Random Tolkein Quote of the Day

"I have chosen Mr. Baggins and that ought to be enough for all of you.  If I say he is a Burglar, a Burglar he is, or will be when the time comes.  There is a lot more in him than you guess, and a deal more than he has any idea of himself." -Gandalf, The Hobbit

Last week, I found out that I get to be involved in an awesome weekend for freshmen again next year as a leader.  As a result, I've been thinking a lot about  the qualities of a leader and how I can become a good leader lately.  Then, I was on a bus to New York City on Saturday, and I was reading The Hobbit again.  It occurred to me that Gandalf, Thorin, and even Bilbo are leaders in one way or another.  I think Gandalf and Thorin are kind of obvious, but Bilbo grows a lot over the course of The Hobbit, and takes the lead when other characters start to lose faith in themselves.

But, Gandalf is one of the more obvious characters who shows leadership qualities in Tolkien's novels.  I love the faith that Gandalf puts in the characters he interacts with.  Throughout both The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, he sees the potential for growth in other characters; and, he's not afraid to tell them when they fail to meet up with his expectations.   He frequently mocks or ridicules for errors they make.  Though his comments may come off as harsh or mean-hearted, I think it can really be interpreted as tough love.  In the quotation above, Gandalf stands up for Bilbo when the dwarves question his abilities.  Although he implies that Bilbo may not quite be the "burglar" they need at the moment, Gandalf expresses confidence in Bilbo's ability to grow into that role.  According to Gandalf, Bilbo has "a lot more in him than you guess, and a deal more than he has any idea of himself" (19).  The truth is, we all need someone to see the potential.  Everyone has some aspect of their life that is in need of improvement.  To have the ability to see the potential in others, no matter how obscure or undeveloped, is an admirable quality and one that will lead to success in whatever endeavor the group is working to achieve.

That's all I have to say on the topic for the time being, folks.  I'm thinking about making another blog where I can discuss Lord of the Rings and Tolkien exclusively.  What do you all think?

Reasons Why I Like School (Because I Really Need to Be Reminded Right Now...)

1. I enjoy learning; I really do.  Reading a book for a class is fun to me because it means that we're going to take it apart and discuss it.  The problem lies when I don't get anything out of the discussion as a result of a variety of reasons.
2. I like being with a group of people who also want to learn.  When you actually have a good group (like I have with my Early American Literature class at the moment), I feel useful and we actually get something done.  In the end, I think we all come out of it understanding the topic more thoroughly.
3. The professor has a certain amount of expertise in the subject you're learning.  As a result, being in a class taught by that person means that you get to hear an expert talk about their field of study.  The issues only begin when that person cannot effectively communicate that expertise in an understandable manner, which is disappointing because, and I said in #1, I enjoy learning.
4. I've had the opportunity to meet a variety of different people from all different backgrounds.  When we all come together to work in a group, that means everyone has something to contribute, even if it's simply a different perspective on the assignment.
5. I have some awesome people to call friends.  Between the groups that are or were in my classes--such as my Art Ed peeps--or the people who live in my building or from Getaway Weekend, I have some fun people to talk to and hang out with outside of class.
6. I have fun stuff to do outside of class.  No more hanging around at home for me.  If I tried, somebody would probably drag me out to do something fun.

Unfortunately, I must cut this short as I need to finish some things for the aforementioned Early American Literature class.   Don't stay up too late tonight, peeps.  There's places to go and people to see tomorrow.