Event # 1

On Saturday September 2, I attended the Resident Assistant Leadership Conference at Providence College. The conference included multiple different sessions centered around leadership and learning. Many of the sessions were both interesting and useful; I gained valuable insights and learned various worthwhile skills.

 But the session that I actually took the most from was a session about keeping a positive attitude while facing adversity. The session was presented by a young college student who has spent the majority of his life in a wheel chair. He talked about the many challenges that he has faced over his so-far short lifetime. He also spoke about how he has gotten used to people treating him differently at first. He said that oftentimes people do not understand how to interact with him, but he is patient and willing to help them.

His speech reminded me very much of what Nakkula wrote about in chapter two. He told us all about his journey through adolescence and how difficult it was for him to find his place in the world around him. This is difficult for anyone, but it was especially difficult for him. It sounded to me like he had reached a point of achieved identity because he is now at peace with his place in the world and the life he wants to live. But he said it did not come easy. He went through a lot of struggle and turmoil before he got to that point.

More on Marcia's theory here: http://www.learning-theories.com/identity-status-theory-marcia.html

Challenges for adolescents in wheel chairs: http://www.christopherreeve.org/site/c.mtKZKgMWKwG/b.5380887/k.B2E1/BacktoSchool_What_it_Means_When_Youre_Using_a_Wheelchair.htm