Week 9 - Whale

I had a whaley good time this week with origami!😏 I wanted to try a design that can stand on its own. I felt like this week, especially compared to the first two weeks, origami has gotten considerably easier and more enjoyable. I still probably couldn't invent a new design by myself on-demand, but it feels less stressful to follow the precise and intricate folds. Something that origami has taught me, as well as other difficult challenges in life, is that much of how learning how to do something new is learning how to learn it. 

Something that came to mind during the "Flowers on the Wall" song was that perhaps meaningful occupations can be very different for different people. They suggested through the song that perhaps their everyday occupations seemed boring to onlookers. However, their chorus sang "I'm having lots of fun countin' flowers on the wall, that don't bother me at all." They sounded completely content with the simple things in life that they did. It's possible that other people had a hard time with perspective-taking and how those things could make them happy. The Martin, Sadlo, and Stew (2006) reading touched on how there may be a percentage of people who never feel bored. There was an older participant in their study who reported feeling content with the simple things in life, such as staring out the window. Perhaps the artists of the song felt the same. 



Comments

  1. ElishaNovember 2, 2021 at 12:46 PM

    Matthew, I like your origami! If you stick with it, someday your kids will love it. My kids have done different origami projects. It is a lot of fun to see what they can create. Even the students your wife will work with eventually would find joy in your origami designs. Can you see something that you find joy in, a simple activity, that others may think is boring? I find no joy in things that produce adrenaline. That is not something simple, but I do not seek activities out of that caliber. If I take my kids to Lagoon, the only reason I ride the rides is to be present in the moment with them.

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    Replies
    1. Matthew BlakeNovember 3, 2021 at 1:52 PM

      Elisha,
      Thank you for your great question! That's a great point that someday our kids will love it and that students my wife will work with. Something that I have found joy in recently that others don't is learning about laptops and computers. Others think this is boring but I have found it useful and interesting. I admire how you go on the rides at Lagoon with your kids just to be present with them!

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  2. Hailey FletcherNovember 3, 2021 at 3:48 PM

    Your origami looks so great, Matthew! I have loved watching your projects throughout the semester. Do you think this idea that only some people can enjoy these seemingly simple and boring activities is due to personality? I wonder if some people can really enjoy fast-paced activities and life, but also enjoy down time and staring at the flowers on the wall?

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