American Magazine: November 2016

wonk
American asks four wonks
to weigh in on a single topic.
THIS ISSUE: GROWTH
ANDREA BONIOR
CAS/MA ’02
CAS/PHD ’04
MIKE
MASTROTA
LEON TOLKSDORF
KOGOD/BSBA ’16
KOGOD/MS ’17
MARK
SCHAEFER
ILLUSTRATIONS BY TRACI DABERKO
Growth often is thought of as
wholly positive, but I also help
people stop the growth of
something—typically negative
emotions like resentment.
Resentment corrodes
relationships, and usually
originates with feelings that
are tough to deal with: anger,
disappointment, or envy. You
might be tempted to ignore those
feelings, like your hurt over a
chronically late partner or a
colleague’s undeserved promotion.
But avoiding and stuffing down
the feelings grows the resentment.
It helps to be more mindful of
your thoughts and allow yourself
to feel what you feel, even when it
is difficult, scary, or embarrassing.
You’ll move on much more quickly
if you face feelings honestly;
bottling them up makes them grow
more powerful. Avoid creating an
emotional pressure cooker. When
you face your feelings, then you
can choose how to deal with them
in a much healthier way.
Bonior is a clinical psychologist and
“Baggage Check” columnist for the
Washington Post Express.
Any time you’re talking about a
landscape, it’s an ever-changing
environment. Plants are a
reflection of that environment.
Our climate in Washington, DC,
is nice in that you can watch a
plant change and evolve. Every
year it gets larger. Trees grow,
and things that are under them
grow as it becomes more shady.
You can actually observe
the different stages of plant
growth here on campus. One of
the nice things about our campus
is the stately oak trees that line
the quad. They’ve certainly
grown to a mature condition,
which really says a lot about the
university. It says the university’s
been here a long time, it’s
grounded, it’s elegant.
You can see a tree that’s over
100 years old on the quad next
to a tree that’s 10 or 15 years old.
I think students are starting to
connect how the university is a
steward of the land, planting for
future generations.
Mastrota is AU’s landscape architect.
I’m six-foot-six. Starting in
elementary school, I’ve always
been taller than most of my
classmates. I grew constantly, it
wasn’t like I grew a ton over one
summer. In the beginning when I
was in elementary school I didn’t
like it too much because all of
my friends were one height and I
was just the tall guy that always
stood out. When you grow up
and stick out one way or another,
it’s not the best.
But then as I became better
at basketball I started to value it
more. I could dunk when I was
14. I guess I stopped growing
about three years ago, so at this
point there are definitely taller
people on the team.
Being asked over and over
again, “How tall are you?” gets
annoying, but you get used to it.
You hear lines like, “What’s the
view like up there?” It doesn’t
really bother me, though. At this
point I’m perfectly fine with my
height. I wouldn’t want it any
other way.
Tolksdorf is a forward on the men’s
basketball team.
People in my profession talk about
spiritual growth all the time, but
rarely is it defined. Unlike other
kinds of growth, there is little
objective measure.
My earliest spirituality was
handed down through parents
and pastors, distilled into simple
nuggets that I could handle. God
is all powerful. If you’re good you
go to heaven when you die. But as
I got older, the mantle of my
childhood faith no longer fit.
Encounters with people of
different religions, an honest
appreciation for the teachings of
science, and a thoughtful look at
the suffering and injustice in the
world made it clear that the faith
of my childhood had to grow.
As adults, we have to forsake
easy answers and become more
comfortable with mystery, leave
behind certainty in favor of doubt,
and deemphasize belief in favor
of faith. While that growth may
cost us something in terms of
simplicity or certainty, what we
gain is so much more meaningful.
Schaefer is AU’s new university chaplain—
the 10th person to hold the post.
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