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Identity Reflection Essay

Decent Essays

Over the course of the semester I have crossed many boundaries that I never would have thought of. Whether that be domestically or culturally over the course of the year and with that it has changed my identity. This semester I found who I am more than anything and gave me an approach to how to live within a community that at first I do not know. With this being said I speak most likely for many that college started out scary as we knew no one and had never been away from home this long. I know personally I found my new identity that I never knew that I had because I crossed boundaries. As time goes on identity evolves when you cross domestic and international boundaries. Identity is something that is found within that you have to find when you cross cultural differences domestically and internationally. In Eboo Patel's book Acts of Faith he uses a quote that shows how identity evolves over time. “The tradition you were born into was your home, Brother Wayne told me, but as Gandhi once wrote, it should be a home with the windows open so that the winds of other traditions can blow through and bring their unique oxygen. “It’s good to have wings,” he would say, “but you have to have roots, too”(Acts of Faith). This quote really shows that identity is something that is found at what you call your home and you keep your roots there. Your roots are your upbringing when you are young and your wings are when you leave the safety of home. This quote is also showing that the winds of other traditions bring unique oxygen which would be a new experience that help you sculpt your identity in the way you want it. Tradition is something that you will always remember but in order to truly find who you are you must cross domestic and international boundaries. When you cross these boundaries you learn about your identity because your wings have been used and your roots have been deepened. Another book read over the course really demonstrates this concept of identity being found within. This book is Citizen in this book it really shows cultures being crossed not necessarily internationally but domestically. I found a quote that states, “Perhaps the most insidious and least understood form of segregation is that of the

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