Adventure Time

What are the most exciting adventures you have had in your life so far? (it can be your adventure being here in the United States) Why?  What adventures do you look forward to or aspire to do in the future? Why? Why do you think adventures are important in a person’s life?

The most exciting adventures I have had in my life are the trips I have had with my parents to the Caribbean Islands of Bermuda, Jamaica, and Haiti.  The reason I found those adventures to be the most exciting was because I got to explore a completely different area from where I am from and I got to observe how people from from distant places live in their environments.  Specifically with the country of Haiti this was an adventure of origin because it is where my parents are from originally.
An adventure that I aspire to do in the future is visit a country in the Eastern World (China would be my first choice).  The reason for this is because of the experience I have had in this program mentoring students from there.  

Volunteer Work

PROMPT: 

What type of community service do you find the most important? Why?  What could you do to get your community to be more involved in this type of services?

I personally believe the most valuable type of service that can be offered is anything relating to housing.  The reason I believe housing is so important is because having a comfortable place to sleep is something everyone needs in life.  Without housing it is nearly impossible for a person to find a job and it would be very hard for them to feel motivated if they did not have a place of comfort to go back to at the end of the day.  I personally have had the opportunity to do some service work with a group called Habitat for Humanity in New Jersey.  Their main goal is to build affordable housing for families who are in need of it.

In addition to housing another type of community service that I believe is very important is education.  I also have personal experience in this type of service through my family because they originate from the third world country Haiti.  Educational opportunities are very hard to come by in the town of Jeremie where my parents originated from.  Because of this hardship for the youth in the town friends of parents started an organization that would help give scholarship to outstanding students, supplying them with facilities and tools need for a better education so they can be more prospective for international universities.  Although I have not had the opportunity to visit Haiti, I have assisted with fundraising events here in New Jersey and New York that help raise awareness for education in the town of Jeremie, Haiti.  

Performances

What type of performances do you enjoy the most?  What makes you like these performances?  Please illustrate your responses. You may choose to discuss the Broadway show or the Yankees game in your response.  

The type of performance I personally enjoy watching the most is acting, generally on television or film.  The reason I find acting form of performance most interesting is because visually and audibly I am able to be convinced the people on screen are completely different people from who they really are (the actors).  Film and television in my opinion allows for limitless creativity in storytelling in terms of the characters, the plot, and setting.  In addition to the limitless creativity with this type of performance because of technology it is very easy to rewatch these types of performances where you can view it again and examine aspects of it you may have not noticed about it initially.    

This is one of my favorite situation comedy (sitcoms) shows to watch.  It depicts the story of a man's recollection of how he met his childrens' mother.  Because of the easy accessibility of television shows such as this I frequently catch reruns of it despite having already seen every episode of it.  

Self Expression through Speech - Charlie Chaplin's Great Dictator Speech

Charlie Chaplin's Great Dictator Speech - Typography

If you were in Chaplin's position and needed to give a speech, what things would you say that you feel would make the world we live in a better place.  Please include photos in your response.  For example you can use photos you took of this weekend of monuments and memorials of great American leaders and comment on how they made the world a better place.  You can also use photos to illustrate your response your ideas.

I think of the most important parts of a speech to for the betterment of the world would be a strong emphasis on cultural sensitivity.  In order for people to work together in a peaceful way understanding of each other would be a key factor to this.  Lack of understanding a culture can lead to conflict, and I believe a widespread use of cultural sensitivity would be a crucial step in creating a more peaceful world.
Part of improving the world cultural sensitivity entails education of other cultures.  Frequently there are many misconceptions and stereotypes of certain cultures because of how they are depicted in the media as opposed to how they can be explained directly.  For example before becoming a mentor for this program there were several ideas I had about the Chinese culture based on what I had learned through media.  Being immersed in this program has helped improve my cultural sensitivity in truly learning the life of a Chinese University student.  In addition to accurate education (instead of stereotypical media) I believe it is important for students and adults a like to make attempts to connect with people from foreign places.  Having direct interaction with people from other cultured would surely improve their cultural sensitivity.  
     

Here is a picture of Buddha statue (head) which is wildly know for being a peaceful symbol in Asian cultures.  

Origins

     Both sides of my family are originally from the Caribbean island of Haiti.  Although I have only visited Haiti once the presence of the culture was strong in my household here in New Jersey.   A large part of my personal origin is the constant reminder from Haitian parents on the importance of school.  Education and working towards success is a key message children of Haitian parents will frequently receive.  I believe this part of my parents culture had an impact on my work ethic.  

     In addition to my family playing a big role on my origins there is also the town that I born and raised, Bloomfield, NJ.  As I grew up the town became very diverse with a various ethnic groups mixed together in the school system.  This helped me become more culturally sensitive growing up in this kind of setting.  

Origins Clips

Origins Clips

Teamwork, Ropes, Birds and Crabs...

The Importance of Teamwork

Ropes Course

One of the groups at the ropes course working together to carefully pour "radioactive fuel" into a container.

How come the birds were not able to achieve good teamwork?

Based on the videos, what characteristics/qualities are needed for a good team?

What similarities (good or bad) between what you did in the ropes course and these videos?

PROMPT:

Based on your experience at the ropes course and video clip viewed, what are the most important qualities for team members to have and why? What aspects of teamwork come easy to you? Why is it easier for you?  What aspects of teamwork are difficult for you?  Why is it difficult?

Patience is a very important quality for a team member to have.  Although a person may be excited to finish a  goal with their team right away, being impatient can make it difficult for them to communicate with the rest of the team which could compromise what they are working on.  The aspect of team work that comes easy to me is being able to communicate with my teammates and understand their point of view  Patience is a difficult part about teamwork for me because I am personally a person who like to accomplish tasks as soon as possible..