Week 5

It has officially been over a month since I started this internship. I have been thinking about the work we have been doing over the past few weeks. Much of what we have focused on is solidifying our groundwork that we did last semester, as I have talked about in past posts. I have also talked about how what we are doing are things that my previous professors have talked about. Perhaps it’s the end of my college journey that has me thinking about my previous classes. I have been working towards this degree for the past five years. Now it is only a few months away. Back in high school, it was always a grievance me and my classmates had that we felt we weren’t learning anything that would help us in the future. Looking back now, I see the value in those classes I took even if I didn’t then. They all taught me something, but now I am simply looking back to my college classes.

Since much of what we have been working on is checking sources, grammar, and citations. I have been thinking a lot about what professors have told me about working in history. It was always nice to hear them talk about the work they did outside of the class and hear them talk about their school experiences. One of my professors told us about his thesis work and how he wanted to make sure we were getting the writing skills we needed to graduate school. I took his class twice and both times the goal was to improve our writing skills and arguments. Although it has only been a month, I am starting to see what many were talking about. This is the work no one sees but is crucial to the field of history. All these little details will come together into the story we are telling. As I have been checking over my graduation requirements and making sure they are in order, my past classes have been something I have been mulling over and will probably continue to reflect on in the coming weeks.

Besides working and reflecting, I discussed the battle of Olustee with a close friend. She wanted to know about what I am working on in my internship. She enjoyed hearing about the history and what we want to see happen. It was nice to hear what she thought about it, to hear an outside perspective on the subject. Her opinion has always meant a lot and to hear her talk about how she agrees that it's important. That perhaps one family member related to a soldier at Olustee may come across the work we are doing. It’s encouraging. Maybe it’s something small, but it was genuinely good to hear her interest in the subject. This is what we are working towards, so others can hear the stories of these soldiers. These men deserve recognition, and we continue to work towards that.