Oddly enough, this post is not about a mall, nor is it about commercialism . . . it's about new beginnings in a different culture and in a commitment to quality communication about by Beyond Borders experience.
When it comes to the Ukraine, I know I am beginning at square one with many things from politics to people to language. As a requirement for my Beyond Borders course, I need to blog a couple times about the location of my placement as well as do some critical reflection. I have been slacking off with blogging lately (so thank you for being patient), but do intend to start fresh with a commitment to quality blogs (as much for the sake of the readers and myself as for my course), skill development and learning about the Ukraine.
Even in my own country, I am not the most politically involved person and am realizing how important it is to be in the know as my generation becomes more informed and influential. With the journey to Ukraine approaching, I have an even stronger motivation to know Canadian, Ukrainian and global politics well, since it will help ensure my safety in and my understanding of both countries. Thankfully, upon learning my Beyond Borders destination, I have been put in contact with many people and resources, including the newspaper site, http://www.kyivpost.com/.
I am lucky that site is in English because I am currently not able to speak Ukrainian. This is another area I will be working on, beginning with the alphabet and a few prayers taught to me by a Ukrainian friend.
Incase you've been wondering why I have developed such an interest in writing, it's because I have been learning a lot of great stuff that I want to share. I am sharing it this way because this is a requirement of my Beyond Borders course. I have been slacking off with blogging lately (so thank you for being patient), but do intend to start fresh with a commitment to quality blogs (as much for the sake of the readers and myself as for my course), skill development and learning about the Ukraine. These are the topics and goals I am looking foreword to discussing:
Readings: With the intention of studying "community development" and other social issues more deeply, I will be writing a response to each reading and sharing the link to them whenever possible. I have realized that, for any vision to work, the necessary homework must be completed and so I'll be doing that and sharing it with you.
Fundraising: I'll keep you posted with fundraising efforts and what your money will be doing.
Skills: I would like to learn the Ukrainian alphabet and at least one prayer before I go. Hopefully this will give me a bit of a base to work with when I get there. I'm also going to learn to play some camp songs on the harmonica or guitar so we can have sing-along at Internat J
I wonder if ASL would be useful . . . that's next on the list.
Music: The first thing I did when I created this blot was make a playlist. Now all I have to do is figure out how to get music on here . . .Could anyone lend me a hand?
Blog Topics: Inspiration and creative thing is in full supply these days! Here are some of the topics I am to discuss:
Vatican II Centre Lecture
Waiting for the Bus
Outsiders
What to do in an emergency situation/the technical things I'm doing to prepare (Dad will be happy about this one)
Radical Realism
Character
The importance of routine in trust and community
Community "problems" and development
Selling vs. sharing yourself
Please comment if you have one.
Sincerely,
Jess V
Good work on the preparation! I can understand how you feel, it is incredibly important for me to vote and having been in student government for three years, it was important for me to cast my ballot for the feds exec (which I did this afternoon btw) but it was incredibly difficult for me to get in that mindset and remind myself that the management of an 8 million dollar corporation is important especially with a program like Beyond Borders that takes up so much of your time. I could not deal with student government because I put so much emphasis on Beyond Borders and thinking that was a more worthy cause, it took a while for me to focus my attention long enough to cast an informed ballot which I did--- you can do the same with blogging! I have faith in you!
ReplyDelete-Sebastien :)