In TSU, where I study, every freshman group on the faculty gets one or two curators to help them navigate the tough sea of higher education as well as help them grow. I'm learning the craft of being a curator. Today was my first day.
It feels great! Not just because of the prospect of helping young students but also because of the way I got to meet new, interesting people. The trainers, tired as they seemed, were kind to each and every one of us, just like a good curator's supposed to be. The best thing they did for us as a group is to make us learn of each other by name and by a few facts, which, for a shy person that I am (and I wasn't the only one among the future curators), was a blessing. I immediately felt comfortable among the crowd, the about-fourteen of us.
Our group consists of students from all faculties, mixed together, which is another great point about such meetings. Everyone is different, and it's exciting to be able to meet every one of them. Historians, philologists, jurists, linguists... You can see how different everyone is, each with their own mannerisms and attitudes, and it is amazing.
It was there where I met Masha. A student of the German language group on my faculty, she's been studying the language since school day one. She also studied in Germany twice, has a C1 certificate (which makes her a step away from having the proficiency of a native speaker) and has been a translator (or whatever you call it; I know there are two terms) for a group of German businessmen who recently visited Yashkino, a nearby village famous in Western Siberia for their fantastic baked goods. She now works as a home tutor for school children and is planning to go for another practice of language this semester.
Every opportunity that allows me to meet people like this - studious, excelling at their beloved craft and aligned with the German language - is one I'm grateful for.
September 1st, I (and, possibly, the other curator that's going to be assigned to the group) will be meeting freshmen. The day is my group's rest day, but I'm more than willing to make it a good day for the newcoming students, because that's the way I would've loved to be met the day I came in. I know they're going to be tired, just like we all were on our first day, so I'll make sure the responsibilities are going to be handled the next day. They will need to feel welcome and they will need to take a rest after all's over, so that's what I'll give them.
Oh man. I'm so exciting to go down this path! Never been excited for anything like I am now in my life, which says something both about the situation (which I'm glad to be in) and about me (who, until recently, had a hard time enjoying life). I'm learning to talk to people, and it becomes very easy once I set my mind to learning about them and generally having fun from social interactions. Those are big obstacles I'm overcoming, and some of them are still present, but striking a conversation turned out to be piece of cake. Astonishing and beautiful. I discover myself more and more to be a people's person who's just been beating into a corner early in my life.
(on the sidenote, I find myself acting more boisterously in a crowd of people I don't know well. I feel more confident that way and I'm enjoying it to a degree. In a familiar crowd I act more relaxed, allowing myself to be quiet and simply listen to what others have to say, which I enjoy and, at times, need)
We continue the study process till September 12th, and on that day we have a test. September's proving to be the toughest month of them all, what with the freshmen games (various tasks aimed to acquaint the newcomers with the city and the uni, due to most of them being from other cities or even states) and what our trainers called "the storm" (one of the stages of group's growth where the newcomers try to get familiar with each other and may clash for many reasons). Once we're through it alive and well, we shall sail freer.
Can't wait.
That sounds amazing! Good luck to you. Being an introvert, it can be hard to get into interacting with other people but the more you do it, the easier it will be. People that I work with think I am a 'people person.' I would disagree but as it is required of my current position I have to be able to turn it on at will. It probably bothers my husband that I don't have much to say by the time we see each other at the end of the day... by then I am all peopled out.
Thanks! That's a good way to put it. I hope your husband appreciates the hard work you put into extensive human interactions, because as exciting or necessary as they might be, they're difficult for an introvert. Finding people who like to talk - like Masha - helps me relax and be myself while listening and learning about others (basically, social interactions lite).by then I am all peopled out.