Intellectual
According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary intellectual is defined as: 1. of, relating to, or performed by the intellect: RATIONAL 2. given to study, reflection, and speculation 3. engaged in activity requiring the creative use of the intellect.
I had a session with my counselor (Tammy) yesterday and one of the topics we talked about was my joining Phi Theta Kappa and what it means to me. I’m maintaining a 4.0 GPA but this doesn’t mean that I “feel” smart or think of myself as smart. I understand that my grades represent my ability to apply myself and process the information I receive so that when it comes time to reproduce that information, it can them be represented by a letter grade or percentage. My peers and fellow classmates have been saying, “you’re so smart, you’re so creative, and you’re so….,” compliments that are being spoken with sincerity, but compliments I haven’t been use to hearing outside of the biasness of my husband and close friends. I have been rewriting and redefining a lot of wrong messages that were sent to me as a child. I had to ask Tammy, “Why is that I have been so affected by these messages when they occurred long ago, even though I have spent the last 27 years of my life surrounded with positive messages?” I knew the answer to my question but it just helped to ask it out loud. So, Tammy and I talked about this idea and we concluded that I needed to redefine what it means to be considered an intellectual.
Since I’m visual, I use a mental picture of a tape recorder as I erase the old, wrong messages and tape over with new messages and definitions and then I hit replay a few times until I am able to assimilate the new information. Having reflected on the definition of what an intellectual is has helped me to realize that I am and have been an intellect. The definition provides me with something which is concrete, not biased and won’t change based on how someone else feels about me.
I wished I had heard my parents say they were proud of me and my accomplishments, but they didn’t and perhaps they never will. I have grieved over this, but it is time to grow beyond it and live. With this thought, I have come to realize that I no longer need to hear it from them to know that I have accomplished some outstanding skills, using what is considered my intellectual abilities. I’ll not feel comfortable with others calling me this or even labeling me as being smart. It isn’t out of a false sense of humility that I say this; it’s more from the awareness that when others hold you up on a pedestal, a fall is inevitable. What ever I achieve in this life, it is my desire to serve God fully with all of my heart, mind and soul. If man is pleased with me and my achievements, I shall receive it as the praise and recognition it is intended to be. However, it is for my Heavenly Father’s praises that I seek and will count as sufficient.
Thursday, October 21, 2004
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Something to Think About:
For those of you who have wondered what I do when I'm up at all hours of the night, here is a sample of some literature my English Prof. suggested I read. I find it funny when I think about the stuff I'm reading now, as opposed to what I use to read. I read a lot, but I don't think I would have chosen to read something from Rousseau. However, it is good to be exposed to some of the old Literary Authors, you discover how much they understood and how that knowledge has withstood the test of times, making it relevent for today. If you are interested in this author's literature, just look him up on the web. there are many sites to choose from.
Warning: Don't read his literature before you go to bed, it'll keep you up with your brain whirling in circles as you try to comprehend what he has written and how it applies to today. What I wrote after reading Emile was my response to his message. I couldn't just shut down the computer, or my brain, and go to bed without expressing my reaction. This seems to happen often after I read something which stimulates the intellect.
"If matter in motion points me to a will, matter in motion according to fixed laws points me to an intelligence; that is the second article of my creed. To act, to compare, to choose are the operations of an active, thinking being, so this being exists. Where do you find him existing, you will say not merely in the revolving heavens nor in the sun which gives us light, not in myself alone, but in the sheep that grazes, the bird that flies, the stone that falls, and the leaf blown by the wind." (Jean-Jacques Rousseau).
I read the above quote in Emile, (1755). Everyman Edition, 1911; excerpt: Creed of a Savoyard Priest. I can see how the author’s literature could be used as a resource to recommend for reading to someone who struggles with the idea of whether or not God exist. Rousseau attacks the intellect with steps of logical deduction. I can’t imagine reading this right before going to sleep; it stirs up some deep thinking. Anyway, as I read it I wondered, do we still have philosophers, those who really apply thinking? Or, has man just laid down to mindless acceptance of whatever they are fed, asking no questions, thinking no deep thoughts, finding no satisfaction in seeking truth. A frightening thought when you consider the consequences; who or what then has power over what we are learning and how it affects our thinking and the way we perceive and interact with the world around us. I for one will fully accept the existence of God and yield to His direction, His truth and laws, as He dictates to me how and what I should be thinking and doing. It is by faith that I actively seek knowledge, not with mindless neglect as some are doing.
For those of you who have wondered what I do when I'm up at all hours of the night, here is a sample of some literature my English Prof. suggested I read. I find it funny when I think about the stuff I'm reading now, as opposed to what I use to read. I read a lot, but I don't think I would have chosen to read something from Rousseau. However, it is good to be exposed to some of the old Literary Authors, you discover how much they understood and how that knowledge has withstood the test of times, making it relevent for today. If you are interested in this author's literature, just look him up on the web. there are many sites to choose from.
Warning: Don't read his literature before you go to bed, it'll keep you up with your brain whirling in circles as you try to comprehend what he has written and how it applies to today. What I wrote after reading Emile was my response to his message. I couldn't just shut down the computer, or my brain, and go to bed without expressing my reaction. This seems to happen often after I read something which stimulates the intellect.
"If matter in motion points me to a will, matter in motion according to fixed laws points me to an intelligence; that is the second article of my creed. To act, to compare, to choose are the operations of an active, thinking being, so this being exists. Where do you find him existing, you will say not merely in the revolving heavens nor in the sun which gives us light, not in myself alone, but in the sheep that grazes, the bird that flies, the stone that falls, and the leaf blown by the wind." (Jean-Jacques Rousseau).
I read the above quote in Emile, (1755). Everyman Edition, 1911; excerpt: Creed of a Savoyard Priest. I can see how the author’s literature could be used as a resource to recommend for reading to someone who struggles with the idea of whether or not God exist. Rousseau attacks the intellect with steps of logical deduction. I can’t imagine reading this right before going to sleep; it stirs up some deep thinking. Anyway, as I read it I wondered, do we still have philosophers, those who really apply thinking? Or, has man just laid down to mindless acceptance of whatever they are fed, asking no questions, thinking no deep thoughts, finding no satisfaction in seeking truth. A frightening thought when you consider the consequences; who or what then has power over what we are learning and how it affects our thinking and the way we perceive and interact with the world around us. I for one will fully accept the existence of God and yield to His direction, His truth and laws, as He dictates to me how and what I should be thinking and doing. It is by faith that I actively seek knowledge, not with mindless neglect as some are doing.
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