Reflection Paper

Growing up in a predominantly white community, I had never thought of the issue of race as a child. My neighbor and I were best friends, and I never thought of myself as different. She had blonde hair; I had black. She had blue eyes; I had dark brown. We loved to play with the same things, thus we were

Throughout the course of this semester, I have continuously grown as a writer. Prior to taking this course, I had little experience or knowledge when it came to writing. I used to struggle with forming my thoughts into writing, let alone a paper. I was never confident with what I wrote. My writing had no greater purpose other than the assignment. My writing process included: writing my paper, proofreading it, and turning it in. Once the paper left my hands, it also left my mind. Throughout this course we worked with others, visited the writing lab, wrote critiques, and we were able to revise our papers. I believe that all of this is has caused me to grow greatly as a writer.

Carrie Fisher once proclaimed, “Stay afraid but do it anyway. What’s important is the action. You don’t have to wait to be confident. Just do it and eventually, the confidence will follow.” I had to learn the hard way that confidence does not show up ready for you to utilize, just as the quote says. You have to put yourself out there and the confidence will develop. In the seventh grade, I joined the beginner band and chose to play the flute. Beginning band was far more terrifying than my twelve-year-old self imagined it to be. I learned that each student would have to perform in front of the class for a weekly grade. Even worse, the one other flute player next to me had already been playing for a year and I constantly compared myself to her. Later in that semester, this girl and I were talking and she said to me, “When we first started, I thought you were going to be the worst player in the band!” I was completely baffled that this girl, who had only been playing for a few more months than I had, would have the audacity to say that to my face. I did not understand that, at the time, it was okay for me to not play as well as she could. I had only been playing for a few weeks at most after all. Twelve year old me took it to heart and I felt like I was two inches tall. Sadly, that was not the last negative interaction I had with that girl. She stayed with me all throughout middle school, where she made fun of me for making last chair in eighth grade, and overall, put my

On September 6, 2017, I were documented for an incident that involved a University Housing policy violation. I was charged with violating the University Housing Alcohol 1.2 policy. With my violation, came consequences. I met with The Residence Conduct Coordinator to discuss my actions and came to the conclusion that I would have to schedule a meeting with The Campus Alcohol and Drug Education Center (CADEC) and with that, a reflection paper.

I sometimes felt “too black” for the white kids and “ too white for the black kids. My black peers perceiving my abundance of white friends as “ selling out “,wanting to be white, or that i thought i was too good to be with them. But the disadvantage of being that “token black friend “ in the group i was automatically considered the connoisseur of all things black , like why Black people can use the N-word and white people can’t , or how weaves work , or if black people get sunburn. And at times i felt forced to view things a certain way in order to be true to my race. An example being the shooting of black men, Yes i do believe that some of the cases are racially motivated but I also sometime think it's just a jerk with a major comlex who has the go ahead to kill.But sadly, when you’re black- ish , you can’t just be a person with controversial ideas.Those these insecurities and fears consumed me for so long , i began to realize as i grew older, that I am more than my race , that the friends i choose are based of character not color, that I can y can express views , That I am not Black-ish , I am just black and proud to be part of such a growing and historical

Race is everywhere, you cannot escape it. We deal with it everyday, and it’s normally the main feature we notice in one another. Nonetheless, each one of us was brought up differently, and we each have our own perspective on race. I have been raised into a family that has not had any specific preference or biased opinion towards any race. My parents’ views have had a large impact on my life, as should any child’s viewpoints be influenced by their parents. I wouldn’t go as far as saying that I did not have any interest in racial issues before high school started, but my eyes have been opened more than ever before.

As I grew into my teenage years my life started to change. My mother decided to move to a white suburb in Long Island, New York it was my reality check on how people from other races viewed African Americans. It was the first time I experience stereotyping and racism. In this neighborhood whites people were

Growing up in a diverse society the concept of race really does not exist. Obviously different races exist but people were not seen by the way they looked. People honestly looked past one’s race and looked at the person's character instead. This was the way I try to be. I say try because once I moved to Midlothian Texas my mind set started to shift from looking at someone's character rather than their race to looking at someone's race and then their character.

Going through high school I experienced my first encounter with race. I was in class one day and we had a discussion about continuing education and why it is important. My high school population was very diverse. There were about ten African-American students in the entire high school. The professor made a comment to me while I was searching colleges that I would be better off applying to historically black colleges because chances of

Attending schools with my primarily white friends has made me realize how different our upbringings are. For example, privacy from family is something most of them take for granted, whereas in my culture, it is unheard of. Others may be able to acknowledge the restrictions

My choir teacher decided to put on the musical, Hairspray, which discusses topics of race. The teacher scanned the class for the palest of skins to put as the Corny Collins Show cast and I was sure the teacher would pass right by me. It wasn’t until a girl raised her hand and said,” Well, Ananda is White too.” As true as that was, I was also Black and would be considered a person of color. It kind of startled me that everyone preserved me in this way. It kind of made me angry, no matter how cool headed I am, that someone could throw away everything that my ancestors went through for a minute part in a play. Being the extremely shy girl that I was in my younger years, I put on a smile and put my feelings on the back burner. I learned that no matter what anyone else had to say about me, I am who I

The community I grew up in was very small. Everybody knew everybody! We were all taught to love everyone no matter what color they are. Where I grew up my grandmother was everybody grandmother. When she cooked everyone on our street was more than welcome to come and get a plate, if she had enough. As a young black African American girl I always heard about racism and what my race and other races had to go through. I went to three different elementary schools and we had kids of all race there. At Park Ridge Elementary is where I met my first friend of a different race. At Career Academy High School, in February we had a Black History Program. Our teachers tried to demonstrate what they had to go through by posting whites only on certain water

Arati, even though you missed one day, you caught right back up with us and was able to understand most of the material all by yourself. I was impressed when you told me that you did one of the modules on game plan at home. You have shown dedication and an honest will to learn. You showed creativity when you decided to incorporate your love for music in your final project. I am glad that you learned a lot this week and remember to continue with your education in technology.

Our civilizations relies upon people to develop morals and resilience through family, however, what happens when you grow up in an abusive family? Sure, you develop resilience quickly, unfortunately, you may build your moral foundation over a sinkhole. In addition to family dynamics, by age eleven, I survived being hung by a Mexican gang, three dog attacks and a house fire which left both legs covered in second degree burns. Fortunately, at age twelve, I ran away and a couple discovered me sleeping in their garage. Compassionately, they took me in and allowed me to live in a travel trailer on their property.

I truly believe that each person, experience, and surroundings takes someone to where they are. To me it’s been a wide set journey that has shaped me as a reader and writer. I came to the realization that what someone's background is, isn’t a definition of who they are. But instead, it has shaped them to where they stand. Where somewhere came from doesn’t define where they will end up. That just means each piece you read or write comes from somewhere that had meaning to it. In my life it involves church, my family and my teachers. Each have been a significant role in the process of getting to where I am now.