dancing. This project is also social expanding. I made a lot of friends with various backgrounds by taking the dance classes, and I was able to learn some of their cultures.

For my STEP signature project, I attended the Leigh Howard Stevens Summer Marimba Seminar. This two-week seminar focused on marimba technique, musicianship, baroque performance practice, Japanese marimba literature, audio and video engineering, and ragtime xylophone. Not only did we learn from Leigh Howard Stevens, the creator of the Stevens technique (which most western percussionists use to play four-mallet marimba), but we also got instruction from John Parks IV (audio and video engineer as well as professor at Florida State), Michael Burritt (Composer, performer, and teacher at the Eastman School of Music), Bob Becker (Re-discoverer of ragtime xylophone, founder of NEXUS percussion, and “greatest xylophonist alive”), and Yurika Kimura (President of PAS society in Japan, student of Keiko Abe). When I initially arrived in Ocean Grove, New Jersey, I truly thought that I would return home with new knowledge on technique and musicianship for the marimba; however, what I returned home with was not only technique and musicianship, but also a new passion for music.

The first week, half of the seminar, Leigh Howard Stevens (LHS) solely lectured us on four-mallet marimba technique. While this may seem excessive to non-musicians and musicians alike, this monomaniacal focus on technique was extremely valuable. The Stevens technique is relatively new (only 50 years old). This, combined with the fact that most secondary schools do not have qualified teachers teaching their students correct technique, leads to utter disaster. It is not an understatement for me to say that I was utterly appalled by the number of participants who were misinformed or just uninformed about different aspects of the technique. By getting to learn all the aspects of Stevens technique from the creator himself, I not only corrected two aspects of my technique (minuscule compare to others), but I also became aware of the importance of technique. Technique is the basis for musicianship and performance. If I have a musical idea that I want to implement into one of my pieces, but I do not have the technique to do it, then it is impossible to execute. This concept of the importance of technique for marimba playing had never made sense to me until this seminar. Now, I plan to focus on improving my technique so that I can execute my musical creativity more effectively in performances.

During this first week, we also got to spend time with Dr. John Parks IV from Florida State University. He spent a whole day lecturing on audio and video engineering for prescreening videos (audition videos for graduate programs as a preliminary round to physical auditions). Twenty minutes into his lecture I felt like a complete and utter idiot. Less than a week before the seminar, I had sent in an audition video for a competition. After twenty minutes, I knew I would not get accepted. Literally everything he said to do I did not do, and everything he said not to do, I did. Anyway, I learned so much from Dr. Parks in his lectures. He told us what audio gear to buy, how we did not need to buy video gear since iPhone cameras are acceptable quality, how to stage the camera and set, how to set up the microphones and where to place them, what to wear, and how to use different software for the best results. My mind was blown after these lectures and I will never make an audition video the same ever again.

On the final day of the first week, we got to see Michael Burritt in performance. This moment was the most substantial moment of the trip. Watching Burritt perform for the first time was stunning – I literally cried. I was so taken with how he played and what repertoire he had chosen to perform. He not only performed classical literature like Bach’s Adagio from Sonata in G minor, but he also played pieces with electronic recordings like his new composition, The Fragile Corridor. This openness to electronics and new music was a huge game-changer for me – seeing as most classical musicians are not for electronics in music. After the performance, I knew that I wanted to go to Eastman School of Music for my masters to study under Michael Burritt – a huge change in my mindset considering I had no idea where I wanted to study before this.

The next week, Leigh Howard Stevens taught us about Baroque performance practice and musicianship. These lectures consisted of seminar attendees performing pieces by Bach, and LHS critiquing their performance. He was harsh. Almost after all of the performances, LHS would go on a ten minute rant about how the performer was uninformed of the Baroque style, had bought incorrect copies of the music (very easy to do if you know nothing about Bach’s music), and displayed poor musicianship throughout their performance. While he was ruthless with his critiques, they were needed. Being uneducated in the performance practices from the era of a piece is horrible. It not only shows immaturity as a musician, but also a lack of knowledge in the field. While I may personally not want to be a Bach expert like LHS, I found his information about Baroque performance practice translating to other styles and pieces as well. The topic that most stuck with me was his lecture about how Bach’s music is all about conversation. As LHS said, “Its not hard music on the surface. What makes Bach hard is distinguishing between the polyphony in the different musical lines – even if it looks like a singular line on the page.” This comment about finding the moving lines in a piece of music that may look monophonic directly related to a piece that I am working on, Spiral 1. In this piece, the music on the pages is very linear; however, if the performer focuses on bringing out the last note of the preceding line and first note of the next, there is a beautiful descending line that is occurring. Simply doing this adds interest and depth to the performance. This concept is useful in almost all pieces and is something that is my focus.

On Wednesday, Bob Becker and Yurika Kimura gave lectures on ragtime xylophone and Japanese marimba literature. While Bob Becker was amazing and gave a great lecture, I already knew everything he talked about because of my professor at Ohio State, Dr. Powell. She, like Becker, is a master xylophone player (personally I think she is better that Becker, but that is an opinion) so I had already been lectured on this topic by her. However, I had no knowledge on Kimura’s topic of Japanese marimba literature. Every time I had listened to Japanese marimba literature being played live or on recordings, it always sounded loud, aggressive, ugly, and angry. For this reason, I did not like it. Kimura told us that this interpretation was wrong. Japanese marimba music is meant to display the flow of emotions in a human being. While it does have angry sections, there are also sad, melancholy, happy, and nostalgic parts – the performer just has to perform it correctly. Kimura played part of a piece as an example and my mind was blown. The piece was so beautiful that I wondered why I had never performed this type of music before. After this lecture, I decided I would learn a piece of Japanese marimba literature.

The next day, Bob Becker and Yurika Kimura did a joint concert. This concert was a fun, enjoyable concert – a big change from the Bach we had been hearing all week. For the concert, Kimura performed Japanese marimba music for the first half, and the second half consisted of Bob Becker playing ragtime xylophone while Kimura played the four-piece accompaniment all on her own (VERY impressive). This performance aided my newfound mindset in two ways. One, it solidified my decision to perform Japanese marimba literature – Kimura’s performances just sealed the deal. Two, to focus on marimba study. When Becker and Kimura performed together, I could not focus on Becker at all. Kimura kept my attention the entire time. This just further instilled in me my love for marimba and the decision that I should focus on perfecting my marimba performance.

For the final day of the seminar, there were two performances. The first was a performance by the seminar participants for the people at the nursing home (where we had held our lectures and classes). This was probably the most fun I had at the seminar. My friend Amelia and I’s duet, Merge by Zachery Koors, was picked as the final performance on the concert – pretty awesome considering we learned and put the piece together while at the seminar. Not only did I get to hear my peers perform some cool pieces, but Amelia and I had the best run of our duet ever! When we finished performing, LHS came up to us and complimented our performance, asked who had written the piece, and then went on to say it sounded very much like Ivan Trevino’s compositions – a huge compliment considering Ivan Trevino is a big-name composer in the percussion world. This just made Amelia and my day. Earlier that week, we had been told by one of our peers that “LHS is going to hate this.” It was a nice moment of redemption. The second performance was by Leigh Howard Stevens. IT WAS BEAUTIFUL. Ironically, my favorite piece was the hymnal he played for the encore – What can I say? I’m just a sucker for chorales. Anyway, his sound on the instrument was so pure and resonant, it left me speechless. Unlike the other performances, I left this one with an introspective demeanor about me. His playing is almost like a religious service. The listener leaves it pondering about what was said. It was a great ending to the seminar because it left us, the seminar participants, contemplating. It was heavenly.

The Leigh Howard Stevens Summer Marimba Seminar was life changing. At the beginning, I thought I would leave this seminar with better technique and musicianship, but I left with so much more. I left this camp with a newfound love for Japanese marimba literature, a desire to go study at Eastman under Michael Burritt, common sense regarding audio and video recording, and a love for the marimba that had always been there, just not put into words. As Leigh Howard Stevens said, “You all play this instrument for a reason, you just have to figure out what drew you to it in the first place.”

Seminar participants in class

Picture of LHS with seminar participants

This STEP signature project was a created for students to explore photography through natural landmarks in great cities. We were given the opportunity to learn from a professional photographer, Tony Small, and to learn from each other. In addition, we were exposed to the editing side of photography by navigating Lightroom and Photoshop.

Before going on this trip, I knew I had always had a love for taking photos. I often preferred to be the one taking photos of others and was hardly ever in front of the camera. Going on this trip allowed me to solidify my love/passion for photography, and to be challenged in this area. I did not think I was going to be as impressed as I was at the massive landmarks. They blew me away; made me feel small. By this, I mean that my perspective was acute and I needed to broaden it and be more open to what the world had to offer me. Even feeling small against these breath taking landmarks brought a sense of humility; that nature is constant, even without an observer. I left Oregon with an increased appreciation for the state, and tried to have the same outlook with my hometown.

In the same vein of broadening my view of the world, I was amazed at the diversity of the state. For example, one could go to the mountains, visit a climate that is snowy and below 30 degrees, retreat from the mountains, drive 45 minutes to be met by sunshine and the warm welcoming ocean. The more elements I saw, the more intrigued I became when it came time to photograph. I had visions that were not always successfully executed, however, the process was exciting and enriching. I was prepared throughout the trip to involve a little more of my nature into the nature surrounding me.

Overall, this trip brought a little more joy into my life. It is natural t to me to find something to give myself to (Social Work major), but instead  on this trip I gained much more than I gave. As the days continued, getting the perfect shot became less important to me. I began to observe the world around me, interact with others on the trip, and place value in my ability to capture something of worth to me. Now that I know more about the photography process, both technically and interpersonally, I cannot imagine a world where I am not taking photos.

1. For my STEP Signature Project, I went on a yoga retreat at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California. The retreat was called Yoga Gathering: Ritual and Rhythm. The retreat was five days long and each day, I attended one or two different yoga and/or meditation classes. Since the retreat center had no phone service and limited WIFI, I was able to take some time for myself and really dive into my yoga practice.
2. As mentioned previously, the retreat center had limited phone service and WIFI, so it was the perfect place to do some self-discovery. I have been practicing yoga for about a year and a half, so I was pretty familiar with the fundamentals of the practice before attending the retreat, but I was able to learn so much more on the trip. I learned that yoga is not just about the physical practice at all. Yoga is a way of life. I learned that I enjoy yoga as a way of life. I enjoy being present, I enjoy meditation, I enjoy being out in nature, and I enjoy being still. While on the retreat, I realized quite a few things about myself. First, I want to always show up as my authentic self. We learned a mudra (hand position) that really spoke to me because it represented fearlessness to be yourself. In college, we are all trying to figure out who we are and who we want to be. We can get caught up in trying to be who everyone else wants us to be. Why not just be ourselves? That’s what I have decided to do from now on. Second, I realized that I want to have a career that I love. I do not want to chase after a career because of the wealth it will bring. I learned that if you do what you love, the money will follow. And third, I learned that life does not have to be so serious all the time. One of my favorite teachers at the retreat, Janet Stone, allowed me to realize this. During one of our morning practices, she just stopped teaching and told us to go dance around the room. At first, I was hesitant, but then I realized how fun it is to just dance with your friends for no reason. I think everyone can benefit from laughing and dancing around the room from time to time.

3. During my STEP project, many people and experiences led me to have the transformation described above. All of the Ohio State girls who went on the trip with me allowed me to have a good experience. Since we were all the same age and all coming from the same place, it was easy to connect with each other. This helped as we transitioned into a place that none of us were familiar with. Everyone was very supportive; when we shared opinions about the experiences we were having, everyone was open to hearing what other people had to say.

Some of the activities at the retreat were brand new to me. For example, I had never experienced chanting or singing during a yoga class before. Singing during and after class was very common at Esalen. At first, I was hesitant to join in the singing, but I did and it was a cool experience! It definitely brought me out of my comfort zone a bit, since I am usually quiet and not much of a singer. Singing during class brought out a sense of community, everyone in the room joined in to sing. Similarly, dancing during class was a new experience for me. It was actually quite freeing to dance and move in a different way on our yoga mats.

I learned some valuable lessons from the teachers who led the retreats as well. They shared some wisdom they have learned throughout their time practicing yoga as a lifestyle. One of the teachers, Lara, shared that she had been teaching yoga while she had another full-time career, but chose to pursue yoga and art as a result of some health issues. I thought this was interesting because yoga emphasizes the importance of rest, which a lot of us aren’t getting enough of these days. Lack of rest or lack of caring for our bodies can result in illness, so it is very important to take care of ourselves. This is one of the reasons I love yoga so much, it is beneficial to all aspects of our health.

I think one of the biggest reasons this experience was so transformative was because I limited my time on social media and technology. Cell phones were not allowed to be used during mealtimes, which was a big chunk of the day. Additionally, we were in class for most of the morning and usually at night as well, so we did not have access to our phones. While I do love technology for many reasons, I think that in our daily lives, technology can be a big distraction. We are constantly receiving texts, getting Instagram notifications, checking our emails, or mindlessly scrolling. It is very nice to get away from this sometimes. I felt like I actually had time to think and time to just be with myself. Since I had a lot of extra time, I was able to read a few books and journal about my experience at Esalen. I am definitely incorporating time in my day to be away from technology from now on.

4. The changes I discussed earlier are very valuable for my life. College is a great time to discover who we are, so I am grateful that I had the opportunity to attend a yoga retreat. I have been struggling in choosing a career path because I have many interests and am not sure exactly what I want. Now I realize that I have been deciding based off of factors that I should not need to consider. I should not care as much about other people’s opinions on my job choice. I want to choose a career that I love. This is not something I knew before going on the retreat. Personally, this retreat was great because I got to attend challenging yoga classes and deepen my practice. I also gained knowledge about different styles of yoga. Overall, the yoga retreat was a great experience and I will be forever grateful that I was able to attend.

Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. 

Travelling over 1,200 miles across the state of Oregon, I was able to take beautiful images of various natural landscapes as well as architectural structures. A professional photographer, Tony Small, accompanied me on this trip and taught me very used methods and concepts such as bracketing, the rule of thirds, and leading lines. Shooting as early as I got up until the sun set, I did our best to capture what makes this world so serene.

What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? 

Coming out of this program, I believe that I achieved my proposal’s goal of altering the way that my eyes view the world. While on this trip, I saw so many nuances and minute occurrences that make this natural world so beautiful (which I knew that I overlooked them in the past). In Oregon we compared images shot of the three sisters mountain range with nothing in the foreground and with cattle in the foreground. The cattle set the feeling of the land as we were in an agricultural valley for that photoshoot. In the days since I have returned from Oregon, while I don’t have my camera slung around my neck 24/7, whenever something catches my eye, I stop what I am doing and figure out why it did. Whether it is a glimmer off the water, an opening in a trail, or architecture that features protruding walls, I want to understand more as to why I noticed. This process typically ends with my regretting my earlier decision to leave the camera at the house.

I hope to continue to take a pause on life in order to appreciate what I’m living. By doing so I will continue to develop myself and make my interests more clear.  

What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? 

Over the course of this trip, most of my subject matter was natural landscapes. From mountain ranges to waterfalls I was focused on capturing the beauty of nature. However my favorite picture came during my hike to a notoriously beautiful waterfall. As we were trekking up the hillside, I couldn’t help but notice a harmonious noise that was unlike the droning sound of the rushing water. As we look left off of the beaten path we noticed a woman and her dog meditating on a protruding rock. Curiosity taking over, my roommate (Edgar) and I walked over just to enjoy the same bliss that she was experiencing. After a few minutes we started talking and learned more about the dynamic duo of woman and husky.

What I found most amazing was that this young husky would continue to look back at the woman as if he was checking on her. I could feel such a strong connection between the two that I wanted to capture it. With water rushing below and a foliage back drop I tried my first subject imagery. After adjusting for the light I had to deal with the wildcard of the husky. For the perfect image I couldn’t be the one that gets his attention. I wanted the dog to check on his master to extenuate their connection. If wasn’t until the woman stopped playing her music that the dog checked to see if she was alright. A perfect interaction led to a perfect image. After the impromptu photo shoot she gave us a recommendation to go to a nearby hot springs. Not being on the agenda I was able to clear it with our professor to go. Culminating all of the experiences this woman helped to influence, she turned that day into my favorite of the trip.

A more technical transformation came to me early on in Portland, Oregon. It is important to know that, coming into this trip, I have never shot a DSLR camera. I did not know what affect varied shutter speed had or any knowledge about your f-stop. In fact, the first photoshoot we had of a bridge in Portland during the evening turned into around 100 black shutters. I had set my shutter speed too high and did not allow for enough light to come into the sensor. The next night, I was able to convince Tony to take me and a few other students up to a historic home, The Pittock Mansion. By the time we got there the evening was turning into a colorful sunset that illuminated the clouds. Tony was observing me shooting the façade facing the city and asked me if I was getting the cloud color. In reviewing my images, I was more focused on the building detail. He then instructed me to get my tripod out and to bracket the image. Having no idea what that was, I set up my tripod and looked back at Tony like I was already lost. He found the setting on my computer and told me how bracketing varied my f-stop by a set degree in both directions. This allowed for a metered image, one over exposed and one under exposed. By consolidating them in a software, you were able to create a beautiful image that captured the cloud color.

Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? 

I am currently aspiring to study architecture after my undergraduate studies. Various universities will accept students into a three-year Masters of Architecture program regardless of their undergraduate degree. I would fall into that category due to my anticipated undergraduate degree being earned in the field of finance. While I do not need to have particular design experience, they do require a creative portfolio when you apply. This photography experience will allow for me to construct a solid creative portfolio, where I will capture both the simplicities and complexities of the natural world. Incorporating those photo stills, along with some preliminary sketches, will allow for me to put my best foot forward. I am already in the process of selecting my images and getting them into a personal novel. It is my hope that this showcase along with my academic credentials will grant me admittance into a desired architecture college.

Beyond the immediate value that this transformation presents, I see this photography as something I will use for the rest of my life. Whether I want to be the best father, one who is able to capture my kid’s moments growing up, a manager that is looking to market better, or to have an escape from the 9-5 job, I see photography as being prevalent for years to come. Now that I have the equipment and the knowledge to boot, I see myself honing my craft in the years to come.