What it's like to be an education major....

Personally, I think being an ed major is sweet! The courses are easy, but it's a lot of work.  Your goal is: to cater to your students!  Make sure that they're learning well and understanding what you're teaching them!  When I first became an ed major, I was scared to death.  I don't really function well around too many kids because I'll eventually lose my temper and kill a kid! haha!  But, I guess it takes practice.  

The first thing I noticed when I became an ed major, was that the majority of classes consisted of the female gender.  This has to be every man's dream! haha! Every single class had about 24 - 25 women, and rarely was there ever a guy in the class!  It's cool having so many women in your class, but there are disadvantages of having only women in the classroom.  You'll hear someone talking about how they broke up with their boyfriend, another one talking about the girl across the room, another one talking about how much she hates that class you're in, another one talking about how much her fieldwork site is so rundown... I can keep going! haha! So besides having all the beautiful women in one room, you all have the same goal to become a teacher, and you learn so much from each other. AND the education department is the nicest department on your campus!! TRUST ME! LoL! At least it is in mine!

A cool thing about an education major, is that you learn so many strategies of how to teach the different subjects that are being taught in the schools. It's crazy what you learn and wish that your teacher from elementary taught you that subject that way.  I took a course on how to teach math to students effectively, and I learned so many strategies that I wish my teachers taught me when I was going to school.  I've learned a lot these past 2 years that I have been at this school, and I'm trying my best to apply it in the classroom!  

Another good thing about being an education major, is that the courses are really easy.  They are easy! Trust me! They're stinkin' easy!  These courses just require a lot of work!  It's crazy! Even though it's a lot of work, and you have to be very detailed with your lesson plans, all that work is worth it in the long run because you'll get so use to these lesson plans that you'll learn to re-write them and make them better as you experience different kinds of students! It's awesome!

Another crazy thing about being an education major, is that you get to see a child grow and develop different learning skills within the four walls of your classroom.  YOU also have the privilege of showing them the world around them and the things that are happening in it! Witnessing a child learn something new is an amazing experience! So, even though I wont get much money, the experience is all the payment I need... I think! haha! Need to get that paper ya dig?? haha!

The start of my last year of college....

So my last year of college starts on Monday.  I'm excited but nervous at the same time.  I'm ready to get that degree and start teaching in the classrooms, but afraid of not being able to accomplish anything when I face the world.  Gosh!  It's really crazy how fast time flies by! It still feels like I just transferred to college out here in California.  

These past couple of days have been days of reflecting and thinking about the future.  I've reflected on how far I've come, and how thankful I am to have come this far.  I wouldn't have done it without the prayers and support of family and friends, and of course, God always having His hand over me everywhere I am.  When I graduate, I will be the first grandchild on my father's side with a bachelor's degree!  It's such a privilege and an honor to get this kind of degree because without the help and support of my immediate family, I wouldn't be receiving this degree.

I look forward to what this year has to offer, but a little sad at the same time because I know that this year is going to fly by and before I know it, I'm walking up on that stage receiving my degree.  I guess the one thing that I'm concerned about, is what I'm going to do after I graduate.  I'm thinking of teaching for a year and then aiming to enter SF State's education program to receive my Master's degree.  But we'll see.  My parents have two more kids to put through college, so after this last year, I'm pretty much on my own.  So, I'm just worried about being financially stable after college.  Yes, the Lord will provide, but that's no excuse to just lay back and do nothing.  I gotta work my butt off to enjoy the little luxuries of life... like FOOD! haha!  I'm ready to work hard and become more independent, but I'm scared at the same time.  

So here I am, a soon-to-be college graduate, trying to figure out what the next two years will look like for me.  Wherever I end up, that's where I'm suppose to be.  Life is crazy, I might end up in places I never thought I'd end up!  You know!!?? :)  Anyways, when I get it all figured out, I'll let you know what's going down with my life! :)  Good luck to everyone on the new school year!

Lauryn Hill on Def Poetry Jam

I love Lauryn Hill!!! This is a poem by Lauryn Hill that she gave on Def Poetry Jam. 

It's called Motives and Thoughts. She urges us to check our motives and thoughts.  

This poem is deep and just thought I share it with you!!! :) Enjoy!

Life at the moment...

I remember posting this on myspace.. thought it would be cool to post it on my blog page.. lemme know what you think!


I haven’t experienced anything recently that has reminded me of my mortality. This isn’t about death; it’s about me trying to learn more about life. Right now, my loved ones are probably sleeping peacefully in their beds as my eyes hurt, and my feet are a little cold; these are minor details, but it’s my life at the given time and moment. When I’m done, I may rush to make to-do lists, categorize my day in my head, decide who to write home to, tell myself I’ll use spring break to get ahead in classes, decide on whether I should get dressed now or try to cuddle, blah blah blah… or just sit still. Maybe I will engage in personal gratifying activities like counting my scars, playing in my hair, picking my nose, or in other words, I’d really like to just live my life. I don’t wish to spend all my time planning my life because anything can happen and in all reality, I can do anything at any giventime because I don’t live my life based on a schedule. I know I sound like a damn self-help book… but whatever! I am the only one capable of writing a book about how to help myself. I have to live my life, learn from my own mistakes, make my own judgments, and do what I want to do because in the end no one else is capable of living my life… just ME.

Family

So, I'm like thousands of miles away from home and immediate family and I get homesick very often. I guess it's cool that you have friends around you to comfort you and listen to what you have to say, but in my opinion, nobody understands you as well as family. It's true.. nobody knows you the way family does. They've been around you since you came into the world and have seen you grow into the person you are today. When sh** hits the fan, who's always there? Family. I remember coming home after a rough day at school, and I tried hiding it... I was doing great. Everyone didn't notice.. but my dad! I don't know, my mom use to always say "the things that you don't tell us, the Holy Spirit does." So, in other words, you can't hide anything from family. Because they're the ones who are always going to support you. This Christmas, I'm not going to be home. It's pretty sad to think about. I wrote a blog earlier about my baby sister, and she's usually the reason why I wanna come home. I'm missing a lot of her growing up. All my friends around, have family within traveling distance... and I don't mean relatives... I mean parents and siblings and pets! But me? I gotta wait for months to go back home. But not this year... I have to wait til graduation in May to see my family again. I gotta admit, it's gonna be hella hard, because going back home makes me feel refreshed in a way, and also reminds me of who I am and where I come from. So yeah, I know the year is going to go by fast, but there will be those days where it'll feel like the year aint going anywhere. Hopefully I'll be okay. I guess I'm just gonna have to call home EVERY DAY! :) I love my family and like my brother always says "Family is your backbone". So, although I wont be able to see my parents and siblings this Christmas, I know that they're praying for me and supporting me! I love you guys!!!

I fell in love with dwele...

LOL! On the weekend of my birthday, me and some of my best friends went to go see Dwele live at Yoshis in Oakland. At first, I was all like, this is going to be a good concert, but probably not as good as Ledisi's when I went this past winter. BUT... when the man started singing, I was like... I think I'm in love!! lol! He was a good host. BUT... I can honestly say, that I still haven't seen anyone as tyte as Ledisi. It was cool how Dwele came into the crowd and started dancing with all the beautiful women that were there! Was hoping he came to the back where we were! hahaha! Jus' bein' honest is all!

It's just crazy seeing so many cool singers and the musicians behind them. It inspires me to make more music and get better at singing! The horns that night were on point... when they started playing the first notes to Flap Jacks, the crowd went crazy! I went crazy too! haha! The guitar player was the same person who played for the gospel artist Marvin Sapp when he came to Stockton too! The drummer! OMG the drummer... where the heck do I begin?? The drummer was off the chain. Making runs that were blowin' my mind away! Gosh, there's nothing like listening to GOOD live music. Makes you wonder how much time and effort these people put into making such good music. I have friends who practice for hours and are so good at what they play! The bass player was tyte too! Gosh he was tyte! The sound system kinda sucked, but it was cool. As long as I can hear Dwele. :)

So yeah, I'm in love with Dwele... well, just his voice! :) I'm in love with his voice. So stay tuned for more about concerts I go to. If I have the money to go to them! haha! :)

So I got a macbook...

So my HP laptop died on me the other day. I would turn it on, and before it could even start up the whole way, it would turn off and then turn itself back on and do this over and over again. I grew up on PC, and no matter how gay they are sometimes, I still purchase them. But this past week, I guess I got fed up, and I called my dad and we tried everything to fix the darn computer, but it still wouldn't work. So, I asked my dad for a macbook, and he bought me one!!! I know I know, I'm a spoiled brat! Hahaha!

So yeah, here I am, writing this blog on my aunt's computer, excited to see my macbook when I get back home. I'm somewhat familiar with macbooks, but hey, if you got any pointers for me, just comment! But yeah, I look forward to the adventures that I'll be having with my new macbook! :)

Yosemite

So, this past Thursday Randy and I along with two other friends went to Yosemite. It was a spontaneous trip and so when we got there, we had the hardest time looking for a camp site. I never had a camping experience before, and so when we finally found a camp site, we set up our tents, made smores and went to bed. I woke up to a woodpecker pecking a tree and making the weirdest noises. I was paranoid throughout the whole night because last time I came to Yosemite, a stinkin' bear ate all my food. But, thankfully, there was no bear! :) Anyway, the next day, we had noodles for breakfast and packed up our stuff.... Keep in mind that we didn't find our camp site til like 1 or 2 in the morning, so we didn't pay anything. So, when we had the car packed, we saw a ranger walking around making sure that everyone was at their camp site and paid for. So, we all rushed into the car and Randy just took off! Just a bunch of rebels I know! haha! But yeah, we hiked to the top of Vernal Falls, which was so beautiful!!! It was a really hard hike, but I made it! I conquered that mountain!!! Hopefully next time when we go to Yosemite, we'll do half dome or whatever one is next on the list!!!

What was also cool about Yosemite, was looking at God's creation. Everything looked so majestic in Yosemite. Despite the pestering of squirrels and blue jays, just seeing the beauties that God has placed on this Earth for us to enjoy is just so breath taking. Walking into Yosemite was like walking into a different world. I live on an island, and the islands have their own beauty, and Yosemite definitely has its own beauty. I look forward to returning there and seeing more of God's wonderful creation!!!

Brighter Day by Kirk Franklin

Here's a song to get you through your day! :) No matter what you're going through, just know that it's gonna be a brighter day because God loves you!!! I'll be postin' up new stuff this coming week!!!! Woot woot!

My baby sister...

So this is my baby sister Vaiala Lealofi.  She turns 3 in December. She is the funniest sister that I ever had!  When she first came home, it was during my last year of junior college back home.  So I spent my whole Christmas break taking care of her before I left for college here in California.  So basically, I'm missing her grow up.  Every time I talk with my family back home, I hear stories of how she's growing up so fast and how smart she is.  She started talking at 1 and knew both the ABCs and the Samoan alphabet by the age of 2.  And now, she speaks fluent Samoan and is such a joy to my family.  

I miss her so much.  My mom told me this one story that when she was getting in trouble for beating up another kid, my dad told her to come into the room so he can talk to her and so she says to my dad in Samoan "hold on dad, let me go caca!" minutes later she comes out of the bathroom and says in Samoan "hold on dad, let me wash my hands!"... after that, she comes out and says to my dad "what is it dad? what do you want? i'm coloring.. hurry up!" 

It's crazy how fast kids grow up.  It felt like last year I was only 20 and now I'm 23!  But, I'm grateful that God has blessed me and my family with this little one.  I just pray that she grows up to be a woman of God and that God uses her in a mighty way.  I can only say so much... you have to meet her to know what I'm talking about! :) Overall, she's a bundle of joy! I love you Vaiala! 

My best friends...

are amazing!!! So these are my best friends! The girls from left to right: Reesa, me, AJ, Alysha and Nicole. The guys from left to right: Mark, Randy and Alex. It's crazy how we all came to be best friends. We all met randomly and were brought together by God and music. Each one of them is unique in their own way and are all sooooo stinkin talented! It's ridiculously amazing! :) These people saved my life! Yes they did!

Before I met them, I was this person who was very reserved and held so much in. I felt like I was suppose to just come to school and go back and help out my family which isn't bad at all. I don't know, I was bound by culture and what the norms had for me. I had my script written out for me: go to school, get a degree and then come home and put your sisters through college. I thought the plan was cool, but was that it? Is that all life has to offer me? So, as those questions were sitting in the back burner of my mind, Mark introduced me to the band. And there, I met all these great people. I met AJ and Reesa a little later, but they too have made an impact on my life as well. These people showed me that God has great plans for all of us... and in order for those plans to unfold, we gotta trust in God and let him take over.

I remember hearing this one sermon about the plans that we have for ourselves. The preacher encouraged and challenged us to instead of laying down our agenda to God and seeing what He thinks about it, why not just give God a blank sheet of paper and see what He has in store for us? So right now, I made the decision to just wait and see what God has for me. My best friends helped me realize that there is so much out there that God has for us... we shouldn't just settle because God only offers the best... He's GOD! So, right now, I'm just trusting and believing that God will come through not only for me, but for my best friends as well. Every day I thank God for these 7 people... I've learned so much from each of them!

I learned how to look more like a girl from my amazing sisters Cole and Lysha! haha! :) I learned how to be more laid back like Mark.. I learned to keep trying til you get it from Randy... I learned to try to stay on top of things from Alex and I was reminded to do everything not for myself but for God from my sisters AJ and Reesa. I've learned much more from each of them, but these are the first things I learned from them when I first gotten to know them :) Bottom line: I love these guys so much! They're my family away from family.. the sugar in my cool-aid! kidding.. :) There's so much more to say... but I'll save that for later!!!!

Mic Check....

So I love to sing. Ever since I was a kid I always wanted to be a famous singer. Never really worked out because my parents said there was no money in music, and so I decided to become a teacher; another profession where there is no money! haha! Pretty funny huh? Anyways, I joined a band and it's been awesome. We do lead worship at church and do outside gigs as well, and it's been a crazy ride so far.

I think the only thing I'm worried about is my voice. I'm originally an alto, but in the band I sing soprano. It's been an awesome summer and it's really drained my vocal chords. I don't think my voice has gotten to rest in three or four weeks. It's a little crazy and it worries me too. Hopefully as the semester starts, I'll be able to rest. But despite the straining of my "pipes", I still think singing is awesome. I just hope I don't lose my voice permanently in the process! haha!

So tonight, my band Tipping Point will be singing at Harvest Church. Come out and support if you want! Also, this Saturday is Open Mic Night at the Congregation of Zion at 7:30pm I believe. If you didn't come to the first one, you should definitely come to the second one! It will be awesome!!!

Pause by Lisa McClendon

When life gets crazy, sometimes you just gotta step back and think about things... This is a song by one of my favorite singers Lisa McClendon. Hopefully it'll help you relax throughout your day! :)

I'm getting FAT!

This past weekend, I found out that I weigh 125 pounds. Last year, I was 105... and a couple of months ago, I was 115. Hahaha! It's pretty crazy what American fast food can do to you in so little time! Weighing myself was like a really big eye opener for me! So I decided to do something about it. I have a wonderful boyfriend who goes jogging everyday and so I decided to go jogging with him. Boy did I suck! I couldn't even make it around the corner of the street! But I did feel the burn, and it did feel good!

After running, I realized that my diet was bad too. I hung out with my two sisters this past weekend and one of them (Alysha) was telling me that she started on a diet. It seemed like a reasonable diet, and so I started thinking and being cautious about what I was eating during the day. So yesterday, I ate a bagel and some yogurt, then had chicken fetuccini (made by my awesome boyfriend Randy) for lunch and had some brussell sprouts with rice for dinner. I think that's a pretty good start right?? I do not know!! I'll have to ask somebody!

So yeah, it's a new day and here I am sitting in front of my computer with a bagel on my lap, a yogurt on my desk next to a small bowl of strawberries and a big glass of cranberry juice. Hopefully this will all get me back on the right track of staying healthy. And if that doesn't work... I don't know what will!!

Me and My Life So Far...

Hey what's up to all my followers! :) My name is Della. I'm 23 years old and I am currently situated in Stockton, CA. Just thought I share a little bit about me, since this is my first blog. I was born in Seattle, but raised in American Samoa. I'm a pretty chill person and yeah... I'm normal! I came to Stockton in January of 2007, and had the biggest cultural shock of my life! I hated my first year out here but as time went on, I got use to it. I made friends and got along with people around me. Then, last year, I made the ultimate decision to join a band!

Where do I even start?... The band that I'm in is called Tipping Point, and we are about a year and four months old. There are 8 of us altogether and the cool thing about us is that we're all best friends! I met everyone in April of last year. We all met randomly at church and became a worship team. Weeks later... we became a band. Yes.. WEEKS! Over the months, our lead singer and worship leader left.. and yeah.. we were pretty much devastated. But, we learned from it. Then we met these two awesome young ladies on YOUTUBE (AJ and Reesa) and we all fell in love! LOL! So, we lost a member but gained two. I tell you, only God can do that! :) And now, we're going places we never dreamed of or thought of and it's just an awesome experience.

As for me, I'm learning something new everyday by being in a band and all the other things that I'm involved in. There are times where things really drain me, but honestly, it's all worth it! It's hard trying NOT to do things on your own... but you learn to do it more and more as you keep making them mistakes. This aint the end.. so stay tuned for more things.. thanks for reading! Sorry it's so long!!