Reflection

The way I used my creativity was helping to come up with a solution on how to help the patient in need. I may not have had much input what I did contribute they took into consideration, and as well as when my mentor was talking to me about many cases and how much they changed her life, and when she explained the decisions she made, I would create my own scenarios and make my own decisions with the well-being of the patient in mind. I used my communication skills by talking to the other social workers and seeing how it is that they do their job and what they do in order to accomplish everything they need to do. I've also learned that I need to listen to everything that occurs around me because it could be relevant to a case that I can be handling or dealing with.

What I gained from this capstone project, socially I would have to say that I feel a lot more comfortable talking to people now and actually being open and putting my own opinion out there without having to feel scared about what other people are going to think, I've learned that my communication skills aren't as bad I thought they would be. Personally I learned that I am a lot stronger than I give myself the credit for. I know that I am a very emotional person and that a lot things do make me want to cry, but I also know that with years of practice and if I can maintain myself then I can do anything and I can help out anybody that needs the help.

There were a lot of challenges that I had to encounter, for example the commute from San Bruno all the way to San Francisco after school. I'd have to take Bart, and then my mentor would be nice enough to drop me back off at home, and even on the car ride back we'd continue to talk about more cases and how the life of a social worker is. I learned that being a social worker your schedule has to be very flexible because you never know what will occur or who will need you right away. I learned that I need to control my emotions which I think will be the biggest obstacle for me, I encountered that by thinking about the brighter things, the brighter outcomes that are yet to come.

Farewell

It's amazing to see the drastic change that social workers make on a persons life. I never even realized how much they mean to the world until I witnessed one first hand my 7th grade year, and now that I see how many different types of social workers there are it makes me just that much more excited to keep learning and engaging myself in the different types of fields. It's sad to say goodbye, but I know that my journey is only just beginning and I have so much ahead of me.

Last hours pt.3

Another thing that popped up into the conversation was, wage. Of course everybody knows that social workers don't make a lot of money, and honestly that has never been a factor for me or even been remotely close to changing my opinion on what it is I want to do. They don't make as much as other occupations make, and I have to come to realize that. But one thing that she said to me that really made me not care about my wage was the rewarding feeling you get after you help someone that you can't get with a million dollars. Being able to help, is more than enough "money" for me. I don't need a lot of money in order for me to feel like I can live well, with me helping and making a difference in the world, that worth more than winning the lottery.

Last hours pt.2

As I was talking to a couple more of the social workers they told me about how it was going to school and what they had to go through in order to be where they are now. I've heard a lot of different opinions and I honestly don't know who to believe. One of the social workers told me to take sociology as a minor and to major in social work. While another told me to minor in social work but to major in sociology because that's what got him to where he is now. Although I don't know which one I'm supposed to major or minor in at least I know that whatever I choose to do it'll get me far.

Last hours pt. 1

It was such a bittersweet moment to have ended this journey. In many occasions I didn't want to keep going, just because of all the cases I had heard and about all the things can happen on scene, and you have to know how to act and what to do at that exact moment. As my mentor said, she felt like quitting a lot of times too, yet she didn't. This gives me the motivation to keep going and never let anyone tell me I can't make something of myself.

Mixed Emotions

Sometimes I feel like I'm not cut out for this job and sometimes it feels like I'm not capable of maintaining myself to keep it together. Yet again, I want to be able to help kids and tell them that everything will be okay and that things will get better. That everything happens for a reason. I may not want to help kids with special needs to be specific, but I do know that I want to be able to help all kids, in any situation that they've been through, because they are our future.

How I feel

Seeing all of this and actually getting to experience a lot of these cases first hand seems to amaze me every time. I've been through a social worker and know how much it sucks to have to listen to them and have to take all their advice in, but at the same time not wanting to because you feel as if you don't need their help at all. However, I knew that all they were trying to do was help me be better and make something of myself. To now let this bump on the road knock me over and prevent me from getting him and keep moving forward. Seeing how passionate she is with her work, and with what she does, makes me feel that I can be just that if I work hard enough and if I can focus on doing just that.