My first-hand experience in Martial Arts

I started learning martial arts when I was five years old. At the time I was also in a ballet class and, thankfully, I continued karate until I was 15. I don’t regret this as karate taught me so many things over the span of 10 years. However, I had to stop training in the second dojo as my family and I moved to Geneva.

When I first started, it was difficult to see any benefits or practical application of the skills I was taught in the dojo. It was just more rules to learn and abide by, on top of the ones in school. In my case it was also weird because of the change in training grounds, I started out in my first one with karate, and the instructor changed martial arts styles, to kick-boxing, which was more violent than karate. I stayed there until sixth grade and then changed dojos. I practiced at the second one for about three years, the instructor taught karate, and it was also where I got my black belt.

Looking back, I learned a lot in these 15 years, but here are the main three lessons that have stayed with me over the years.

First, I learned that when you’re learning something new, even small improvements are a success. There is no need to rush yourself to learn something at the same pace that others do. Taking a longer time to understand something and gradually improving yourself is vastly better than rushing to learn or understand something in a very short time span and being so-so at it.

Secondly, mental strength and focus are vital to help you overcome difficulties in the learning process as well as in other situations. You will do much better if you take the time, to calmly analyze the situation and develop your strategy than if you for instance think of a solution to your dilemma/problem in five minutes and then call it a day.

Lastly, the most important lesson I learned was not a lesson in itself; it is a fact. One does not need to learn and improve only by observing the teacher, one can learn and vastly improve by observing and practicing with fellow students. Practicing for hours with others gives you an idea, a way to do things that the teacher doesn’t “teach” you to. You compare your advantages and drawbacks with the other students through friendly competition, and occasionally not so friendly. In summary, learning is a life-long process and you can learn at your own pace.

Not only are martial arts in general good to learn for any person of any age, gender or skill level because of the improvement of their physical condition, but they are also good for the improvement of your mental fortitude. Martial arts teach people different mental skills such as patience, endurance, focus and perseverance, as well as physical skills like control, flexibility and coordination. Personally, karate practice was also a stress relief activity for me, especially during the time just before finals week.

I highly recommend to everyone of any age or skill level to start learning martial arts because of all the physical and mental advantages that they can get through practicing them. No one is too young or too old to learn how to protect themselves or to kick some ass when it is needed.

Memories

Memories help us become the people we are today. Memories take many forms, but all come together as an individual applies significance to them. The idea for this gallery was to collect and showcase the items that helped form some of the students in the Webster Geneva community, and show the world a piece of their inner workings.

“This necklace was a graduation and ‘welcome to the real world’ gift by my parents two years ago.”

Claire

“This sweatshirt is one of the oldest things I own. After my family moved to England, my grandfather bought it. After he passed away it became mine and has since shrunk enough to fit me. It is now about 15 years old and every time I wear it I am reminded of England and of my family.”

Fish

“A ring and a bracelet, each given to me by my two best friends. They carry a lot of emotional weight because to me they are almost like symbols of our friendship.”

Dominik

“My guitar is super important to me. I’ve embarrassed myself countless times at open mics and jam nights, and nobody knows. Only the guitar knows these secrets. The guitar would blackmail me if it could. That’s why I keep her close.”

Youssef

“The most significant object for me would be the bracelet that was made and gifted to me by my boyfriend the first time that we met and I rarely take it off. Representing a snake, he wears a matching style, with a ram instead, and this was the first gift that he gave me in person.”

Zeke

“My necklace holds great sentimental value as it was given to me by my mother. It has been with me for over 18 years and it is a reminder to stay strong, be happy, and to never give up. Most importantly, it shows me that whichever path I choose in life, my mother is with me every step of the way.”

Layan

“Out of all her grandchildren, my grandmother chose to give me this ring. She gave it to me to show how important I am to her.”

Renad

“This ring was a gift from my grandmother. It is significant to her, and therefore to me, because jade is an important symbol in Vietnamese culture, meant to bring peace and protect from misfortune. To me, it represents family–their well-being, health, and happiness.”

Kyra

Roommate or Alone?

When presented with the question of whether or not one wishes to live alone or with others, the answers were practically unanimous. Some people enjoy having their own room to themselves, but most prefer to live with others. There are 10 people who answered the survey on the topic of “Do you prefer having a roommate or to have the room all to yourself?”

The chart below shows the result of their answers:

Almost all of them thought that it’s better to have someone to live with, except for one. People who prefer having a roommate say it is better for the same reason—there is someone to talk to. However, this reason is only limited to people outside their family. “I shared a room with my brother, and we just hate each other.”—Maya. Most people enjoy sharing a room with others, but all agree that they need their own private space. The ideal living style is to have a common area like a living room or a kitchen and a private bedroom.

Although there are benefits of having a roommate, there are people who prefer having a room to themselves. Quinn May is one of those who says, “I can meet my friends in class or on campus, but when I’m back I just want to have my own space.” Not to live with someone does not mean that they don’t like meeting people, they just need a quiet space and spend some time alone. “I am glad to have friends over, but I don’t want to deal with other people’s mess living together. I don’t need someone to talk to 24/7.”—Quinn May.

There is no right answer for the question, everyone has their own preference. Here’s a video with some of the interviewees:

The Shadows Along The Journey

I left home when I was 18, hoping for adventures but also having the fear of growing up—growing up to be independent, growing up to make decisions. To be away from home for five years, I thought everything would be fine, and it would be an amazing journey of my life, but in reality, being on my own beat me down.

Loneliness and discrimination filled my life, all I had left was silence. I have trouble sleeping every night; when I look into the darkness it is as if the darkness is my only company. I find reasons not to pick up phone calls from home, because I do not want my parents to find out that things are not going well. For a year, I had nothing to be happy about, and I have forgotten the last time I truly smiled.

As the day goes by, negativity never ends. I tried really hard to change my circumstances, I made plans for the rest of my academic years and made the decision to study abroad and graduate in advance. I am still afraid that this nightmare will repeat, but I still chose to go for it. It is another lonely journey, but there is more to be grateful for.

“As time goes by and when you look back, everything will be fine,”—I wrote this a year ago in my diary. After a year, I am thankful for the changes I made. Those shadows that almost buried me were left behind when I decide to take a step forward. It’s ok not to be ok, but never to stay in the same spot. I am still walking on the path of finding myself, with every step I value who I am. There might be bigger challenges in the future, but all the sadness and the bruises will trace the beauty of my journey.

Staying Sane in Quarantine

In our current culture of constant movement and instant gratification, being forced to stay at home and wait for things to get better sounds like hell. With schools, workplaces, cinemas, restaurants, and most other services closing you might not know how to distract yourself. Now that most of us are in self-quarantine due to the coronavirus outbreak, you might be wondering what we can do with all this sudden and abundant free time to avoid losing our sanity or dying of boredom.

If you are like me, one of your main concerns during this time is boredom. With an increase in free time you might not know where to start or what to do to entertain yourself. If you are interested in gaming, you could look forward to some new releases that can keep you busy for hours on end, such as Animal Crossing: New Horizons, a life simulation game that could provide you with a sense of escapism as you create your own personal island paradise. On the other hand, you might have a slew of games that you meant to play, but never got around to. If that is the case, then now is a good time to finally catch up on some potential gems that you may have missed.

Maybe you are the type of person that loves to binge watch shows with others, which is a bit difficult at the moment considering the quarantine. Luckily there’s a browser extension for Google Chrome that you can use with Netflix, called Netflix Party. This app synchronizes your video and adds a group chat so that you can invite others and watch your favorite shows and movies together. However, this currently only supports messaging, so you cannot see or hear others.

This time is not only good to catch up on shows, movies, or games you have missed, but you can also use this time to improve your skills or discover some new hobbies. You might have been meaning to work on your cooking skills. Well, now is the time to do so, provided you managed to get some groceries before hoarders have snatched them all. We actually have a post that can give you some tips on how to cook, which you can find here.

Just because you are basically under house arrest, gyms are closed, and you don’t have a home gym, it does not mean that you cannot stay in shape. Body weight exercises are a great way to do exercise without needing equipment or leaving the house. Simple exercises that you can easily do at home include but are not limited to squats, push-ups, lunges, and jumping jacks. Just make sure to warm-up beforehand, and don’t forget to stretch. However, if creating your own workout routine is not your thing, there are a variety of resources online. There are websites out there that can provide you with a specific routine, or maybe you want to follow an actual trainer. Some coaches teach online classes that you can follow at home, or if you don’t want to worry about being seen during your workout you can find fitness videos online to help keep you in shape. Such as Sports Fitness Advisor, Fitness Blender, Turbulence Training, or DoYogaWithMe

Finally, you should also take a break and relax during this time. It is a stressful and difficult situation for many, so it’s also important to take time for yourself. Sometimes, even if you have a lot of free time it is also good to do nothing. Maybe meditate or take a well-deserved nap. This is just a short list of things that you could be doing instead of going insane. I am sure that there are many other activities that I have not covered here. If you have any suggestions for a potential follow-up to this you can either send them to dominik.wachter@outlook.com, or leave a comment below.

Millennial Mentality

Throughout my time here at Webster, there was a term that I began to hear with increasing frequency, and eventually learned to recognize as a positive thing: mental health day. On these days the burden of work, school, and other responsibilities become overbearing and sometimes a breather is the only option to refocus in order to reset. Students will take these “mental health days” off of work or school just to get a much-needed break. I do this myself when my stress levels get out of hand.

Of course, this should not be confused with laziness. While some students may be apathetic and do not put in the effort, most others are battling stress, anxiety, and depression (sometimes unknowingly) without the proper knowledge or experience to cope with it. Potentially the largest issue is that many people, such as peers, parents, and professors, do not understand the severity of the situation. Millennials and young adults are often called “whiny” or “lazy” by older generations even though that is the opposite of what I believe to be true.

A lot of our newfound pressure comes from the increase in social media. We are told that we are not good enough because on social media platforms we see the “perfect” examples of who people are rather than the reality. We are given unrealistic expectations as to how our life should play out, how we should look, even how we should act. The harsh reality is that the world is not as sweet as portrayed on social media. With the current progression, if we get a degree we are not guaranteed a steady job, and that the environment is in immediate danger.

There’s a lot to be worried about, and it’s normal to be dealing with stress, anxiety, and depression, however I think mental health days are a good thing because it means this generation is doing something about it. Many young adults are trying to shake the stigma around mental health that previous generations grew up with by talking about it. Mental health issues have always been present in society, but now we have the courage, the ability, and the knowledge to speak up about them. We have decided to say that feeling overwhelmed with anxiety and depression is not okay and to put our mental health first.

Luckily at Webster, students have the option to get help with access to free counseling on campus, which is an amazing opportunity that not many people recieve. Many students are not informed of this possibility and therefore may miss out on seeking help when they need it. Bringing awareness to mental health issues and the resources we have to combat it can make a massive difference in the well-being of students and young adults as a whole.

I have seen the dangers of mental health firsthand, and what can happen if the situation gets out of control. It’s scary and what’s worse is it’s easily preventable. I think our generation is making massive steps in the right direction but we need to continue doing everything we can to normalize talking about mental health issues and how to treat them.