Lifetime Rec Journey Week 9

Some of the most frequent things that I have been hearing from students these past two weeks is that midterms are rolling around the corner. Many of the residents seem to be stressed with their midterm exams and with other external factors. Noticing this pattern I began to ask around the community to see where they stood in terms of exams and stress levels. Some of them said that they felt in control of the exam and others stated that they were at a loss. 

One evening, I was walking out the door to go to my class and I noticed one of my residents was crying. I asked her if she was OK and she began telling me  some personal struggles that she was having  with her grandparents. It began with her attending her academic advising meeting and when she had planned her class schedule for the upcoming semesters, her grandparents had become upset with her because of the number of credits that she was taking. She shared with me that since she was only taking the max amount for her to be a full time student, her grandparents felt that she was not utilizing the money that they were spending on her college education. I felt that at this moment, it was necessary for me to stop and listen to see what was going on with her. I think that at this point, a lot of the students are becoming more comfortable with being independent adults but balancing their family and jobs can interfere with their motivation to focus on school. Some of the students just need to talk things out to someone who is in the same shoes as them and then they will able to figure out where to go from there. Just stopping and listening to what they have to say can do a great deal of success for the individual and the community because their is always someone else in the community who feels the same way.
 If I could ask my residents any question on how I can improve my skills and to help them met their needs is to ask "How are you doing personally?" Here I will be able to see if I have anything that I have not offered or if they have taken things that the community has offered them. It doesn't have to be a direct question but more of a way to see where they stand and then continue to ask questions for clarification...