Reflection #1:
A couple of weeks ago, I attended the screening of “Honeyland”, a documentary following a woman named Hatidze Muratova in the mountains of Macedonia. Last year, I attended a few other movies through the Office of International Affairs. Normally, I would never be introduced to these smaller budget and culturally diverse films. My typical experience with film has been big names such as the Marvel Cinematic Universe, James Bond, Harry Potter, and other huge films. These films often put on a great show, but none of them leave me reflecting and questioning the movie after it has ended. Muratova is a beekeeper in a town where only her mother and herself are the only permanent residents. In just the opening scenes, the audience learns about the unique relationship Hatidze Muratova has with her bees. She is seen singing to them and offers the bees a piece offering in a way when she collects the honeycombs. Her piece offering is leaving half of the honeycomb for the bees, almost as a form of saying thanks for providing her with the delicious honey. Trouble sets in when as family arrives in a caravan from out of town. Hussein and his family are no trouble as first, and Muratova enjoys the company of the children. She begins teaching the family her technique at producing honey, which leads to Hussein starting his own honey farm. Bad practices lead the Hussein’s bee killing off Muratova’s bee’s, thus resulting in no more honey being produced. Muratova’s livelihood and only way of making money has been destroyed. In addition to losing all of her bee’s, Muratova’s elderly and bedridden mother that she had been taken care of passes away as the winter month’s set in.
I attended this event September 28, 2019 at the Gateway Film Center. The film relates to the topic of International Affairs by showing a unique life that Hatidze Muratova lives in Macedonia. As International Affairs students, it important to be culturally educated on the different ways people interact and go about their everyday lives. After watching the movie, I gained academically an insight into a different culture other than my own. Personally, I found the story of Hatidze Muratova to be one that shows the impacts a simple act of an outside family can have on a livelihood. Muratova, despite losing almost everything, still seemed to have a glimmer of hope at the end of the movie. Her attitude is an important way to look at life, that there is still light at the end of the tunnel. Like with any good movie, the director wants the viewer to leave asking questions and thinking about what was just presented. I would like to know the whereabouts of Hatidze Muratova today, and how the filming process took place. Overall, I really enjoyed watching “Honeyland” due to its down to Earth storytelling and ability to leave me thinking about each aspect of the movie.
Reflection #2:
I attended a service event on Sunday, September 29, 2019 that was called the Walk to End Alzheimer’s in downtown Columbus, Ohio near the Columbus Clippers Stadium and Nationwide Arena. A lot of people from my fraternity volunteered to help with make the walk run as smoothly as possible. My role to help during the 5K walk was to help with directing the mass of people walking the streets and handing out water bottles to people. There were thousands of people, all wearing purple, walking these streets. I was amazed at the number of people, as I felt like mass of people continued for 25 minutes or so past my station. The event impacted me as I was not only volunteering to help those walking a 5K, but the purpose as to why the people were walking touched me. Many people walking had special signs, shirts, and other identifying markers. These special items represented people close to those walking who are affected or who passed as a result of Alzheimer’s. I personally, have been affected by the disease. My grandfather had Alzheimer’s for around ten years. The disease is what eventually led to his passing in 2017. Alzheimer’s is a terrible disease, one that starts off with smaller occurrences, but exponentially gets worse through the years. While I have never been involved with Alzheimer’s awareness and fundraising, the event opened my eyes to the amount of people impacted by this disease and the people who are actually doing something about it. The event does not directly connect with the topic of International Affairs, but I would be interested to understand how Alzheimer’s is treated and viewed in other cultures and societies. Also, I would like to do research on the different ethnicities that are the disease is more prominent, and the possible genetic or cultural connections to the increased chance. In addition, I gained a better understanding of the organizations, such as the one that puts on the Walk to End Alzheimer’s walks on throughout the country in nearly every city. These organizations have a goal to bringing greater awareness to the disease and raising money to fund research and the hope to find a cure to the disease. The topic of Alzheimer’s has not really been present in any of my classes, except a pharmacy class on the topic of ethics and drug enhancement. It discussed the futuristic possibility of modifying human genes to remove certain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, and cancer. The class went deep into the ethics of modifying human beings and playing “God”. I feel the event also impacted me most personally, not so much academically or professionally. After attending the Walk to End Alzheimer’s walk a few weeks ago, I want to become more involved with the event for next year by volunteering again and raising money to support a greater cause.
Reflection #3:
I attended a professional event on Thursday, January 16th, 2020 that was called A Day in the Life of a Harvard Law Student. The event took place in Hagerty Hall 180 at 5:30 pm. The law student featured was Sam Harris via video call who was an Ohio State and International Affairs alumni from 2019. She was also my resident advisor for my first year at Ohio State in Smith-Steeb Hall. Before the event, she was already a friend and a great resource. At the time of the event, Sam had finished her first semester as a 1L and was starting her second semester. I had great interest to attend the event with Sam Harris for several reasons. First, I wanted to catch up with Sam Harris to learn about her transition to higher education and to life outside of Ohio State. Second, I wanted to learn more about law school including the application process, the types of classes, and the overall attitude towards going law school. I was initially glad to learn that Sam is doing extremely well at Harvard and her dog is healthy and has grown exponentially since I last saw him at the end of my freshman school year. Sam talked about life outside the class at Harvard, including the many engagements she has with top law firms across the world that visit weekly. She also spoke on the close nit community that people at Harvard Law School, especially those in the same level as you like 1L, share. The group of students take all that same classes and have similar schedules. Additionally, she spoke about the rigor of the classes and the intense expectations of the students. Law school requires lots and lots reading, and professors might require you to speak in front of the entire class and know the exact answers. Therefore, there is an incentive to study the material extremely well. Sam spoke about the variety of classes she is taking the vary in topics from different types of law to history. One thing that surprised me is Sam said that a lot of classes spend time studying previous decisions made all levels of court to understand the law and method to determining the cases in court. The topic of the event with Sam Harris relates to the topic of International Affairs due to Sam’s involvement with International Affairs Scholars program all four years of undergraduate and the inherent nature of law with international affairs. Law is influenced and the cases and laws that arise have the potential to impact a large amount of people of different viewpoints and ethnicities/gender/etc. I feel I gained personally through getting to speak and learn more about Sam Harris and academically as I consider possible future options to attend law school. The event does relate to other topics I have learned since I am in the pre-law program at Ohio State so I receive access to events and other resources provided by the law department. Overall, I enjoyed speaking with Sam Harris and I would be interested in hearing from her either next year or the following year to learn about how her views and experience has changed throughout law school.
Reflection #4:
I attended a service event on Saturday, January 25th, 2020 with my fraternity at Habitat for Humanity. The event took place northwest of Ohio State’s campus and lasted all day. While my previous experience with Habitat for Humanity, had been more on the building the frames of a house or the destruction of a house, the event was a different pace which involved putting the final touches on the house which included painting the walls, doors, and cleaning up the floors and other surfaces. The house would soon be ready for a family to live in the house, so I enjoyed seeing a near final product that I typically have never seen. The event impacted me in several ways. First off, it was a great service opportunity knowing that the house I am building will be used to provide affordable housing for a family. I personally have never had to worry about where I will spend the night and if it will be warm. Therefore, I find Habitat for Humanity to be an organization that allows for giving back to the community while getting one’s hands dirty at the same time. Trust me when I say you will be sore after working a day with Habitat for Humanity. Additionally, the event was great for bonding with friends. The day would go by much slower if there were not people with me to joke around and have positive morale. Habitat for Humanity is an organization that relates to the topic of International Affairs as it addresses an issue present amongst many people in our country. In many cities across the country, there is a lack of affordable housing and decent places for people to live. While I might be helping build a house for Habitat for Humanity, the house will soon become a home for a family that desperately needs it. A home is much more than a roof over one’s head. It is place where one can grow a family, feel safe, and become more financially and mentally stable. Affordable housing allows for strong and stable communities to develop and grow, thus improving the quality of life for all. The event mostly impacted me personally as I am able to reflect on my purpose with Habitat for Humanity and the importance of my day of work in the grand scheme. I know that both of my parents employers partner with Habitat for Humanity where employees are able to give back to the community by helping with the organizations operations. I would like to see more involvement with possibly a group on campus that works with Habitat for Humanity or provides awareness for affordable housing in Columbus. A good start is through International Affairs Scholars where many people will be interested and motivated to address the affordable housing issue. Overall, I personally enjoyed by day with Habitat for Humanity as I find service and giving back to the community extremely important to develop a better understanding of life in the world and the struggles and good work taking place.
Reflection #5:
The event I attended was the Virtual Film Series which featured the screening of “Green Days by the River”. While the event occurred on April 24, 2020, I was able through Ohio State’s Kanopy service watch the movie. The event was also my first International Affiars and e-portfolio that was completely online, no involvement in person to discuss or physically see the movie in a theatre. The movie was first released to the public in 2017 and is based off a popular book by Michael Anthony that shares a similar title. The film was directed under Michael Mooleedhar who is originally from Trinidad and Tobago. The basic storyline of the film includes a coming of age story of a fifteen-year-old boy and takes place in the coastal village of Mayaro, which is located in Trinidad and Tobago. The director, due to his close connection to his home country, is able to better tell the story of the people and life of Trinidad and Tobango. Shell, the main character, experiences different trials as he attempts to understand the world around him. I enjoyed the relationship between Shell, the fifteen-year-old main character, and an Indian girl named Rosalie. There is internal conflict present with Shell’s interest in Joan as well. Additionally, Shell’s father is terminally ill so there presents additional internal conflict within Shell’s life. A big acticity for Shell is working with Gidharee, owner an exotic plantation, who works with large dogs that are used to attract Joan. Gidharee sets a trap for Shell that would take away his manhood, giving the moving its coming of age theme. I am always a big fan of the movies provided by Ohio State through the Office of International Affairs and other departments because the films are often less mainstream and are lower budget. Despite not having the budget or production levels of the films found at traditional movie theatres, the films often leave me thinking about and being exposed to different perspectives and cultures. Additionally, the films also show the beauty and harshness of the environment in which people live. Similarly, the topic of International Affairs is heavily emphasized in “Green Days by the River”. It provides a glimpse of life in a small country in the Caribbean, Trinidad and Tapingo. I personally had never heard of this country before watching the film. The diversity in the way of life that is present in this region of the world allows for a betting understanding of how people live. The event impacted me academically through an understanding of life in Trinidad and Tapingo in the 1950s and personally by learning more of the harsh realities and personal struggles and how to overcome these struggles.
Reflection #6:
While a typical e-porfolio reflection features a single event that I have attended, I felt that a class I took this semester would be fitting as it fits many of the values of International Affairs and has transformed my understanding of the world and the variety of people that live in it. The class is under the Department of Engineering Education and is taught by Dr. Lisa Abrams who is the Associate Chair for the department. The class was only one credit hour and was called “Inclusive Leadership Practice for Emerging Professionals”. Inclusive Leadership was explored through understandings of one’s strengths, and possible weakness through tests such as the Clifton Strengths Assessment. Other areas we explored were identities. Identities that you might have, and the identities others may hold. Unconscious bias was my favorite topic of the class and I developed a research presentation on the topic to better inform my peers. The topic is rooted primarily based on stereotyping of race, culture, ethnicity, gender, socio-economic status, and more. The effect, which not intended consciously, can have damaging impacts to the confidence, success, and ability of an individual. Examples of unconscious bias can be with assuming character traits based on a body image, such as thinking a male nurse is the doctor and that a female working in a hospital is nurse. Despite being unconscious, there are many ways one can be conscious of their biases so as to not let them interfere or lead to the degrading of an individual. The topic of unconscious bias was only one part of many that was discussed in the class. I found the class to impact me on several levels to become a more inclusive leader. An inclusive leader is one who is able to inspire and provide the tools for the group to succeed. Additionally, it is important to understanding the different viewpoints, identities, and values one might have to better support. The topic relates to International Affairs as it is important in our world to develop understandings on how the different perspectives and viewpoints. With some of the programs in Columbus that International Affairs Scholars are a part of such as CRIS. The course itself has allowed me to gain academically, professionally, and personally. In school and in my career as an engineer, I will always be working in teams where people will have varied experience, both on the topic and personally. Teams also should promote individual and group success, which is only able to have with excellent communication and inclusivity. Overall, I found engineering class on inclusive leadership to be one of the most impactful things I have completed at Ohio State. The values and lessons learned and discussed in the class will be applicable to all areas of life that will hopefully be a step to improving the success of people in society.