Final Reflection

What a semester this has been! After months of this philosophical humanities class, my perspective on life has really taken on a whole new view. For this past week’s readings, I was surprised to see that the topic was death. Given that this is the end of the semester, it seems fitting that all ‘good’ things must come to an end. To have a good life, from my understanding of this course as a whole, it is necessary to achieve your personal happiness while doing no harm to others, aiding those in need, acknowledging and embracing one’s cultural history and identity and those of others, and to lie the fullest life possible in order to leave a lasting and meaningful legacy to your loved ones and friends.

This class has definitely been a different experience from your typical classroom setting; in general, it was truly a hybrid course in that learning was compose not only of reading material, class discussions, and writing essays, but also going out to experience class related topics on our own time. The first modules we covered that was impactful to me were Happiness/Thinking About a Good Life, when we debated as a class the meaning of life - if there is one - and how each person interprets what true happiness is in their own way. You can have natural law and the dissertations of philosophers on what they deem worth pursuing and should be the most important things in life, but in reality, it cannot really be defined. This emphasized to me the importance of not judging the actions or behavior of others, because you never know their true situation or state in life. Additionally, the importance of learning about my ancestral and cultural roots was brought up in the Cultural Identity and History modules; I really enjoyed the African Keita griot film, and it renewed my goal to speak more with my grandparents about their lives when they were young and to get to learn more fully my ancestry and heritage from those who experienced history themselves.  In this past week’s film and essay, I learned that the recognition of death as an imminent part of life, and needs to be addressed by doing what will make you most happy in the time you are allotted here on this earth. If I learned that I was going to die in six months from severe liver cancer, I imagine that I  (after a couple hours of disbelief, crying, and talking to my family) would begin planning out how I could make the most meaningful impact to my loved ones and to the world around me, to leave a legacy when I’m gone. I would probably reunite my classical choir to form an actual singing group, and try to perform at as many venues as possible to touch the lives of others through song. Within my family, I would spend a great deal of time with my parents and siblings, to make memories of us having good times together for them to remember for years to come.

Within the context of this class, I believe I have achieved the Honors Learning Outcomes of critical thinking, communications, and lifelong learning. By heavily participating in weekly class discussions, and leading our discussion on Sharing a Good Life, I have helped clarify the questions and issues needing to be resolved in each class, proposed solutions and compromises to said problems, and provoked discussion of related weekly topics. Through writing essays each week discussing class topics and themes we explored in class, I have honed my reflection essay skills to a higher level than they were at the beginning of the semester , skillfully communicating what I have learned. By my participation in out of class projects, I have learned of volunteer opportunities that I intend to pursue in the future, including the North Regional Medical Center and Helping Hands Clinic, which would expand my medical knowledge, and skills and abilities in customer service and with the undeserved in clinical settings.

Gainesville: City as Text

The Duck Pond neighborhood is composed of much of Gainesville’s Northeast Historic District, and is named for the stormwater pond (the duck pond) created in the early 1900s, along with the Sweetwater Branch Creek which runs through the neighborhood. The cost of living in the Duck Pond - if your aim is to shop locally - is a bit more expensive than going to other cheaper businesses, according to Kate, a girl I met at the Union Street Farmer’s Market (which is a street away from the Duck Pond). She was buying locally grown organic produce, and tries to avoid buying processed snack foods and genetically modified produce one would find at Walmart or Winn Dixie. She is currently renting a home in the Duck Pond on 5th Street with her husband, and said that though the house was a “bit higher in our price range” than expected, she loves the location and the neighborhood atmosphere. Kate also enjoys rollerblading with her beagle, Hershey, (she tries to either walk or rollerblade to nearby places in general because “city parking is hell”), and likes to attend performances at the Hippodrome with her husband.

The farmer’s market in general was a really cool place to visit. There was a good bit of business and socializing going on. Two of the vendors had actually brought their kids with them, so the kids could have a playdate with each other while their parents did business. Everyone was really friendly and sociable; just a great atmosphere in general to be in.

After visiting University Realty, I learned that most homes in the Duck Pond range from $150-440,000, and most residents are either middle aged professionals, families, or older couples because they lived in the Duck Pond since their youth. The man whom I spoke to at University Realty - Jeff - is actually living in the same house that his grandparents lived in (Queen Anne style, he told me), and what he loves about the Duck Pond is its great location to most everywhere he needs to go (work, church, and grocery stores), and the history behind it because his family has lived here in Gainesville his entire life. His great-grandfather was actually one of the first history professors to work at the University of Florida. Jeff enjoys spending time with his wife, and they walk a lot in the Thomas Center Gardens (even though he doesn’t like it that much, he goes because she does; he prefers to stay home and watch college football). When asked about how he gets around, Jeff says that he tries to walk to work daily because 1) “it’s my health insurance” and 2) he only lives a few blocks away, so it’s pretty convenient for him just to walk. When he was younger, he attended Kirby Smith School with his sister. After the school became the headquarters of the Alachua District School Board in 1980, his daughter actually got a job there as an administrator.

Gainesville’s Duck Pond neighborhood has to be one of the cutest, most quaint little residential areas I’ve even seen. I would move there in a heartbeat, if I had the money. Or family connections. Overall, I feel what makes the Duck Pond neighborhood unique is the historical glue that binds the community together, and the friendliness and hospitable nature of the residents there.

Parallel Lives

1. How could one “step out of place” during the 1950s and early 1960s?  Can one “step out of place” in 2016?  If so, what are the similarities and the differences between stepping out of place during the 1950s/early 1960s and stepping out of place today?

In the 1950s and 1960s, a black person could step out of place by doing any number of things - by refusing to drink from the ‘Coloreds Only’ water fountain, by swimming in a public pool, by going for a swim in the ocean unsupervised. The famous ‘sit-ins’ at local diners serve as another example of stepping out of place, as the brave young men and women who participated in them were often mocked, beaten, and arrested. Whites who accommodated blacks likewise stepped out of place if they were caught aiding or helping their colored neighbors, such as giving them preference in a hospital setting over other white patients. Here in 2016, though we are no longer segregated, an individual can step out of place if they cheat on a test, rebel against one’s parents, steal, kill someone else - all of which would likewise be stepping out of place in the 1950s. However, today socially we are not concerned with racial discrimination as much as we once were, though in many areas today it still remains a problem (it’s not something on the forefront of our minds in comparison to other political issues). I feel that it’s much harder now for an individual to be punished if they socially step out of place now compared to the 1950s and 60s, because much of the visible legal social strata created based on race has been eliminated.

1. What “small indignities” and “brutal encounters” did Maxwell suffer, and what was his response to these? If these things happened to you today, how would you respond?  Was the way you would respond even possible in the 1950s and 60s?  Why or why not?

On a daily basis, whites acted like they saw nothing when looking at blacks, and Maxwell experienced this on a daily basis when interacting with whites - he was neglected and viewed as inferior, and no eye contact was even made with him. Maxwell suffered the brutal encounters of being elbowed against a wall when he was 14 years old by a white police officer, and was nigger-knocked twice by groups of young white males. He responded to the former by yelling back at the police officer, and the latter by trying to man it out and not crying when his nose got broken from a teen’s belt buckle. If either of those things happened to me today, I would be pretty angry and probably cuss them out - no one would blame me for it. In the 1950s, I don’t know what I would have done, other than stand there and take it; to retaliate could mean I would get even more hurt or end up in jail.

2. Who “cooled” Maxwell’s “growing hatred of white people”? How was this cooling accomplished?  Do you think that Maxwell is still angry at the way he was treated in his youth?  Should he be?

Two adult white ladies, Mrs Hubbard and English teacher Gloria Bonaparte, cooled Maxwell’s growing hatred of white people, as they told him that he was a good reader, and that he could continue his love of words by going to college. I believe Maxwell is still angry at the way he was treated in his youth - who wouldn’t be? -because even today he is speaking about what happened to him; it’s important that the story live on to teach to younger generations the importance of getting rid of racism. This is not your typical forgive and forget scenario.  

3. Beverly Coyle describes herself as “illiterate” concerning the “Whites Only” and “Coloreds Only” signs above water fountains. She writes, “We all looked at those signs without reading them.  Black presence in our lives was so minimal that incidents of racial conflict did not exist in my young perspective.”  How often do you cross paths with people who are racially or culturally different from you?  How and why do your paths cross?  How much do you understand about the lives and experiences of those who are racially or culturally different from you?  Can you see racial or cultural conflicts from “another’s” point of view? How can you better understand the “other’s” point of view?

I cross paths with people from different races and cultures every single day; there is a Muslim girl that rides on my bus every day, a black girl in my algebra class, and two Middle Eastern boys in my ethics class. Quite honestly, I don’t feel I understand their cultural or racial perspective of life, as I’ve never been in their situation before, but lately I have begun to relate events in the news to other culture’s perspectives. By being aware of the many cultural and racial differences shown by others around me, and by being sensitive to their points of view and how they might perceive or take different ideas by asking them what they think and making an effort to speak to and include them, I can better understand their points of view.

4. Towards the end of her essay, Coyle describes the plot of In Troubled Waters, her novel “in which black and white characters struggle to know each other across a divide that still exists.” Do you think a racial divide still exists?    Do you experience a divide in which you struggle to know someone who is racially or culturally different from you?  If so, describe your struggle.

I think a tacit racial divide still exists; there is this unspoken mindset that we are different than those of other colors or cultures, but it’s different when you actually encounter someone from another country on a personal basis. My sister recently started dating an Arab guy at her high school, and it’s been really fun getting to know him; he’s actually been telling us what his parents teach him about culture and traditions in the MIddle East. However, during my mission trip in Mexico, I felt really divided from the other girl missionaries on my trip because of the cultural and language barrier. I wouldn’t know what was going on in a conversation because they were talking about stuff I didn’t know about, and I myself sometimes was seen as the outsider, and felt ostracized many times during conversations and outings.

Generally, essays can adopt this outline:

1. Summary of key content / ideas from the readings and the performance.  
2. Reaction to the readings (paraphrase or quote directly from the text), the performance (describe specific aspects of the performance), and to what you’ve experienced.
3. Connection -- identify and explain a connection to other learning from this or another class or to what you’ve experienced OR Explain:  how has your thinking about the topic or theme been influenced.

During the performance of Parallel Lives, I was captivated by Maxwell and Coyle’s readings of their experiences as youth, growing up in a segregated and bigoted American society. Maxwell, who realized that he was black at a very young age, had a faster paced, much more graphic story to tell than did the more relaxed narration of Coyle, who didn’t realize the racial divide that existed until she was in her late teens. She didn’t fully realize the impact he Jim Crow laws had on the entire African American race until later, though she did experience her parents’ racist opinion of blacks in her childhood, and remembers being confused by it. Maxwell describes what it was like to suffer the trivial indignities and brutal  encounters that he experienced, growing up as a black male, and was angry towards those who has caused his suffering, though later encounters with supportive white teachers cooled his hatred of whites.

Initially, I was shocked that this performance was even happening. Come on, isn’t racism gone from the United States? We can all use the same facilities, get into college, and do what we want to do, right? Wrong. Maxwell and Coyle’s narrative revealed the full impact of racism in America on today’s society, especially here in Gainesville. I didn’t know we were one of the last counties in Florida to amend the Jim Crow laws. Its funny how many people nowadays assume racism is over, because they say race doesn't matter because now everyone is treated the same, but when someone comments on how they think the only reason a black man and a white woman would be together is because they are lovers, you know it’s not really over. The question and answer session at the end was very insightful, and probably where I learned the most from the performance. Maxwell stated that he is realistic, not pessimistic, about the future when he said that he says he thinks there is no hope for improving racism in America, due to the legacy of the Jim Crow laws, along with his situation with fighting in the Vietnam War and being ridiculed for it. The only way for racism in America to end it to talk about it in a safe place, openly and honestly, and then the fear will disappear. I had never thought about this before Maxwell brought it up; to my knowledge, I haven’t done anything racist in the past, but I don’t think I’ve ever made efforts to overcome it in our society either. Coyle mentioned that supporting art and stories are based on race and other cultures are great ways to begin honest conversations about race, and this has piqued my interest in attending more cultural events and supporting cultural art, as they are important components to our society. We can no longer simply acknowledge that fact that we are a diverse population of different skin tones, but also recognizing America as a myriad of people with different backgrounds and reasons for being here that need to be learned about and respected, and overcome barriers and make amends for things that may still be haunting us from the past.

Harn Museum

The pieces I’ve chosen to compare from the Harn Museum are the works Scene on Snake, Key Gulf Coast and Rosignano Solvay, the former painted by German artist Hermann Herzog around 1896-1910 and the latter photographed by Italian Massimo Vitali in 1995. Both scenes take place on a beach.

In Scene on Snake Key, we see a man strolling along the underbrush of sand dunes on the beach, perhaps walking his dog. He is enjoying the nice weather and beautiful day by taking advantage and walking outside. However, we know that beach shorelines erode quickly, and the sand formations are apt to vary rapidly over time. With climate change over the past few decades, the site of the island painting may not even exist anymore. Conservation is a key concept emanated by this piece; though the shoreline may fade away, its natural beauty is preserved forever in this painting by Herzog. Local governments and environmentalist organizations (by governing and serving communities to promote a good life) should fight to protect areas such as this, for the essence of this ecosystem to be able to be enjoyed by future generations.

Almost a century later, Rosignano Solvay was photographed by Vitali. We see a multitude of people on the beach, relaxing and enjoying the day, much like the man from Scene on Snake Key. Though another shoreline scene, we see the effects of industrialization with smoking factory smokestacks in the background, whose wastes are more likely than not being released into the ocean where the beach-goers are playing in the water. Eventually, the shoreline here will also fade away, but will pose a threat rather than a vacation spot to locals, as massive pollution over time can cause water to become unsuitable for swimming, and for organisms to exist and live there. If the spread of industrialization is not curbed or regulated in future years, the entire coast has the potential to become nothing more than land for factories to be built on, and for  the ocean to become a dumping ground for waste.

Looking back, a painting such as Herzog’s appeals to our generation when compared to the more modern photo by Vitali. Though different beached in different countries, the threat both areas face due to the expansion of machines and pollution is the same. Shorelines and other wildlife areas would be declared as preserves, in order to preserve the natural beauty for posterity to look upon, experience, and enjoy.

Latino Oral History

For this project I chose to interview my longtime friend Tatiana, whom I met through church when I was 13 and she was 12. Though young at the time, Tatiana told me her story of how she came to be living in America with her brother and mother, and I have asked her to recount her story again for the purposes of this project. It is not a happy story; quite frankly I was not aware of the full weight of it and her background until I became older. Tatiana and her family’s story is comparable to our previous class topics of refugees and fighting for a good life, as they moved from Mexico here to Florida in search of a better future and are still overcoming many hardships in their daily life to get where they want to go.

As you already know, I was born on October 22, 1996 in Mexico City. My mom is full-blooded Mexican, and my dad is German. We left when I was 7 and my brother Andreas was 12; mom bought us plane tickets and we came to Florida with just a couple of suitcases and our backpacks. We had to leave everything behind- all our toys, our books, our movies, all our friends - everything we knew. We had to leave because my dad wasn’t the best of dads; he used to yell and beat my mom, and yell and kick at us. I was scared. One time he slapped me across the face, and was throwing stuff at mom from across the living room. It was terrible! I remember a few times when were were all together and happy, but there weren’t very many of those…

I guess mom chose to come to America because she had a sister here and some other relatives, but when we first arrived, they didn’t help us out. We had nothing, just some clothes and almost no money. Of course Andreas and I didn’t want to leave; all of our friends, our toys, our school was back in Mexico. Nobody at our new school spoke Spanish, and we had to learn English coming into elementary and middle school. Kids made fun of us all the time. Even though we looked like everyone else, I still got made fun of and so did he. It was really hard to make friends until we could speak English, which wasn’t until a couple years afterwards.

Dios mio, lifestyle change! My mom went from being a high class Mexican wife to cleaning other people’s houses four to six times a week. It was enough to get us by, and it was really hard for all of us at first. There were a lot less toys for birthdays and Christmas. All of our clothes were from clearance racks or thrift stores, Mom taught us how to clean up after ourselves and how to cook, and also taught us Mexican and Eastern Orthodox traditions of Easter, Christmas, and other days like that. Andreas and I have been together through everything, and we’re really close.

My first impression of the United States was at first that it was really cool, and new, and exciting. But then after we were here for a couple weeks, I began to realize how different it was, especially at school with the language and all. Once I learned English and made friends, it got better, and I did my best in middle school and high school to get good grades to make mom proud. I made friends over the years, and right now I’m working and trying to save up to take college classes at Valencia and still help mom pay for rent and food. Andreas helps out too, and he’s more advanced at Valencia than me. It’s hard, but you do what you have to, you know?

For me, I would really like to be an artist. But that’s never gonna happen, so right now I’m just working. I really like the Renaissance period, and my favorite thing to paint is people in oil or acrylic, but supplies are really expensive. I sketched and painted in high school, but nothing since then because of the cost of supplies. Andreas really wants to be an engineer, and I think he can do it. He’s made a lot of good connections and I hope he can do what he wants.

In general, I feel like anyone can do what they want in America and be what they want to be, but it’s definitely harder when your family is struggling to make ends meet all of the time, you know?