a senior reflects

An absolutely tremendous film was shown today by one of my seniors. It was all about her family camp and her time spent growing up in Paradise--my own word for Maine, rural Maine.

This is her reflection on the process. I just love it.

Though the final presentation was work-intensive and time consuming, I am very proud of the final product that I produced. I have learned from this experience in many ways.
I have produced a video about my camp on **** Lake, in spanish, that I am proud of. I have achieved my goals, though not necessarily in the order in which I planned. My timeline was helpful, though I found that it was a bit unrealistic at times. Though I have finished all that I set out to do, I ended up readjusting my schedule as time went on and I missed class for various reasons (envirothon, etc.). This experience provided a good lesson. Though my plans were well-laid, I succeeded in attaining my goals through being adaptable and working hard, by knowing when to abandon my predetermined schedule in preference for a more realistic or attainable order of events. I readjusted my timeline by focusing initially on accumulating and ordering photos and video clips. This makes allot more sense then what I had originally planned in my timeline - I was set to come up with a script and translate in the initial stages of project work. With my materials all laid out it was much easier to write a script. I did not foresee the difficulty of writing a script without any visuals - I will not attempt to do so again. This change in my approach caused the major discrepancy in my timeline and my actual chronology of events.
I really have learned allot throughout the course of completing this project. I have learned a good deal of spanish - obviously. I have learned many new words, words that I will most likely remember because of their significance to my life and my repeated usage of them. I have also improved my spanish speaking skills. By recording voiceovers, I was able to practice pronunciation multiple times. I like the idea or recording spanish translations beforehand - I was better able to pronounce things because I didn’t feel pressured to achieve perfection on the first try, in front of the whole class. I will be able to relax and enjoy the exhibition of my movie on presentation day, rather then being consumed with anxiety.
As I said before, I am really proud of my finished product. I am excited to show it to the class and to my family. I just know that my Pépére will get a kick out of it. I am going to translate it back into english and make a longer english version after graduation. This project really helped me to learn more about my family’s history, spanish, and time management.


This particular class has been spiritually reaffirming. I am doing the right thing at the right time with the right people. Her work is hers to own, to be proud of. I merely helped her find her voice. Now she has something she will treasure forever.