Good evening friends!
Well, the countdown has begun. A week from today, I need to upload my edTPA to the Pearson website. As I type these words, I might be holding an imminent panic attack at bay. Honestly, every time I start to work on edTPA, a panic attack usually ensues. The whole project is just so incredibly big! But, as I've told myself repeatedly, I just need to break it up into small chunks and make sure that I work on those chunks when I say I'm going to. So tomorrow I'm hoping to finish the rough draft of my planning commentary so that I can send it to my advisor to check. Maybe telling the internet will actually make me stick to my own deadlines.
But, this week isn't all work! There is indeed some play to be had! I'm very excited because tomorrow, the 1st and 2nd grade students at my elementary school are giving a winter concert, which is going to rock! Only, I'm not sure the weather knows that we are supposed to be giving a winter-ish concert. It was 60 degrees yesterday and sunny. Granted, it was rainy and 40s today but considering Minnesota has usually had at least one snowstorm by this time of year, rainy and 40s is down right strange. Just watch, next week, when I have to travel for 15 hours over the course of two days, there is going to be a huge snowstorm just because I said something. That's just my luck.
But enough about the weather! Lord knows you aren't interested in what the weather is like up here in the great white north. However, I'm sure all of you have read plenty about what happened in Paris this past Friday, as well as what's been happening in Beirut and Baghdad. This is all of course framed by the general refugee crisis currently going in Europe and Syria as well as the ISIS threat in general. Behold, my next adulting conundrum: wondering what I can possibly do with all this information?
Every day I hear more terrible news about the situation over in Europe and the Middle East. Another city has been bombed, there's been another attack on innocent people, and more people are dying in the streets. While I sit here at my computer, typing this post in my very nice town house that I share with three other women on an expensive laptop surrounded by my book collection and many penguin posters, there are thousands of people suffering right now who wish they could have the advantages that I've had. Maybe they just wish that they felt as safe as I do right now.
Even worse, these people who are suffering are under harsh criticism and scrutiny because we just can't tell who wants to seek asylum and aid versus who wants to hurt others on a massively terrifying scale. These people are suffering from the consequences of radicals' actions, not their own. Most likely, a majority of people don't even identify with the loud and violent minority that wants to bring harm and chaos.
But we are in a pickle too because we don't want to bring people to the United States who are going to harm us. But how can we refuse thousands of people who need help? It's quite the paradox to think about. Also, please know that I can see the validity in both sides of this argument. It's just that ethical and empathetic part of me can't condone turning away anyone who has need.
So I sit here wondering, what on Earth can I do? Because as an ethical and compassionate person, I want to help. However, I lack money to send humanitarian aid to these people. I lack the ability to leave and go to these areas and help who I can.
I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. I'm not the only one that is at a loss as to what they can do to help this situation. The adulting conundrum is this: what are we supposed to do with all of the information the news gives us, especially when it is so contradictory from network to network, depending on the slant of the news station?
My solution so far is two-fold:
First, I will stay informed. I refuse to let this huge humanitarian travesty be put to the back of my mind, just so that I can stay "comfortable." I will continue to rely on unbiased (or, as unbiased as possible) news networks, such as NPR and MPR to keep me informed of what is happening to these people who only want safety and a place where they can live their lives in peace.
Second, I will continue to find a voice that I can give to this outcry. Yes, I am one voice of many, and yes, I don't know all the particulars of the entire situation that has blown up in Europe and the Middle East. I can't hope to come up with a solution but I can continue to make sure that these people aren't forgotten. I might not be able to do anything, but maybe by continuing talk about the immense tragedy and intense need for a solution, someone who can do something, will.
I always thought that when I grew up, I would have the power to make the world the way I wanted it to be. I'm starting to realize that trying to control the outcome of the entire world is a bit much for a college student to try and take on - especially a music major. But, I will continue to make my corner of the world as awesome and loving as I can. Maybe if we all do that, we can change the world together.
Lastly, I ask all my friends and family, as well as anyone reading this blog, to stay lovingly accepting of others while we all as a global nation process the tragedies that have occurred over the past couple of days. We all process differently, and maybe for some, like me, the only thing we could think to do at the time was change our profile picture filter to be that of the French flag. Trust me, when I did that, I was fully aware of the need for solidarity for all nations that have been affected by the unrest in the world. But it took me weeks to finally come up with coherent thoughts about the entire issue at hand. Some times, we feel like the only thing we can do is change our profile picture. #prayfortheworld
See you next week!
- Jamie
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