cbtell2

An artifact that represents my past is a ring I received from my best friend. When I was 17, I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and was in the hospital for a days. It was one of the biggest challenges I've ever faced and was a really life changing event. It's something that I have to deal with everyday and for the rest of my life. When I was diagnosed, my best friend Leslie gave me a ring that said 'virya' on it. This is a Buddhist word meaning strength. The idea that it applied to my life meant so much to me and for the first year of owning the ring, I never took it off. It acted as a reminder for me to hold on and keep my head up. It is definitely a gift that I really appreciated. This ring relates to education because I had to learn so much during this experience. I had to learn not only how to control my disease but how to go through life keeping my head up and continuing to be strong. I believe education is learned through challenges and this is one of the biggest challenges I personally have ever fought.
 * Past- **

**Present**- When I came to college, I had a really hard time adjusting. I wasn't homesick, but I really just did not like it here and had a hard time finding the right group of friends. So in the Spring of 2011, I rushed and joined a sorority called Theta Tau Omega and now, I couldn't be happier here at school. This leads me to my next artifact, my swan ring. When I joined a sorority, I had to pledge for a designated amount of time before I was actually accepted into the sisterhood. Those few weeks were the best time I would never want to have again. But on the final night when I got in, my Big gave me my swan ring which is something that I was anticipating for a while. Now that I have it, I never take it off. Whenever I go out, I make sure that it's always on my finger or I know that it will not end up being a good night, it's almost superstitious. This swan ring definitely represents my present. Whenever I look down and see it, I am reminded of how happy I am here at college. This relates to education because by going through rush, it taught me to become more outgoing and how to get involved. I had to put myself out there which is something I never used to be good at. It broadened my horizons and pushed me out of my comfort zone which is something I believe you have to learn to do at some point in your life to become successful and be well educated.

**Future**- My future ring would be my engagement ring. Ever since I can remember it was my dream to grow up, get married, have my dream job of being a teacher, and starting a family. I couldn't think of a better thing to symbolize these events than a wedding/engagement ring. In the future I would love to become engaged and start the next part of my life. I couldn't imagine being happier any other time than when I have my own family and career. I know that the rest of my life isn't always going to be easy and there will be things I'll have to push through. But I hope that when I look down at my finger and see my wedding/engagement rings, I'll remember that this is what I have always wanted and this is how I saw myself being happy. This relates to education because to me, education is all about change. It's about leaving your comfort zone and going out and being determined to get what you want. Nothing will come to you in life if you don't seek it yourself. For example, I couldn't just go out, get married, and have children without taking the steps necessary to get there. Education is found throughout everyday life. And something as simple as getting married, finding a job, and starting a family wouldn't be possible without being challenged.