Growing up with very little money, I realized at a young age how vital it is for families, and communities as a whole to come together to help one another. Without the support of many people, I personally would not be where I am today, a senior in college with the world at my feet. To know this, is to know how important it is to help others, whether that means through small daily acts, or in large ways, such as this experience would be. While I would like to say that joining the Peace Corps is for all altruistic reasons, it is not. To have this experience would broaden my knowledge of the world around me, and strengthen my ability to be empathetic as a Psychologist in the future.
To come from such a privileged county is a blessing, but it is also detrimental because we take for granted our luxuries without understanding others plight. Turing on my faucet every morning, I do not have to think about where the water came from, or fact that it’s warm or cold with the turn of a handle. I do not have to think about my health, because I know that if I get sick, going to a doctor for proper treatment is no big deal. But going to college and meeting
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At the age of 19, I moved from New York State, all I had ever known up, to Washington, D.C. for college, leaving my family behind. I not only adjusted to my new environment, but thrived in the community. While I understand that this is not on the same level as being fully immersed in a new culture, I feel that my adaptability to new situations and environments will help me pull through to conquer any challenges. I know that losing the luxuries that I currently have will be more challenging than I can conceive right now, but I have a strong drive and motivation to help others which will help me overcome these
The 1930s for the United States was not one of the best times in history. October 29, 1929 was the start of the great depression. One of the hardest parts of history in the united states. The Great depression was when the stock market crashed and unemployment skyrocketed. Unemployment reached to nearly 13 to 15 million people, which is about 25 percent, up from 3.2 percent in 1929. Industrial production declined by 50 percent, international trade plunged 30 percent, and investment fell 98 percent, and almost half of the banks in the united states also have failed. People across the nation lost their farms and homes. Some traveled to other states in hopes of employment with no luck.
While going to college I got to have the experience of a lifetime. Myself, and a group of 15 others went on a mission trip to New Orleans, Louisiana. We all got to see many cultural differences and help people in need. Helping people in need just
The Peculiar Benefits essay talks about how “you have to surrender to kinds of privilege you hold. Nearly everyone, particularly in the developed world, has something someone else doesn’t, something someone else yearns for.” In Peculiar Benefits essay Roxane Gay gives the reader background information from her childhood going to Haiti during the summer and seeing the poverty that ran throughout the country. How she realized how much privilege she
There's a tired saying “walk a mile in my shoes...” that's been modified to all extremes.
Everyday when I walk into work, I put on my pale blue shirt, the one that my coworkers and I constantly complain about, with pride and with a coffee in my hand. I know I have eight long hours ahead of me, and my feet will hurt by the end of the day from the constant walking back and forth, and there is a chance I make some person incredibly upset. Regardless of being cognizant of issues that may arise, I am incredibly content at work, and especially optimistic that I will assist at least someone (even if it is just unfortunately informing them we can only provide resources, rather than assisting). Whenever someone asks what exactly my work is I say, as I was taught, “it is the domestic version of the Peace Corps, and I’m also only in a courthouse.” This does not help many people understand my job requirement, as they just imagine me helping the prosecution, but what I do helps a lot more people than assisting a prosecutor.
I am very persistent. Once I set my mind to something, I strive for it until I achieve it or it has proved impossible for me to obtain my goal. It was once my goal to join the Army. Although I was overweight, I worked until I made the correct weight limit and kept trying to join until they told me I couldn't join because I had eczema as a child. I believe that I should always try my hardest and do my best as much as possible in every situation.
If growing up in New York City has taught me anything, it is the gift of optimism and to never give up on your dreams. Even at twenty two while being withdrawn from university, I am still always learning important new life lessons and new things that improve me, and make me not only stronger as a business person and entrepreneur, but my own humanity and existence as well. Being in my own corner of the country can feel disorienting at times, especially when visiting family in other parts of the states. It feels like you are given a brief glimpse through a window at a completely different way of life, despite being relatively close. I feel the next step to learning more about my self and giving me even more of a strong edge is to complete my
Moving to a new country, a new culture, and a new society after 18 years of living in my small hometown was really tricky, especially for a teenager who just got out of high school. Leaving my home and friends, changing my routine and letting go of the simple, insignificant daily things that I used to do over and over again is surprisingly heartbreaking. You see, I was born and raised in Jordan and have lived there for about 18 years before moving here to Chicago. When I first started college here at Moraine Valley, I was a bit scared that I might not be able to fit in with the students or get used to this new culture. I was not a complete ignorant of American culture since I watched a lot of American TV back home, so I did not really experience
Our lives aren’t granted to last us forever. We grow old and were all given a certain amount of time. We live in such a beautiful world, giving us so much to offer. For example; having mountains to climb, rivers to swim in, cities to explore but people don’t acknowledge the beauty of their surroundings. I don’t understand why society would settle in one spot when there so much to see. I want to travel the world and see the different cultures and environments this world has created. I got the chance to visit Utah this past summer and it made me realize that Utah might be the state where I want to continue school. It will be a drastic change in my life, but I have come to realize that change doesn’t always have to be necessarily bad, but for the better. I have watched my mom change her whole life around from working at a liquor store to now working for the city of Riverside. She has inspired me to go out and do what my heart desires. My mom continues encouraging me to pursue my dream job of being a fashion designer. There’s so many careers that interest me that I wish I could major all
It really opened my eyes to how much positivity, love, and joy a person can have. I finished out that summer by volunteering a second week and had the same gratifying experience at the end. The following summer I volunteered for three weeks and realized I had found a passion for recreational therapy.
Transitions are never an easy thing to conquer. It is often hard and stressful to cope with changes to one’s surrounding, but in the cases in which one manages to conquer this obstacle, elevation of knowledge and experience are great results gained from this achievement. I originally came from Africa and recently moved to the United States to join my mother and my step father. This great change in the things I had become accustomed to in my daily life was not easy, furthermore taking into account the fact that I had never experienced a transition so little as shifting from one residence to another.
As a student, I have demonstrated many works of service to my community and school. Service opportunities have shaped me into the person I am today and these projects have made me realize how fortunate I am for all that I have. While I've been doing these service projects through the years, it has been a pleasure seeing the joy on the faces of people that aren't as fortunate as I am. Service projects that I have completed include managing the fish booth at the St. Leo's Parish Festival, being an altar server at St. Leo's Parish, helping cook dinner for the Ridgway Fire Department during carnival day setup, participating in the St. Marys Light Up Night by dancing, and Christmas caroling to local residents. I also participated in a zombie/princess
I have a strong commitment to serving in a community development. Over the years, i have demonstrated this service by serving in the United States Peace Corps in West Africa and with the Black Graduate Student Organization working in the urban areas of Gainesville. During my Peace Corps experience, i identifed common problems in communities rethat improved sustainable agricultural practices and generate income through agribusiness ventures. Along with this experience, my educational training as a professional has prepared me in formal, nonformal, and informal education, which equips me with the skills necessary to disseminate research base knowledge to individuals that need information in various stages. I have also acquired personal experiences
As I grew older, it was impossible to notice that my world was imperfect. In elementary school, all my parent’s problems here hidden; I didn’t understand my family’s economic status. As I grew older and began to ask my parents question about our lifestyle and compared it to the other people around us. This conversation would always end in the same place; because we can't afford it. My high school is composed of economically unstable families, and economically stable families. Seeing that other families were better off than mine, I grew up with the idea that a comfortable life, is a luxurious life. I know that others around
Volunteering to feed the homeless is truly an eye opening experience to what reality is. There is an estimated one hundred million homeless people in the world who are starving and are trying to find a way to survive. On a day-to-day basis, we see homeless people everywhere such as on the streets, by the freeway asking for money so they can feed themselves, or maybe even feed their own family. One day, my mom and I decided we had to take action after witnessing so many homeless people on the streets.When people are in such a difficult situation, their only option is to beg for money because they have no roof over their head, and no food to eat. Many of these people are suffering from their own decisions, unemployment, or for other personal reasons. There are many homeless people who are sick and suffering from severe mental illnesses. It breaks my heart seeing homeless people in the streets, so I knew I had to take action and help out someway. The experience of volunteering to feed the homeless was most certainly a life changing experience. It made me realize how grateful I am for my life, how important it is to help those in great need, and to never take a meal for granted or roof for granted. This event was one that happened in the spur of the moment but has also changed me as a a person by becoming more involved and helping out more in my community , learning to never taking anything for granted, and by not assuming all homeless people are bad people as such.