Greenfield, Santa Clara, and Life

I would like to begin with saying that this week’s class was definitely my favorite. It gave me a lot to think about personally and a larger scale.
I am very conscious and grateful for the fact that I am a very privileged person, as it has given me a lot of opportunities.  A more unique privilege I have experienced, however, is growing up in the community I did that gave me a greater awareness of the world.  I was raised in a small agricultural town called Greenfield, where many of my classmates were less financially well off. A lot of their parents worked hard in the fields all day to provide for their families and did not have much extra. An example of this occurred during college decision season, when I was able to apply to college without worrying to much about how I was going to pay for it, which was not the case for a lot of my classmates, who worked very hard to figure out the best way for themselves to get their education. I could not be more proud.
The town I come from has also been affected by gang violence.  News of shootings in the county were often frequent news, which I of course always found extremely upsetting, but somehow tended to feel in a world separate from mine.  The time in which it has impacted me the most was when a theater performance I was in had to be canceled and postponed because there had been a shooting close by.  I am EXTREMELY lucky that’s the closest I have been to it, but that’s when it really hit home for me. This was real. Ever since then, if I hear news of violence in the world at any time, it now strikes a greater cord. I know I have not experienced it at its worst, but I comprehend its impact much more now
Here at Santa Clara, I am still extremely grateful for everything I have and how lucky I am.  I have also encountered many different new backgrounds that I have never been aware of before, but that is just a different type of eye opener. I think with cultures and identities, there is a difference between knowing and understanding. While we can learn all the facts in the world, we will never truly understand a way of life unless we experience it ourselves.  Therefore, here’s to working hard to know and trying to understand for a lifetime.