HOME
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Dissertation Tracker
  • Portfolio
  • Contact
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Dissertation Tracker
  • Portfolio
  • Contact
HOME

ashley's blog

reflections of the week

friday sign-off: "A QUESTION OF APPROPRIATION" poem from salt. by nayyirah waheed

7/29/2016

0 Comments

 
“would you still want to travel to that country if you could not take a camera with you.” 
― Nayyirah Waheed
0 Comments

friday sign-off: "On my WAY TO HARLEM" BY GREGORY PORTER

7/22/2016

0 Comments

 
0 Comments

wednesday conversation: fRANK AND ERNEST

7/20/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture

​WHEN CULTURE TRUMPS PERSONALITY

I enjoy talking.
But sometimes, I don't want to represent anyone.
Sometimes I just want to be myself, free of the burden of representation.

When first meeting new people, one can expect the standard questions: Where are you from? Do you like...? Have you tried...?
Apart from the getting to know you historically questions (facts, [dis]likes, etc.), there the getting to know you personally questions (thoughts, beliefs, convictions). Personal questions tend to require fuller thought, more reflection,  and perhaps, more diplomacy, especially if the questioner asks you to speak on behalf of a community of people.

Currently, the United States public image is on the rocks. Police brutality, racism, political upheaval does not make sense to many living in the U.S., much less people who are watching it from afar. On a trip to Canada in May, I met a few people who somewhat jokingly commented on the U.S. presidential election and the prospect of U.S. American's immigrating to their Northern neighbor. What perturbed me was not the awkward political icebreaker but rather the throwback question, "Why is there so much racism and hatred in America?"

I shared an example a few weeks back about a student asking me about Islamophobia and war in the United States. Traveller and Blogger Valentine Sergon offers her own approach to navigating these difficult questions in "On Being Black, American, Proud".


Have you faced "representation fatigue"? How do you handle it?
0 Comments

friday sign-off: "africa" by d'angelo

7/15/2016

0 Comments

 
0 Comments

Wednesday conversation: Calvin and hobbes 

7/13/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture

20 Things you shouldn't do around the world

Picture
Part of the risk (and fun) in cross-cultural interactions is discovering what is (and what is not) appropriate. Not just appropriateness but to whom is it appropriate, when and how often.

The surest way to figure this out is by making mistakes.

In 2015, I had the opportunity to accompany a good friend to Thailand, where she had taught English through the Fulbright program.

During this trip, I was welcomed by her wonderful community of Thai high school teachers. 

Their kindness was moving. The teachers rented a beachside condo for the weekend. They cooked many, many delicious meals, and serenades us endlessly with English pop tunes.

All of the teachers had a great sense of humor and enjoyed joking, especially P'O (pictured in gray shirt).
​
P'O can be described as an affectionate jokester eager to speak English. She's also about 5'4 and I'm 5'8. While hugging, I touched her head. She said, "I am your sister, not your dog."

How embarrassing for the both of us!


​
​
​

Picture
In Thailand, as is the case in most Hindu and Buddhist-influenced countries, the head is considered sacred. How could I forget something so basic? Perhaps I thought friendship transcended these norms.

After inwardly reprimanding myself for such a blunder and reassembling my pride, I noticed P'O had moved past the offense and was teasing someone else.

Moral of the story: I made a mistake and I survived.


​Check out this list of 
20 Things NOT to do Around the World.
0 Comments

friday sign-off: "the release" poem in salt. by nayyirah waheed

7/8/2016

0 Comments

 
“decolonization requires acknowledging. that your needs and desires should never come at the expense of another’s life energy. it is being honest that you have been spoiled by a machine that is not feeding you freedom but feeding you the milk of pain." 
― Nayyirah Waheed
0 Comments

wednesday conversation: calvin and hobbes

7/6/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture

​WAR AND PEACE

Below is an adapted a journal entry during my Fulbright grant to teach English in Malaysia. Fulbright was created for the "promotion of international good will through the exchange of students in the fields of education, culture, and science." Click here for more information on Fulbright.
--
A typical Tuesday begins at 12:30 PM for me; however, I chose to come in early on Tuesday to make photostats for my students.

The morning teachers were already done for the day, so I was the only teacher in the office. Three boys from a Form 5* class entered the room. I smiled and offered my favorite chocolates available in Malaysia, Cloud 9 double chocolate chews. The students’
responded with a simple question, “Is it halal?”

What happened next caught me completely off-guard and is, perhaps, the most startling experience in Malaysia to date. As one student scoured the label for a halal symbol, another boy walked over to the door and locked it.

“Strange,” I thought.

“Teacher,” he says, “tell me what you think about my religion?” I opened my mouth to answer his question but he continued to speak, “Do you think all Muslims are terrorists? What do you think about Islamophobia? Why do Americans kill so many Muslims?”

He’s aware of the 9/11 attacks and that I’m from New York. I know what he wants to hear. I know what he’s really asking. He wants to know if I think he’s a bad person. He’s really asking if I can respect him –his faith, his culture.

I told him war is a horrible and complicated thing and that there are good people and there are bad people all over the world and in every religion. I explained that if I was afraid of Muslims, I wouldn’t have come to a predominantly Muslim nation, Malaysia.

Then, I asked what he thinks of Christians and the United States of America. His response?

Sorry, I don’t know English.”

He and his friends grabbed a handful of my chocolate sweets, unlocked the door and walked outside to the bus station.

That experience made me believe this is what I’m here for. Yes, I’m here to encourage students to use English; help them to come out of their boxes and not be as shy. More importantly, I’m here to facilitate cultural exchange and to promote mutual understanding.

*Form 5 is Junior/Senior year of high school. Students are between 17-18 years old.
0 Comments

friday sign-off: "away i go" by johnnyswim

7/1/2016

0 Comments

 
0 Comments

    Author

    Musings and muses.

    Archives

    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016

    Categories

    All
    Accents
    American Sign Language
    Book Excerpt
    Calvin And Hobbes
    Conferences
    Culture
    EducationUSA
    Family
    Fatigue
    Friday Sign Off
    Fulbright
    Gregory Porter
    Humanity
    Human Rights
    Idioms
    India
    Islamophobia
    John Legend
    Justice
    Khaled Hosseini
    Language
    Latin@
    Lists
    Malaysia
    Mistakes
    Monday Media
    Music
    NAFSA
    Nayyirah Waheed
    Peace
    Poem
    Poetry
    Positive Intent
    Prayer
    Reframing
    Relationships
    Spoken Word
    Thailand
    Travel
    Travel Soundtrack
    UNHRC
    War
    Wednesday Conversation
    World Refugee Day

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
Photo used under Creative Commons from Gerry & Bonni