"To succeed, you have to believe in something with such a passion that it becomes a reality." -Anita Roddick My passion is agriculture. It's a broad topic but it is something that is essential to all of our daily lives. --- As I begin to create an agriculture in the classroom curriculum for the 5th grade students at Litchfield Middle School, I have to take a step back and remember where it all began for me. How may passion was sparked... I was asked by one of my FFA mentors, Kayla, if I had any interest in going to a FFA Summer Camp. I said I'd look into it and think about it. I had just finished my freshmen year of high school, still considered a Greenhand in the FFA world. There were two camps being offered that year by Minnesota FFA, one for Greenhands and another for older members 11th-12th graders or chapter leaders. The one that worked with my schedule, was the one for chapter leaders called SLCCL, or State Leadership Conference for Chapter Leaders, so I signed up. Now, I am the girl that cried through her first half of kindergarten and at every single camp she's ever gone to (only 2 up until this time). Needless to say, I get VERY homesick, very easily, and I wasn't actually looking forward to going to SLCCL, more just dreading it. I was going to be the only one from my chapter going, and I didn't know ANYONE that was going. Plus, I was going to be two to three years younger than all the other members that were going to be there, but that wasn't going to be an issue for me though. My mom drove me up to Hackensack, MN on that Sunday afternoon to Deep Portage Conservation Center. This place is in the middle of nowhere. No cell phone service. All trees. And animals. A large building. And a few people. I was regretting signing up for this the moment I stepped out of the car. I got checked in. Settled into my room. Said goodbye to my mom through an hour of tears, not knowing what the next 4 days were going to bring for me. Within a few hours of my moms departure, all of the campers had arrived and settled into Deep Portage. We started our first session. And the fireworks started going off. There was so much energy! From the State Officers and other FFA Members, it was amazing! I fit right in, my true personality took over and I could truly be the person I am with the people that surrounded me. I met Mary that afternoon, and we immediately had a true bond. We became very good friends throughout our time together at camp, in fact by the second day, people were asking if we were sisters. Our response was, "Nope, we met each other yesterday." The passion held by the other members that were there and the State Officers facilitating SLCCL radiated off of them, and I immediately wanted a part of that. I dove right into camp and all it had to offer me. I learned so much in the short time I was there, and made so many new connections with people that I won't ever forget. Each night we had something called Reflections, where we reflect on our day together, our lives, and what we hope to accomplish in our futures. During Tuesday nights' reflections, my life changed. Reflections were ending and the State Officers were excusing everyone who had finished writing for the evening. I had been done for a long time, and was just sitting there thinking about all that I wanted to bring back to my chapter, community, and what some of my new personal goals were going to be. By this time, there was barely anyone left in the Great Hall. Then, everything changed. Valerie Earley sat down next to me. She told me that she had been watching me through out the week and that she knew that I had great things ahead of me. We talked about what I had learned so far that week, my favorite parts, and what some of my goals were. She shared with me what some of her goals were and how she accomplished them. She sparked MY passion. Valerie ignited the drive to share my passion with OTHERS. As I left SLCCL, I knew I had to share what I had learned and my experiences. My PASSION for agriculture. I knew I would see those people again and that they would help me in my FFA and agricultural experiences that are yet to come. Mary, Valerie, Joanna, Carly, Ashlee, Nathan, Kirsten, Brady, Erin, Kyla, Dalton, Jack, all had an impact on me that week that I won't forget. --- As I finish up my curriculum for next week, I want to give a huge shout out THANK YOU to those who shared their passion, and impacted me and many others. I can't wait to start engaging our next generation with something that I hold close to my heart. -- How was your passion sparked? Who sparked it? How do you share your passion?
2 Comments
|
AuthorKylee Kohls - #passionateAGvocate Archives
July 2018
Categories |