Relevance- Cultural Appropriation
What was the most memorable stand-out in your mind about class this week?
What was the most surprising or unexpected idea expressed in this week's class?
What was the most surprising or unexpected idea expressed in this week's class?
I love learning about and experiencing different cultures- that's why I find issues like cultural appropriation so interesting. In class, as we were getting started with looking at semiology, we watched this video and this video to analyze the kinds of messages that were being communicated by Floyd Mayweather and Oscar De La Hoya. This made me think about cultural appropriation and articles like this one that try to explain what cultural appropriation is in our modern society. As someone who frequently explores and appreciates the cultures of the world, it was a good exercise to review what cultural appropriation is and reflect on how respectful I am of each culture I encounter.
Interest- Success
What was the most useful idea discussed in class this week?
What example or illustration cited in this week's class could you relate to the most?
What example or illustration cited in this week's class could you relate to the most?
One afternoon, Mr. Enrique posed this question to the class:
How would you know you were successful if there weren't any grades?
This really got me thinking. It seems like there is always going to be some indicator of success- that could be good grades, high scores, money, or material possessions. This is the way we are taught to think, at least. This question challenged me to think about what success really means. I probably will never have the answer to this question, but I know a few things about success. The first is that success is a feeling. Wether or not your physical symbols of success bring you the bliss of feeling successful, that's what it is. The second thing that I realized is that from the moment that we are toddlers, we are taught to seek approval and indicators of success from the "outside" world, as opposed to what we feel inside. We are scolded and don;t know any better than to allow the negative feelings we get to make us change the way that we do things in order to get acceptance in the future. This works well for disciplining a child, but it ingrains a need for exterior approval within us. Then, instead of accepting ourselves for who we are as living individuals, we scold ourselves in order to make ourselves "successful". The third thought I had was that, ultimately, we define our own success. This can be really scary, because our idea of success might not be other people's idea of success. But, since life is so unique and complex, it's really unfair to have a strict definition of success- maybe the journey itself, mistakes and all, is the definition of success.
How would you know you were successful if there weren't any grades?
This really got me thinking. It seems like there is always going to be some indicator of success- that could be good grades, high scores, money, or material possessions. This is the way we are taught to think, at least. This question challenged me to think about what success really means. I probably will never have the answer to this question, but I know a few things about success. The first is that success is a feeling. Wether or not your physical symbols of success bring you the bliss of feeling successful, that's what it is. The second thing that I realized is that from the moment that we are toddlers, we are taught to seek approval and indicators of success from the "outside" world, as opposed to what we feel inside. We are scolded and don;t know any better than to allow the negative feelings we get to make us change the way that we do things in order to get acceptance in the future. This works well for disciplining a child, but it ingrains a need for exterior approval within us. Then, instead of accepting ourselves for who we are as living individuals, we scold ourselves in order to make ourselves "successful". The third thought I had was that, ultimately, we define our own success. This can be really scary, because our idea of success might not be other people's idea of success. But, since life is so unique and complex, it's really unfair to have a strict definition of success- maybe the journey itself, mistakes and all, is the definition of success.
Additional Thoughts- Serving and Communicating
What is/was the significance of the lessons in this week?
What is the relationship of this week's activities to the "real world"?
What is the relationship of this week's activities to the "real world"?
This week, I had the chance to travel to Ensenada, Mexico with my church youth group in order to work in collaboration with YUGO Ministries to construct a home for a family in need. Our group of 10 youth and 8 adults completed a home for a mother and her daughter in a total of three days. It was a wondrous thing to see how one physical structure made by a small group of inexperienced missionaries could transform some people's lives and the surrounding community in such a short amount of time.
Aside from the physical change that I had the privilege of witnessing, I got an invaluable experience from being among the three Spanish speakers in my group. Throughout the time of our visit, I fell into the role of the primary interpreter between our mission group, the family, and construction leaders. Being some people's only means of communication across both a language and cultural barrier opened my eyes to how my unique perspective could be used to serve others. I felt like I was in the place that I needed to be at the time that I needed to be there.
Interestingly, when I returned to school, I found that my class had begun studying art as activism. In humanities, we are focusing on Semiology, or the science of signs. In art, we are delving into academic texts about community art and activism. I see that both of my classes are guiding me to have a more profound understanding of the life lessons that I experienced this weekend. Now, I have first hand experience of how applicable my language skills can be in my field of study and my career.
Sometimes, little things line up in kind of a perfect way to show me exactly what I need to know.
Aside from the physical change that I had the privilege of witnessing, I got an invaluable experience from being among the three Spanish speakers in my group. Throughout the time of our visit, I fell into the role of the primary interpreter between our mission group, the family, and construction leaders. Being some people's only means of communication across both a language and cultural barrier opened my eyes to how my unique perspective could be used to serve others. I felt like I was in the place that I needed to be at the time that I needed to be there.
Interestingly, when I returned to school, I found that my class had begun studying art as activism. In humanities, we are focusing on Semiology, or the science of signs. In art, we are delving into academic texts about community art and activism. I see that both of my classes are guiding me to have a more profound understanding of the life lessons that I experienced this weekend. Now, I have first hand experience of how applicable my language skills can be in my field of study and my career.
Sometimes, little things line up in kind of a perfect way to show me exactly what I need to know.