I REALLY Like Polar Bears

Safe Space

It's 80 degrees outside and it's pouring rain. w00t!

So for those of you who may not know, I intern at a charter school/youth art gallery this summer. The program focuses on helping children express themselves through various forms artistic expression and it's pretty cool to see their progress throughout this summer. Some of the classes they've had a chance to take are poetry, dance, jewelry making, painting, etc. Art therapy is something I have never really been exposed to prior to this year and it's cool to see an art program do so much for the youth and its community. A lot of the students also come from pretty hard backgrounds or have special needs, so the program helps to not only be an outlet for alot of these students but also a safe place for them to express themselves in the arts.

I've had my ups and downs with being here, but overall, the mission of the summer program and the accomplishments of the students is pretty cool. I sat in on one of the empowerment classes yesterday. The students break off into their same sex groups and the teachers help facilitate discussions on different topics about what's going on in the world or media and how that relates back to their own lives. Yesterday's topic was on the Chris Brown/Rihanna issue. Regardless of what you've heard, in the end, domestic violence did occur. So the topic of discussion was how all the guys in the room felt about domestic violence. Man, some of the stories I heard and what was shared was really intense. I'm not sharing anything for the sake of confidentiality, but I remember just feeling a pretty overwhelmed.

It brought me back to that statement in Cross the Line:

"Please cross the line if you grew up in a household where domestic violence was present"

It's crazy because they were so open and honest about their pains and how they felt. I in awe about what they accomplish in school and and in life, given what some of them have to go back home to. It made me think back on my childhood and some of what I saw back in my home. My parents would get into some pretty intense fights and even at a young age, I would remember having to yell and scream, just so I could diverge their hostile attitudes away from each other. I just remember using my parents current and past situations as one of my biggest motivations to GET OUT of the house. To the park. To swim practice. To UCI. To DC. ANYWHERE. Yesterday was the first time when I realized how important and powerful my internship site was in terms of just providing a safe place in the DC community and offering effective and productive outlets. These kids are so amazing in what they accomplish and I'm really taken back when I see how much self efficacy they have.

Given how terrible the economy is and how many school programs are getting cut, it's great to see this school flourish with their arts-focused curriculum. I really hope it continues to grow for the next few years and that other students can find a safe haven within the walls of WVSA Articulate Gallery.

Royal Year

From the East coast, with love...

Today's the day. Rock that ish!!! Drop some knowledge. And of course, change some lives, including your own.

GOLD is blue's ROYALty. Trust the peeps.

JK, but seriously, have a blast!

Signs & Lines pt 1

.... that rhyme!

Lazy Sunday... commence now

Progress

So today I awoke to the loud beeping of my alarm at 6:45 am and proceeded to snooze for an extra 20 minutes. Not exactly the best way to start my day, especially since today I was heading to the Campus Progress National Convention. I wasn’t too sure what I signed up for other than a free convention at a nice hotel with some pretty famous people speaking at it. I never took much notice into politics, until this past election, so I figured I wouldn’t be able to take that much away from the event. However, what I experienced the next few hours, really surprised me and I was pretty, yup I’ll say it… inspired.

We got to the convention and got some great breakfast and the program started right at 9am. The director of Campus Progress and other important people that work for the organization greeted us and the first Spoken Word artist took the stage. It was none other than Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai, one of AngryAsianMan’s top 30 under 30 most influential Asian Americans this year. She did some great pieces, and one that specifically addressed the small amount of us Asian folk in the room. Since coming to DC, it’s been the first time since I’ve felt like an ethnic minority and definitely out of my comfort zone. It makes me appreciate having safe discussion spaces, such as REACH and Sierra for the past 3 years. So for her piece to specifically address us and recognize our presence in the room, it was dope. Much Love!

Shortly after Kelly Tsai took the stage, another Campus Progress person took the stage: Erica Williams. She spoke very eloquently, and the quote she kept referring back to by Michaelangelo throughout her speech is one that I’ll never forget:

“The greatest danger for most people is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low, and we achieve it.”

Too often do we all do that; I’m guilty of that myself. I remember in Ed 173, when Prof. Hall said that by aiming low and achieving those goals, we build self esteem. It is something that can hurt us in the future because if we fail at trying things outside of our usual standards, we can quickly become discouraged. If we aim high and take our mistakes or shortcomings as indicators that we are getting closer to our goal, then self efficacy is developed and optimism becomes more natural of a response.

I think what impressed me the most were the other organizers and the students that came out to the conference. All of them were from different parts of the country, and some were not even from the US, but they all came out to the conference just to learn and soak up the experience. Each of the seminars during the day were addressed at many different issues affecting college students today, such as journalism, media, Gay rights, religion, college affordability, climate change, etc. All these different issues appealed to the huge group of students who came out to the conference. All of them felt passionate about one or more of these issues and in their hometowns and school communities, they were pushing for change. Hearing the stories of what some of the recognized scholars accomplished was really crazy. Seeing young people be critical and assertive in pushing for changes and accomplishing them made me wonder, ‘Damn, I really want to be like them.’

Peer role models are something amazing and seeing their passion for a cause makes it that much easier for you to follow suit and advocate what matters to you. If they can do it, why can’t I? A lot of time, I get discouraged and avoid advocacy, especially if my opinion is one that definitely challenges the common opinion. There have been times here in DC, when I bit my tongue and swallowed my pride. I should not be afraid to speak my mind and say what I believe, but a lot of times, it is so much easier to just suppress those contradictory inputs. After going to this conference and being in the presence of such amazing youth advocates, I was reminded again why there’s no reason for me not to say anything. If I should want change, being silent is almost as bad as being apathetic. I’m working on changing that. In the words of Van Jones, the Special Advisor for Green Jobs:

“GET IT DONE!”

Happy 233rd birthday, America!

July 4th in DC was dope!

DC fireworks > all other fireworks

Self Efficacy

Not so much of an update about my DC experiences, but more about how I'm trying to make my DC time worthwhile.

No matter what you go through, always try to make the best out of your situations. Bad situations can make you sulk, worry, complain, upset, etc, and it's important to address and express those emotions when they come up. But no matter how bad it gets, you have to know to pick yourself back up and loosen the grip of bitterness. I'm learning to be more in touch with my emotions, but it is pretty hard after years of bottling things up and trying to maintain composure. It's a goal I'm trying to reach and I'm pushing myself everyday to get there. Always aim to get yourself to a good place, no matter how challenging and impossible it may be.

Anyways I came across this blog, and it's reminded me how to go about each day. Thought I'd share it with you and hopefully the entry help you in whatever you may be going through!

How To Make Today Memorable
Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.
- Maria Robinson

• Smile, be positive, and notice what’s right. – Everything that happens in life is neither good nor bad. It just depends on your perspective. And no matter how it turns out, it always ends up just the way it should. Either you succeed or you learn something. So stay positive, appreciate the pleasant outcomes, and learn from the rest.
• Be authentic. Be true to yourself. – If you aren’t being yourself, you aren’t truly living… you’re merely existing. And no day spent in a phony state of mere existence will ever be memorable or worthwhile.
• Share time with a good friend and experience life together. – There are few things more satisfying than recounting the greatest moments of your life with your closest friends who lived these moments alongside you.
• Do something fun and laugh your ass off. – Some of the most memorable moments in your life will be moments spent in laughter.
• Be present. Be here now. – Don’t let your life slip by. Instead of dwelling on the past, or worrying about the future, just practice being and living in the ‘now.’ Remember, right now is the only moment guaranteed to you. Right now is life. Don’t miss it.

"I’ll leave it to you to explore the functions of my heart..."