Erik Hanberg

Unfortunately, I have caught the cold/flu and missed Erik Hanberg’s presentation in class. Luckily since I had taken Professor Fry’s class a couple years ago I did have an opportunity to meet Mr. Hanberg. I remember various things he had done such as writing a book just to see if he could, and various other things he had done such as being a nonprofit coach, elected park commissioner, and self-made novelist. The things he talked about related to finding your own opportunities and taking a chance at things. I remember thinking at the time that Erik was insane. The thought of trying something just to see if you could, was such a foreign concept to me, as I lived life playing it safe doing things I knew I was good at, and not venturing too far from it. A couple years later I now realize being too afraid to even take a step forward toward the unknown is the same thing as refusing to grow as a human being. If we do not take steps out of our boundaries there is nothing new for us to learn. I remember thinking back to my early college career, and I can not help but cringe at how closed off I was. All the missed opportunities I had let slip by, not taking risks in meeting new people and discovering new ideologies, and viewpoints. Learning that there is more to life then what I had experienced up to that point in my life.