Delving Deeper Into the Surface of the World

Easter Sunday in Sri Lanka 253 people were killed and over 400 injured as a result of a targeted attack primarily against Christians and tourists. These bombings occurred in several Churches and hotels throughout the island. On a day when people were praising and praying others sought to create violence and chaos. Hearing this was incredibly troubling to me. As I sat in an Easter Service of my own I thought about those who were doing the same thing but at the wrong time and place. It caused sadness within me but also caused me to be grateful for where I am. I realized how often things like this happen across the world and even in this nation, albeit not on the same scale, yet I am fortunate enough to live in a place where I don't worry about such things. This, however, does not give me an excuse not to care. It is because of this that I originally sought out the GIP program. To prevent myself from falling in a cycle of apathy or an emotional catharsis for special news stories. Duri...

Late last week I had the privilege of taking over Mr. Feldmeth's World Cultures class and teaching a lesson centered around education in Latin America. This topic came as a result of careful consideration of what I was truly interested in regarding a global context. To find this topic I started out by simply thinking of domestic issues that I can relate to. Being at Poly access to quality education or lack thereof does not necessarily apply to me, however, through previous experiences, as well as relatives and close friends who do have experience regarding this issue, it remains one close to my heart. The second criteria I used when determining the topic was "what is something that connects to everything?" this is a category I think education fits perfectly in. During the class itself, I was incredibly proud and surprised by the participation and engagement from the students. The activities and recommendation from Mr. Caragher to use leading questions rather than simply d...

Poly has had the privilege of having Mr. Pond speak on its campus twice in the last four years. While I, unfortunately, was not present for the first, I was enthralled at being able to attend the most recent one. Pond is someone who can be presented as a role model for just about anything. He started off the night by sharing some details from his past and revealing many of his experiences to the audience. As someone who has survived a horrible atrocity, the fact that Pond is able and willing to share his experiences is inspiring in it of itself. He focused on his survival of the Cambodian genocide and the bullying that ensued after he arrived in America. His own experiences were a true testimony to how powerful stories are, an idea that he has been trying to teach for some time. However, what particularly struck me, was what Pond was doing in his communities. This side of him which takes what he knows and puts into action concrete solution is even more inspiring. He mentioned some work...

Just a few weeks ago Miry, the founder of Miry's list, led a class discussion during my International Relations class. The timing of this was perfect as one of the topics we were covering in class was the current influx of immigrants across the world. Miry's list is a non-profit devoted to helping refugees gain citizenship, acclimate, and overall just feel welcome during a confusing and impossible time in their lives. One of the main focuses during the class, however, was doing our best to recognize, or rather get a sliver of what these refugees might be going through. Seeing these refugees as people, with names and families, rather than a number found on a news source. We discussed a few of the overwhelming feelings these refugees may be facing and focused on some that seem like basic human rights.  For example safety and security. Without these two feelings, almost everything else one could be expected to do is significantly harder. We also talked about the impact a situation...

Just last week I was honored to co-host Vanessa Hua's appearance on campus. Ms. Hua known for her many accomplishments focused on one of her short stories as well as the esteemed novel "A River of Stars". However, her presentation provided much more than an in-depth analysis of her works, but rather a deeper insight into her own goals and writing processes. She started off the evening by introducing one of her short stories based on a Student who falsely claimed acceptance to Stanford and attended the university for a short period of time. With this, she brought up an important question I'm sure all artists and writers struggle with: Wheather or not they can depict or tell a story outside of their own experiences. Ms. Hua described her focus on ensuring a story is as accurate as possible, especially when it's not created from her own experiences. This led directly into a major focus in her writing which is being mindful of how much her writing appears to speak for...

This post, while maybe not completely apparent from the title, is a reflection on Ms. Reyna Grande's presentation. Her presentation was centered around her book "The Distance Between Us". Through her willingness to share about her book she also opened up to the audience and shared her own life's story: her trials, tribulations, and successes. Her success story was incredible and inspiring I'm sure to the whole audience. However, what I found most impactful was the crowd whom she brought together and the fellowship that ensued afterward. Something Poly's GIP program has strived to do is open up its programs and reach out to the greater Pasadena community, which I believe has reached a tipping point after Ms. Grande's presentation. Her story was one that people from an array of Pasadena schools both public and private, collegiate and high school level came to hear. This I see as the most important piece of her presentation. Not what she said but what she sto...