Monthly Archives: October 2011

Annie Chen

LC06

Making Strides against Breast Cancer Walk

1. My community service work helped he community by supporting the walkers and directing the walkers.

2. My initial reactions were that it was very early in the morning and that it was going to be hard to find the meet up place.

3.It makes me feel good about myself, knowing that I helped.

4. I learned that I can help for events like these and that the people around me was supportive for the event.  I also learned a little more about Breast Cancer and how survivor survived.

5. I enjoyed high-fiving and cheering the walkers for support.  I learned that a small gesture of support means a lot to the walkers.

6. Engaging in this project relates to my education and larger issues in society because I learned and became more aware about Breast Cancer.

7. The community service experience relates to the “Leadership and Service” session because I was leading and directing the walkers to the correct path and keeping the event safe for daily pedestrians and the walkers at Central Park.

8. My community service experience changed my way of thinking, my attitudes and actions towards others, myself, and the community because it taught me not to waste time.  I could’ve slept in if I didn’t know about the event.  Volunteering was a better way to spend my morning.

9. My community service experience impacted me personally because it helped me learn how I can help others in my community by doing something small.

10. I was satisfied with my experience overall because I made new friends, got to know my classmates better and was able to help out in the event.

11. I do see myself staying involved in the community during my college and adult years because it makes me feel good about myself when I volunteer. It makes more sense to help out the community rather than waste my time watching television or shopping.

12. Making Strides against Breast Cancer Walk was a supportive, loud and enthusiastic walk for those who were impacted by Breast Cancer.

I am Chinese. I am a friend, a student, a counselor, a granddaughter, a niece, a cousin, a daughter, and a sister.  I grew up in the Lower East Side.  My family is important to me.  I have an older brother and a younger sister. I’m stuck as the middle child. I never get the privileges an older sibling would get.  I never get the privileges a younger sibling would get either.  But, it makes me more independent.

There is nothing more important to me than family. Family is a bond that cannot be broken. They are always there for support and guidance, they are there when you’re up and when you’re down, and they will never leave your side. From mom and dad’s yelling to their praise, from sibling rivalry to being role models, it’s always important to keep your family close because they will always help and support you, no matter what.

Enjoying myself is one of the most important things to me, but I do offer my help to anyone who really needs it. When no one else fills a role or somebody directly asks me for help I do what I can. I take on most tasks begrudgingly but silently, though if there is something that makes myself and a number of other people unhappy I will try to take care of it since nobody else will. I enjoy the simple pleasures in life, usually just eating and sleeping after days of severe sleep deprivation. My main goal here is to learn as much as I possibly can.

I’m an eighteen year old Chinese American teenager who’s been living in NYC my entire life. I’m generally a pretty happy and humorous person even in the worst of times. I enjoy keeping smiles on my family and friends. I’m one of three children with two sisters. Family is the most important thing in my life. Dying is the thing that scares me the most. Success for myself and my family is what makes me really happy. School has been very tiring for me and full of work. My inspiration to try this hard comes from my rejection letter to my first choice college. That event had a huge impact on my life and made me want to try harder in life, so I’m extremely grateful for the experience.

The only other time I felt this much motivation to work was at my high school swim team’s championship meet where I took first place for my 50-free event. This event made me feel empowered. Overall, I want to become really successful one day, so successful that I can give back to others and become a distinguished philanthropist. I hope Baruch will be my successful medium to reach these goals.

Self-Portrait:

One of my favorite paintings by Edward Hopper:

nighthwk.jpg

I would describe myself as an 18 year old, white, catholic, Italian and Irish college student. I’m a son, a grandson, friend, nephew, and brother. I enjoy playing basketball and I love eating new foods. I completely hate heights. Baruch is going decent so far. Too many classes are pointless in the school for my major. I plan to go into finance and hope to have a successful career with a degree from Baruch College. I wish I was more confident in myself and hope I can learn to be by my experiences through college.

Cold is all I remember.

I was forced to do community service before in high school, at least 5 hours every semester. This means twenty hours of community service per year which means in my entire high school career eighty hours of community service. Not to mention the community service I did in the summer is completely disregarded because I have to do community service during that semester in the school year. Frankly, I don’t give a damn. I have other things to worry about, this is like swatting an annoying fly that won’t go away. But at least I remain committed to it. If I have a task I will still finish it.

Imagine my expression when I realized I had to do even more community service in college. I thought that was done with but apparently not. Anyway, our living community decided to go to the Making Strides: Breast Cancer walk on Sunday October 16. The walk starts at 7, which means I had to walk up at 6:20. This was alright on weekdays since I have school but on a weekend when the MTA system is unpredictable and annoying? Worse yet, it was still early in the morning and it was freezing. We had to stand around in the cold. I admire that walkers, for enduring that weather and smiling at the same time.

Community service I guess can be interpreted as the humanistic side of business. Non profit organization go out of their way to help people without an intent of having any type of profit besides doing a good deed. And that is a nice reminder in society today.

Honestly, if I tried harder and expected more out of myself I could have done a lot more for the community service. Alas, it was not meant to be and I am not going out of my way to repeat the experience.

I am still traveling down that road called life.

I am exiting one stage and entering another.

I stand here firmly in the present:

attempting to look forward in the future

and yet afraid to continue my journey.

I look hesitantly into my past

the memories that remain grow hazy

but the experiences become vivid.

If I look in a dictionary and search for my name,

I find no meaning

the entry is blank.

So I take a pen and write

the pen hesitates before meeting the paper.

What defines me?

Do I write my meaning or do others write if for me?

Should I leave it blank and expect it to write itself?

Still, I attempt to write something

but I grow frustrated and dislike the entry I have given myself.

I cross it out.

The blot is ugly and I immediately regret what I have done.

Then I realize why the entry remains blank,

it is because I am still traveling down that road called life.

I don’t know what I like best about myself, but I don’t see that as a bad thing. I see it more as I like everything about myself. Therefore, there is nothing I don’t like about myself. I identify myself as a white American male who lives in New York State. I am also a son and a brother who looks up to my parents. I know that I may not agree with them, but they have been through what I am going through now. I always respect guidance given to me although I may not listen to it. I am afraid of heights and I am not a fan of spiders. Succeeding in my endeavors and being with other people makes me happy. My family is important to me. I would like to increase my musical ability. I am enjoying school right now. I’ve made friends, classes are going well, and I’m enjoying my days off. I’m doing well in my classes and I am managing my work well. I’m just here to have a good time.