For my project I decided to create a collage that includes things that I hope for my future and that I think are part of my life well lived. Some of these things include little pick up words/sentences as well as things to do like the self  care & wellness piece. I also put things that I hope for my future like vacation, food, pets etc.  I put in some things like shopping, cooking/recipies, friends, family etc. Lastly, I included some quotes. I chose these quotes in specific because they spoke to me and I felt they would add to the collage. I made a written center piece that is a combination of my hopes for the future, a letter to myself and a description of the collage. Adding this to me made it less of just a collage and more of a personal artwork. To create this collage I looked through magazines and found  things that I wanted to add. I tried to find an even amount of words and pictures to add that would complement each other while also keeping a good amount of random that each thing would stick out. I cut out the pink paper that the quotes are on so that they would stick out and then the white which I tucked the collage pieces underneath to have it a clear center piece and added a more of a 3-D element. The question that I chose for my work to answer is “What does it mean to live a life well lived?” My collage answers this question by showing what I think it means to live a life well lived and what I want in my life well lived (Travel, family, pets etc.) . I also think it answers the question of “What might I do to enhance the wellness of my body/mind/spirit?” Even though I didn't answer that question intentionally, I included these things in my artwork (mental health practices, being outside, things I like to do etc.). Overall I am very happy with how this turned out and all of the learning experiences I had during this osprey block are definitely incorporated into my collage. 

To me, to live a “life well lived” means to have a healthy relationship with yourself and the view that you have on your life. To me it involves being healthy mentally and physically and knowing what is best for you. I also think that it is important to have happiness in your life well lived as an anchor. Things that I might do to enhance the wellness of my body/mind/spirit are doing check in meditations which we learned during this osprey block. I also would like to do more things such as exercise and things that bring me joy more often which we learned the way that those things can support our body and mind. A path of self exploration can add value to my human story by allowing me to make my story my own and know how to benefit myself in my story, helping me make a happy and fulfilling life story. Self exportation through writing for me being a part of my health and happiness can allow me to express myself. Personally I have noticed that writing brings out feelings that I didn’t know I had and helps me process things that I may be thinking about. It is in a sense a form of checking in and putting feelings into words, and this allows me to know what I may be feeling and can do to help myself. Throughout the process of this osprey block I feel that I showed up with an open mind and heart and allowed myself to enjoy the experience with less judgement and more of a “taking it in at the moment” mindset. I think this allowed me to take away things that I want to apply in real life. I normally just do the things (like meditation) during the time when it is required and never look back to do it again. But this time I showed up in a way that allowed me to realize that I actually want to keep doing these things in my life outside of the required times. If I could go back to the beginning and give myself a pep talk or some advice on how I want to show up for this experience I would tell myself to participate in things I may not want to do and try to find a way to be in the moment and just listen to what the teacher is saying. I would say this to myself because I felt that during meditation and class I found my mind wandering and wasn’t taking in what was being said and trying to understand it, like during the first week and during Lilly's lesson I wished I had been more in the moment. Overall though I think that I was able to enjoy the three weeks and had a great time. 

SLC EXPERINCE REFLECTION: 

During osprey block a transformative experience I had was going into a new thing that has no one that I really know with an open mind. This osprey block in particular focused a lot on self reflection and care. I think that helped me realize that I am able to get past struggles that happen to me and also show me ways that can help me. I was very thankful for the osprey block I was in because it helped me reflect on things and kind of refreshed me for the rest of the year and gave me an understanding of prioritizing your well-being and I think I am bringing a lot of that into the year ahead. Moving forward it changed my perspective on what it means to meditate and how important it is to love yourself and check in/reflect every once in a while. We did a lot of workshops with experts on these things and participated in multiple breathing, reflecting, self check in, self love, and mediation experiences. A lot of these things were ones designed for a space where you may not be able to go into a full blown practice and can do from your desk at school without anyone knowing. I was a little skeptical to begin with but in the end was appreciative.