I attended the MLK Day  of Service event. This took place at the Union on January 21^st. This event was very powerful for me and inspired a lot out of me. Right from the start you could feel the energy of the event. Hundreds of students were in line ready to be assigned to whatever needed to be done. Most of us thought we’d be doing events outside, but we came despite how cold we thought it would be. We knew there were more important things. Then the opening speeches and songs commenced, and it provided us with knowledge on why we were doing this and what we should take away from it. The gospel choir afterwards was excellent and really lent to the power of what this day means and how we should reflect from it. My group in particular went to a creative living facility right off of campus. While there we took down decorations and discussed what the facility was all about. The creative living facility was home to quadriplegics and paraplegics that live in Columbus. Some of them go to OSU and are active members in clubs such as gamers club. The facility is a place that allows them to have their own apartment but also some help from RA’s should they require it. Though they have been on and near campus a lot, they have been having a hard time reaching out to people for volunteer help. Our group thought this experience was quite enlightening because it opened our eyes about the types of cool things going on around Columbus and gave us ideas on how to use our time to help the facility out. Each of us was interested in coming back and helping support the program in the community to bring more awareness to how awesome it actually was. This event brought together many different types of people. I met people ranging from instate to international. I found it interesting how service projects bring together all types of people that you have never met otherwise. We also discussed the university together and made some connections through the classes we take and our majors.

From this event, I feel I learned a lot about selflessness. Doing my part in my community is very important to me and this was my first opportunity to get out there and show this. It opened my eyes to what kind of community I live in and what it needs from me. I hope that in the future I can have more of these inspiring moments in my life. The classes I take for my pre-med track encourages us to do more community service. Med Schools highly encourage consistent community service. They value the characteristics and qualities a student learns by giving their time regularly to their community. After doing this event I would want to know more about the other places that need volunteers in my community. I would hate for a facility to not be supported because of a lack of volunteers.

I attended the global engagement meeting through the office of international affairs. This was a Non-IA event that occurred on January 8th. The meeting was held in the Enarson Classroom Building. I went to this event not knowing what it would be about or who would be involved in it. At first there were a lot of people in the room who seemed to be very excited about being there. However, when I came to the room, I realized that they were all veterans of the club. This seemed a little daunting to me because I thought this session was going to involve a lot of new people, but it seemed like there was only four of us. When I entered, I felt out of place due to the clusters of people that knew each other seeming unapproachable to me. I sat down for about half an hour without much conversation from anyone even when I tried to seem more approachable by putting my phone away. Then we did an activity where we had to fill up a bingo card and get signatures for the boxes that applied to members of the club. Not only this, but we also had to ask some questions about why they filled that certain box. At this point I started to get more interaction from other people and saw a lot of different personalities within people. I usually signed the box that my favorite color was red which prompted conversation on why red and the other persons favorite color. After the winners were announced we were told to continue to mingle, but I could sense the groups were reforming so I went back to my seat. This is when I met Zhuxiao and Jasmine. They started to ask me questions about myself and travel. They told me they had recently been to California, which I had been to as well. They were also from China, and when I told them about my study abroad trip there, they became really excited. From this sudden change I knew that staying longer was worth it. Although the clusters may have seemed daunting, they were actually really welcoming to new people. Though the event didn’t specifically touch on political issues, it did bring about conversation on international cultures and traditions that was really exciting to engage in.

From this event, I could say I gained patience and confidence. Though the night started out rough, it took a turn for the better after someone took the time to talk to me. However, knowing it was that easy, I might have spoken up sooner in the night and could have had a longer conversation with them. So next time I find myself in a similar situation, I will try to put myself out there a little more so I can have a more enjoyable experience. I also learned that people are willing to share if you are willing to ask, so I should have no fear reaching out and asking questions, especially in an environment like global engagement. I am a STEM major, so my classes don’t correspond well with global affairs. There has never been a point where I felt like there was any emphasis on anything beyond the textbook. That is why I joined IA, so I wouldn’t be trapped doing only STEM work while in college.

After attending the event, I was left wondering what the club would entail. What I went to was only a welcome event, so I didn’t entirely get the feel for what was going on. In addition, I couldn’t tell for sure, but it seemed like many of the members were taking leadership positions, even selecting topics they’d really like to present on. I’m not sure how this works either but they seemed very enthusiastic about the topics they were planning on discussing throughout the year.