I have been challenged with the following hypothetical situation:
Imagine the following:
1. How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you
2. Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item and have to give up the other two items you brought with you
3. Any insights you gained about yourself, your family culture, diversity, and/or cultural differences in general, as a result of this exercise,
I would chose to take with me my family tree portfolio, educational material, angel from the top of the Christmas. I created the family tree portfolio in high school which includes artifacts and information from both my mother and father's sides of the family along with audio recording of family members sharing what they know about from oral accounts about our ancestors. I choose this item because it is a reminder of how far my family has come and would serve as a source of inspiration as we embark on a new phase of our journey. The next item I choose was a dictionary because it represents education. Education has always been a very important presence in my family. Several of my family members were educators and education played a significant role in the success of my family post slavery and the civil rights movement. The final item I choose is the angel that my family places on the top of our Christmas tree every year. the angel represents the part of my family's culture that celebrates and embraces the Christmas holiday and all that it means. My family gathers to decorate the tree with the angel being the last item to be placed on the tree. We get to spend the most amount of time together during this time of the year and it is considered precious. This time of year of course also celebrates an important part of our religion.
If I were told upon arrival that I could only take one item i would feel hurt and betrayed. It would be an extremely difficult decision but I think I would choose the family tree portfolio. I would choose it as a reminder that we've overcome adversity and seemingly impossible situations and as inspiration to continue to persevere. I realized that ti was very difficult to choose items that represent my family's culture because some of the most important aspects of my family aren't easily represented by concrete objects.
Imagine the following:
A
major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure
of your country. The emergency government has decided that the surviving
citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries
willing to take refugees. You and your immediate family are among the
survivors of this catastrophic event. However, you have absolutely no
input into the final destination or in any other evacuation details. You
are told that your host country’s culture is completely different from
your own, and that you might have to stay there permanently. You are
further told that, in addition to one change of clothes, you can only
take 3 small items with you. You decide to take three items that you
hold dear and that represent your family culture.
1. How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you
2. Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item and have to give up the other two items you brought with you
3. Any insights you gained about yourself, your family culture, diversity, and/or cultural differences in general, as a result of this exercise,
I would chose to take with me my family tree portfolio, educational material, angel from the top of the Christmas. I created the family tree portfolio in high school which includes artifacts and information from both my mother and father's sides of the family along with audio recording of family members sharing what they know about from oral accounts about our ancestors. I choose this item because it is a reminder of how far my family has come and would serve as a source of inspiration as we embark on a new phase of our journey. The next item I choose was a dictionary because it represents education. Education has always been a very important presence in my family. Several of my family members were educators and education played a significant role in the success of my family post slavery and the civil rights movement. The final item I choose is the angel that my family places on the top of our Christmas tree every year. the angel represents the part of my family's culture that celebrates and embraces the Christmas holiday and all that it means. My family gathers to decorate the tree with the angel being the last item to be placed on the tree. We get to spend the most amount of time together during this time of the year and it is considered precious. This time of year of course also celebrates an important part of our religion.
If I were told upon arrival that I could only take one item i would feel hurt and betrayed. It would be an extremely difficult decision but I think I would choose the family tree portfolio. I would choose it as a reminder that we've overcome adversity and seemingly impossible situations and as inspiration to continue to persevere. I realized that ti was very difficult to choose items that represent my family's culture because some of the most important aspects of my family aren't easily represented by concrete objects.
Hi Kara,
ReplyDeleteI think it's interesting how similar the items are that each of our colleagues chose. I enjoyed reading about your Christmas tree topper and actually thought about some of my family ornaments as well. The fact that some of the most important aspects of your family aren't easily represented by concrete objects is wonderful. I can only imagine the adversity your family has been through and feel fortunate to be in another class with you.
Kara,
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting reading the blogs to see the items everyone selected to take their new destination. I am learning more about you and my other classmates based on the items that were selected. I thought it interested that you would take a dictionary. I enjoyed reading your blog.
Kara,
ReplyDeleteThe more I read these blogs the more I see how similar our cultures are, but at the same time we each are choosing to bring something with us that is specifically unique to our culture. One may be getting to know each individual family and find that they fit in with the dominant culture, but it is important to find out what makes each individual family unique.
Kara,
ReplyDeleteTo have a portfolio of your family, including many artifacts, is such a valuable thing. The fact that the portfolio contains voice recordings of each members own memories is such an amazing thing. That, regardless of where you go in life, can carry such a strong weight. Not only do the visual aspects allow for you to have constant reminders of who you are and where you came from, but they will always be there to share with others as well.