The first encounter. We were encompassed by a pristine white building. The walls were adorned with intricately designed artwork. As my eyes scanned the room, they couldn’t help but notice the scenery from the window. A balcony overlooked the vast sea of trash which was concealed by a crystal pool of water. To the right of the building, trash flooded the sand in which villages were built upon, composing the slums of Accra. Witnessing the contrast of the beautiful art museum next to the makeshift shacks, I began to silently weep. This was the catalyst that would ignite the spark of growth that began my junior year. During the summer of 2016, I had the opportunity to travel with my school to Ghana in order to participate in a service learning project. Due to not receiving any serious disciplinary points while maintaining a distinguished honor roll GPA, I was selected for this unique trip. Prior to this experience, I had no sense of direction as to what I wanted my purpose to be in life, and I struggled to …show more content…
Kwame Nkrumah was recognized for his service in leading Ghana to their independence from Britain in 1957. Walking around the park, we witnessed this large mausoleum which housed Nkrumah’s tomb, as well as his massive bronze statue. After strolling around the park for almost two hours, we retired to our bus. I noticed a small boy. His radiance was evident, though he wore nothing but his smile. As I approached the boy, he giggled and said, “Akwaaba”, which is welcome in Ghana. I couldn’t help but to reach into my pocket and give him enough money for him to purchase food and water. Snot covered the little boys face, and the the clothing that covered his body was scarce, yet he was filled with bliss and excitement. Replaying this episode in my head, I reflect on everything I have been
It was after I had lost someone in my life that was my other half. I didn’t understand who I was, what my purpose was, what made me who I am. As far as I was concerned I was reduced to nothing more than an individual that was now alone. I didn’t realize that my identity was partly crafted from simply just being by their side all the time, that whenever I was introduced to someone, or was talking to mutuals about them, I was known for being their best friend. After the fiasco that became the end of our relationship, I felt as if I was just floating through the days and nights. This feeling went on for about 2 months until I slowly came out of it. I didn’t experience a grand epiphany of any sort that inspired me to change myself. I was painting and listening to music and the thought just slowly came to me. I love to paint, and I love listening to and creating and playing music. I began to gain back my sense of identity by engaging in activities I loved. I’m a painter, a musician, a writer, a passionate lover of movies. I’ve learned that identity can isn’t set in stone, there’s always room for
What is culture? Culture is the idea of what is wrong or right, the concept of what is acceptable within our society. Culture serves us as a guide, taking us to the "right way" and helping us to make sense of things that surrounds us. There are many different cultures around the world. A lot of them are similar in specific ways and others are just completely different, this difference explains why we think that people from different backgrounds are "weird".
As a senior I am obviously aware that my journey through school is coming to an end. At this point in my life, I have a slight idea about what I want to do in the future; however, I still don’t know if that’s where I want to go and I won’t ever know until I learn more about it. Some people may see my lack of permanent direction as an indication of someone who is lost. Nonetheless, I see this as an exhilarating experience where I am constantly discovering new things about myself. When this topic came
In his scientific essay, “Monkey see, Monkey Do, Monkey Connect,’’ Frans de Waal argues that primates need one another for survival skills and imitate their surroundings to fit in just like chameleons blending in with their habitat. Unconscious synchronization plays a big role in this as primates copy each other's bodily movement without even knowing. Frans de Waal provides examples of yawning, laughing and humans making mouth chewing movements while spoon feeding their baby, in order to show that imitation happens naturally and us primates need one another for survival and bonding. Which shows us that as primates we are much more connected than expected. At the beginning of the essay, de waal discusses yawning being contagious and an example
R% also (implicitly) took a RB stance, saying’ Of the client is not different from me immediately, they would turn out to be different in some other way” R@ emphasized individual difference by saying ‘I start with the individual’ and relating identity to race, while R3 took a celebratory posture, seeing differences as essential to understanding who we are”.
I would like to consider my cultural heritage as diverse, but this is far from reality. Over the years as I matured through my teenage years, I was exposed to different cultures by life experiences and travel. I struggled to create both a personal and cultural identity while trying to adjust to my sight loss and with the support of my family I traveled overseas to experience other cultures for the first time. My family opened up their home to a foreign exchange program in turn allowing me the opportunity to travel over to Europe at the age of 16 years old. This opportunity started the slow progression of experiences that would open my mind to others who are unlike myself, especially traveling to a strange place and feeling different in a mainstream culture. It was not until the past 5 or 6 years until I fully accepted my disability that changed my view on being different, whether it’s race, class, gender or disability. Before this time period, my own fear of being different was so intense that I thought my weakness (disability) made me inferior of not only other cultures, but also my own family members.
My personal cultural identity is a lot different compared to the society I am surrounded by. I am considered an outsider in my society. I am an outsider living in a constantly changing environment where there are many different kinds of people and many different cultural identities. In my culture we know how to respect people and their belongings, know how to work hard, use what we have while being thankful for it at the same time, and last we know how to stay true to ourselves in this very fast pace world of ours. I am a cowboy.
“ You want to be the same as American girls on the outside.” (Tan, Amy) Like Tan in her narrative “Fish Cheeks”, everyone has had a time in their lives when they wanted to fit in at school or home. Sometimes it is hard to try to blend into the surroundings. Moving from Boston to Tallahassee has taught me a lot about such things like honor, pride, and self-reliance. Such is related to us in Wilfred Owens’s “Dulce et Decorum est” which is about his experience in World War I. Sometimes experiences such as moving can teach more about life than any long lecture from any adult. As the old saying goes: “Actions speak louder than words.”
“Ghana, a land full of gold. Africa, a land full of resources.” Where is Ghana and what is it known for? In my paper, we will learn the location, population, how they citizens received their known name, and many more interesting facts.
middle of paper ... ... The "An African Voice. " Interview with Chinua Achebe. N.p., 2 Aug. 2000.
The health experience of the guest speaker involves the long and challenging journey in her fight through breast cancer. For the sake of confidentiality, my patient will be referred to as Mrs. M throughout this paper. Throughout her presentation she explained the steps leading up to her diagnosis, her experiences through chemotherapy and radiation, as well as her thoughts, feelings, and emotions during the most difficult time in her life. This paper will discuss the various determinants of health that have shaped her health experience, abstract concepts that stood out throughout the presentation, personal assumptions, and the overall meaning of her illness. Health Experience Narrative
The interviews with Ghanaba give the reader a reference point to return to after Feld’s explanations of Ghanaba’s past. Suspense is even built in multiple sections leading up to the news of Ghanaba’s passing. The reader is taken different places and times to understand what is leading Ghanaba’s opinions and lifestyle to emerge as it has in Accra. Feld’s use of shifts in place and time help to show his prowess as a storyteller and an ethnomusicologist, as well as a member of the cosmopolitan
Kwame Nkrumah was the first leader of the Gold Coast. He was the man who convinced and talked with the others for independence; he was the first president; he was both a hero and an enemy. This man's life is a story that worth telling.
Therefore, it is time that we - the African youth mold ourselves into unique gifts that reflect our personalities for change. We should be ready to transform our immediate communities, nations and whole Africa! As one of Nelson Mandela’s powerful quotes goes “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” To become a Mandela of today, the African youths should be ready to see above impossibilities and utilize our education and professional skills to be the foundation in molding ourselves up as a gift of change. We need to self-visualize goals and follow through a mandate to see a poverty-free Africa, abounding in peace, united in equality, free from violence and terrorism.
What is my cultural identity? Good question, I actually have no answer to that question. Isn’t it basically asking for my identity regarding my cultures? Well then, what is my identity? I think my identity is based on my ethnicity, my lifestyle, the education I received, and most importantly, my opinions or my perspective which is strongly influenced by my cultures.