Something Different

Today, I am not going to talk about the Animal House (although many out of the ordinary events happened Saturday). Today I want to tell you about another service project (if I should even call it a project) that I am doing. Because I have until January to set a platform for my service work, I think this is a great time to bring up something completely different from working with animals.
I am part of the Language Partners Program at UNA. This basically means I get to hang out with an international student for an hour each week to help them with their conversation skills and to learn about their home and culture. This is another way I want to impact the world through small actions. By being a LP (language partner), I learn a lot about how other people my age from different countries survive everyday life, and I learn about their cultures and traditions. By expanding my understanding of the world around me (because the world does not consist of just Florence, just Alabama, or even just the US), I don't feel as naive and sheltered. With this understanding I hope to (and already have) show other people who hold a prejudice view on a people or culture, that individuals should not be judged based on actions of a specific group, but rather as an individual. This understanding of other cultures and beliefs is the first step to taming the tension between nations, religions, and cultures.