I enjoyed the books we read in this course. Had they not
been assigned to me, I may never have had read them. They were tough to read at
times, but I think it is important that people push through those tough reads
to gain an understanding of the things that are going on in this world and to
gain a perspective through someone else's eyes. The blog posts that we did
before each book were helpful to building some background knowledge to help us
have a deeper understanding of what was taking place in the book. The one time
the roles were reversed for me was with the book, Revolution is not a Dinner Party. The research beforehand, although
helpful, did not capture my attention, however, once I read the book, I became
more interested in learning about the Cultural Revolution in China. I think
this may have been because it became more of a personal experience reading it
through the eyes of a young girl living
through it. As for the projects, I think I learned the most during the border
issue presentations. It was interesting to see all these different border
disputes that are taking place across the world and some of the similarities
(resources, stubbornness) as well as differences in each dispute.
We
tackled a lot of issues in this class. The hardest for me was the issue of
human trafficking. It is heartbreaking and it feels so overwhelming to think of
what a huge issue this is and if there is any way we can rid the world of such
a horrific crime. Culture was definitely the underlying theme through each
issue because every culture affects how see and deal with issues. I learned a lot about border issues, especially in regards to
the Mexico/United States border issue. You
hear about it all time, especially around election time, but it is put in such
black and white terms; then you hear the personal stories and you look at it a
little differently. I think that is a good thing, because we need to have
different perspectives and understandings when it comes to important issues
like the ones we have discussed throughout class.
I took
two important thoughts out of this class. The first one was in remembering that
we are all connected and that even though, something may be taking place on the
other side of the world, it still should matter to us and we should be informed
and care about it. The second would be to step back when you become overwhelmed
with the problems of the world and think about
what you can do, even if it something small, to make the world a better
place. It can be as small as a simple smile to a stranger, even when you are in
a bad mood and hating the world to participating in your community in some way.
It makes me think of a Mother Teresa
quote that goes, "Not all of us can do great things, but we can do small
things with great love." That is
what I will take from this class and try to remember when life's problems seem
too great and overwhelming and that there is nothing of importance I can do, I
will focus on what little I can do and then do that with 100% intention and
love.
For my
plan of action, I was thinking one thing I could do is each month, pick an
issue or event and sit down with my children (ages 12 and 15) and discuss these
things with them. We could each do some sort of research and share with each
other what we have learned. I think this would be a good way to set my children
on a path of looking outside their world and taking time and effort to learn
and understand what others are going through. Hopefully from there, we can
discuss ways we can help in those situations or what we can do to be more
active in making this world a better place. I feel this is a good plan of action
because it will be two more people in this world, that will go forth with an
intention to be a positive influence in this world, through knowledge and
understanding, and with a consciousness
of how their thoughts and actions can make a impact on the world around them.
