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Deep Thinking and Running Around

March 11, 2013 in Kate's Blog by Kate Meakem | Permalink

Hello all!

Signing in after what amounted to a very long sabbatical from writing.  I hope everyone is doing well through these colder months (Boston just got another big snow storm… typical), and that y’all have been finding some really awesome content on the blog!  I do have to say that the opportunity to write for you guys over the course of my now two and a half years at Harvard (OH MY GOSH!!!… time has flown!) has been an extreme honor.  It has helped me reflect on my life here and my development as a person.  And the opportunity to meet people who have read this blog, especially some you who are in the classes below me at Harvard now, is really mind blowing.  So thanks guys!

What has my life been since I last posted?  Well, it has been transformational.

It is interesting to be a college junior because it is perhaps the first time one can look back on their college experience and see growth—personal, academic, experiential, philosophical (and maybe around the middle if you’re not careful).  I look at pictures of myself as a freshman and see a younger version of myself today.  I reconsider my ideas and beliefs about life and see a thoughtfulness and regard for other points of view that I didn’t used to have.  I think back to all of the cool experiences that Harvard has given me and feel thankful for every day.

Me and a few friends back in September

Since last writing, I was elected as President of the Phillips Brooks House Association (PBHA), the nation’s largest student-run public service nonprofit, and the bastion of community-based service at Harvard.  As a student-run 501c3, my position is technically President of the Board of Trustees, and from that office, I work with a team of student officers and adult staff to run 1,400 person strong organization.  Being in this position, while crazy and insane (I seriously have a full-time job while trying to be a student), has challenged me in ways I could have never anticipated and set me on a path I never could have predicted I would take.  From learning how to schedule every second of my day, to how to facilitate a good training/meeting, to how to contribute meaningfully to the Harvard campus and to the Greater Boston area, I have taken so much from this experience even as it asks so much of me.

Vice President of PBHA Sam Greenberg ’14 and me doing PBHA work

I love working with people.  I love thinking about team dynamics, appreciating the unique strengths of everyone in the room, and supporting people in a way that makes them feel valued and productive.  And I love especially working with the amazingly gifted students I find in PBHA.  Within our Officer Team this year (as we call ourselves, DreamTeam2013), each person arrives with a different story, and each person has new insights and thoughts to offer that challenge me to question my assumptions and consider sometimes things that are fundamental to our society – IT’S SO COOL!

A team circle-up at the end of our week-long PBHA Officer training — “Nonprofit Management Intensive” — back in January (I’m the one in the gray sweater).

Not a day goes by when I don’t find myself wondering, “Well, why is it that way?” Or “How do I reconcile these two conflicting ideals/experiences/philosophies in my life?”  And the confidence I have developed in understanding myself and my world strengthens daily.

Woah, I just got deep really fast there.  Sorry if that was a lot.

So for the sake of all of our sanities, I’m going to narrow this post down to what I did this past week, rather than try to cover months of lost time.

My schedule for last week

Allow me to refer to my handy-dandy Google Calendar!  Hmmm… let’s see.  Well, I went to a lot of meetings, as per usual.  With over 30 hours of PBHA “on the clock” time (as in, not including checking and sending emails, writing proposals, planning agendas, and all the outside work), it’s easy to see how it is my main thing.

I also went to class and had a paper due on Thursday!  This semester I am taking some really interesting classes – History 1280: History of the Soviet Union, History 1629: China and the Environment, Ethical Reasoning 24: Liberty, and Sociology 95: Research for Nonprofits.  I have found each of these classes to be fascinating and love the range of material I am learning.

Last week I also got to go to the celebration of Teen Empowerment’s 20 year anniversary where they honored Mayor Menino for his commitment and service to Boston’s youth!  It was so amazing to meet and see a lot of Boston’s major public service players, people who have committed their lives to making the world a better place and live passionately.

Finally, this weekend a friend of mine from back home in Pittsburgh came to visit!  It’s always the best to connect with people from home and talk about Pittsburgh-y things.  One thing that I have learned is that people from Pittsburgh will never shut up about how awesome Pittsburgh is (myself included).

This coming week is going to be a scary one!  I have so much to do to get ready for Spring Break and then BAM!— I’m off to Madrid for Harvard Model Congress’ Europe Conference!  I cannot wait to meet and work with all of the high school students I am about to coach through a mock National Security Council session!  And after the conference, some friends, and I are going to the Canary Islands where I intend to tan (let’s be real, I’ll really just burn) and soak in as much relaxation and Vitamin-D as I can before returning to the craziness of life here.

So strap on your seatbelts y’all!  I’m back to posting every week, and this year is going to be a crazy ride.

Best,

Kate Meakem

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A little T.L.C.

October 1, 2011 in Kate's Blog by Kate Meakem | 19 comments

During my freshman year, I NEVER went home.  I just loved Harvard too much.  I remember the first time I went home was for Thanksgiving – a whole four days – and it felt like the longest 5,760 minutes of my life (not that I was counting).  I wanted to be “back in the Pack” (or my freshman dorm Pennypacker) in my amazing room with all of my friends, and I never wanted to leave.  The five weeks of J-term seemed like five lifetimes (I returned to campus early to take cooking courses), and by the time Spring Break rolled around, I was desperately looking for other options.

My dad and I at a Pittsburgh Penguins game during last Spring Break

Now before you start thinking I have a terrible home life, I must assure you that nothing could be farther from the truth.  I am the oldest of five children, and no one in the world gives me more love and acceptance and happiness than my parents and those kids.  No matter what I am doing, I can always count on six fans that think I am the greatest thing since cooked meat.

Which is probably why after a year of seeing my family only intermittently, I came home from Barcelona and realized, “Hey wait.  I actually miss these people a lot.”  So when my mom called me a week ago and asked if I could fly home for a few days this weekend, my ready response was, “um… YES!”

So here I am in Pittsburgh on a Saturday night playing homebody, and taking a break from studying for midterms to write to you guys.  This morning, I was awoken by my two brothers jumping on me at the unnatural hour of 9:30 am, and I spent the majority of the day studying and catching up with my sisters.  This time last year I would probably be crying and texting my friends back at Harvard wondering what I was missing and what crazy adventures they were up to.  But right now, I don’t even know where my phone is (oh great… 24 hours at home, and I’ve already lost my phone), and I feel just dandy having had a fantastic home cooked meal.

When I left home for college a year ago, my greatest fear was not “will I be able to make friends?” or “what if the dining hall food is awful?” or “what if I come back to my dorm to find my roommates sticking a voodoo doll of me with a pin?”  My greatest fear was “what if after I leave, I come home and find that I can no longer integrate myself into my family?  What if my youngest brother who is 10 years younger than I am grows up feeling like I was never a part of his life?  What will happen when my sister starts Middle School, or my other sister gets her license, or my brother loses his first tooth, and I’m not there to be apart of it?”  Once I arrived at Harvard, I got so wrapped up in what I was doing, I momentarily forgot about these worries.

The truth is all of these things do happen.  It’s not like my family has stopped functioning because I’m not there – my sister still goes to school without me to drive her and my brothers still play hockey without me in the stands.  But what I have learned is that it’s not so hard to re-integrate yourself back into the family life.  The time you spend with your family just becomes that much more valuable.

Because life is so busy and exciting at Harvard, I don’t know when I’ll next be able to sneak away for a weekend at home (or if I’ll want to).  But I have really enjoyed my weekend home (which is all I was going to write before I started going off about family this and family that, and this post got so long).

Hope everyone else is having a great weekend!

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Optional Winter Activities Week

February 7, 2011 in Kate's Blog by Kate Meakem | 4 comments

Hello everyone!  I am sorry that it has taken me so long to write, especially considering that I have been back on campus for THREE WEEKS.  Life has just been so busy! But never fear, I have finally found a moment to sit down over a Qdoba grilled veggie burrito to write to you.

First and foremost, my J-term was fantastic.  I went home to the lovely city of Pittsburgh to sit on my couch and watch my favorite team in the whole wide world, the Steelers, fight their way into Super Bowl XLV!  There is NOTHING like Pittsburgh on game day.  Ben Roethlisberger jerseys are considered acceptable church wear (I know… its ironic), and every public place without a television switched to the game is deserted (for a taste, watch Wiz Khalifa’s “Black and Yellow” music video).

Anyway, despite my obvious affection for my home city, I traveled back to Cambridge a week early in order to participate in Harvard’s brand-new Optional Winter Activities Week (OWAW… or “Oh-Wow!” if you prefer).  Before leaving for break, I got a chance to look over the extensive list of activities to do during this glorious week offered to Harvard undergrads, and one immediately jumped out at me – Food Literacy Project’s cooking courses!

The Food Literacy Project is an organization on campus devoted to teaching students about nutrition, food preparation, and making good food choices.  Since I LOOOOOVVVEEEEE food and have zero idea how to cook (let’s be real, the microwave is high class for me), I thought the program sounded great!

I started Wednesday, learning how to make split pea and wild mushroom soups, and both Irish soda and corn breads!

Thursday was my favorite day – chocolate day!  We made the most delicious chocolate mousse and truffles (so good, soooo much work).  Then we took a field trip to Taza Chocolate, where we got to learn all about how chocolate goes from a plant to a yummy candy bar.

This photo is credited to my wonderful friend Michael George.

“Coffee and Pie” was Friday’s lesson plan, and while I don’t drink coffee [insert shocked and horrified gasp here], my apple pie was incredible, if I do say so myself.

And I finished making this lovely pie just in time to see a comedy show put on by some of the other OWAW students and welcome my roommates home with fresh dessert!

This is the apple pie I made! 23 is our room number.

Home Sweet Harvard! 😀

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