Choose one of the three quotes below and write a 400–500 word reflection on a specific experience it brings to mind, using the quote to guide your thinking.
As you write, consider:
- Why does this quote call that experience to mind, and how did you respond to it?
- How has that experience shaped the way you approach new ideas?
- How might you bring this way of engaging into the Appalachian Honors College community, and what kinds of contributions do you imagine making as you learn alongside others?
Return to your quote’s language or ideas as your reflection develops. Use the quote to connect your experience to how you think, learn, and engage with others.
Option 1: “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” — Mary Oliver, The Summer Day.
In the poem, Oliver reflects on a summer afternoon spent in wonder at the natural world. Her question is not really asking about long-term goals. Instead, it invites us to consider what captures our attention and sparks our curiosity.
Option 2: “Only when an answer generates further questions does thought continue as inquiry. A mind with no questions is a mind that is not intellectually alive.”— Richard Paul and Linda Elder, The Art of Asking Essential Questions
Finding an answer can sometimes feel like the end of learning, but Paul and Elder remind us that our thinking stays alive when each answer leads us to ask new questions and keep exploring what comes next.
Option 3: “To function, individuals rely not only on knowledge stored within our skulls but also on knowledge stored elsewhere: in our bodies, in the environment, and especially in other people. When you put it all together, human thought is incredibly impressive. But it is a product of a community, not of any individual alone.” — Steven Sloman and Philip Fernbach, The Knowledge Illusion
No one has all the answers. Sloman and Fernbach remind us that understanding is a collective effort that relies on our ability to share knowledge and engage with perspectives beyond our own.