FRO13 BWB

Like those leaves which float away where the wind takes them, I arrived here unexpectedly.

My life at Baruch has been like this photo too. At first, I felt like I was just floating through the hallways of the school, from class to class, without any strong attachment to anything. However, I learned to take control of my life and I did manage to do well in all my classes. I am grateful that life wasn’t too windy for me; it allowed me to be in charge for this past few months.

Part of me is happy that the holiday is approaching but the other part of me is sad to know that this semester went by pretty fast. I thought I just started the semester, and now it’s over. I was just about to settle down, but now we are moving on. Next semester, we will have new classes, new teachers and definitely new classmates. It will be like the first day of school all over again.

This past three months at Baruch was fun as well as tedious. I got to meet some awesome people; together, we had some laughs after the tests and some panic attacks before those. Some of my classes were interesting. It may sound odd for many people, but Math was my favorite class and my least favorite  was English. I was ready at 7 a.m to go to my Math class which started at 10.20 a.m. That was how much I loved it.

Honestly, when I started at Baruch, I hated everything about it. I hated that we don’t have a campus; I hated most of my classes; I hated that we didn’t get to choose our classes and I hated that I had to leave behind my friends and family back home. However, Baruch is growing on me. Of course, we still don’t have a campus but it isn’t as bad as before anymore. I don’t hate my classes any longer and I am definitely glad that I didn’t have to choose my classes because now I know how hectic and stressful it is to plan your schedule.

So to sum up, whoever I met this semester, I am going to remember you. Isn’t it quite strange that out of all the hundreds of incoming freshmen, we got to be in the same class? As much as some of you might hated it, our first semester is now our memory; it is something we will never have again. It’s in the past.

Like those leaves, when the time comes, I am going to have to leave again. We all will and I wish you all the best at whatever place you choose to be.

For now, let’s have a great holiday and get ready for another semester.

For the enrichment workshop, we went to see a collection of Theresa Bernstein’s paintings displayed at the Sidney Mishkin gallery. I love going to galleries to look at the paintings because painting is one of my most favorite hobbies, apart from photography. It could have been better if we went to a bigger gallery or a museum but the workshop was fun nonetheless. I do not like her paintings but who am I to judge? I am sure Theresa Bernstein was very talented and loved by many. If I have to choose one painting that I like the most, it is “Dance Hall, 1911.” Actually, I really like this one. I like the dark tones used in the painting and how everything is blurry. To me, it gives a sense of nostalgia and serenity. I was quite surprised to learn that it is actually a jazz hall inside. So it must be noisy unlike how I imagined. Overall, I think the workshop would have been better if we could look around the gallery by ourselves instead of someone explaining us about the paintings. Most of us weren’t even listening. If we were allowed to go find one painting that we personally like the most, one that we each can relate to, the workshop would have been more effective.

Dance Hall, 1911
http://nml.cuny.edu/theresabernstein/?attachment_id=2659

Although the government does not have an “obligation” to ensure that all Americans are properly insured, I would say it is a responsibility of the government to ensure wellbeing of its citizens. Free and affordable medicare is a desirable goal and it is not impossible either, as proven by many European countries. However, with trillions of dollars in debt, every one knows that the United States has enormous difficulty reaching that goal. I am no expert at politics and definitely not at American politics, therefore it is not fair of me to take a stand on either side. However, people of the United States have given their trust to this government to rule and to represent them. Thus as citizens of this country, they have the right to be dependent of this government. Those people include the people mentioned in the article, the people who really need Medicaid benefits. I don’t know the solutions of how to provide healthcare coverage to those who really need it, but the government should really figure it out. I am not saying the government has to take care of all Americans but there must be something else to do than neglecting those people with lowest income. In America, the place where everyone claims to have equal rights, it’s sad that Ms. Arbila still needed to ask the question, “Why we don’t have the same opportunities as the others?”