Freshman Seminar Spring 2011: F6A

My overall experience at Baruch college has been satisfactory. I like everything about it because my expectations were clearly met. Everything I hoped Baruch would hold up to, was most definitely held up to. I think it’s a great school that expects so much out of you, which drives you to so much better than your usual. I just feel like there are better opportunities at Baruch even though hard work is required. In the end though, I know it will be well worth it.
Personally speaking, I know my first semester at Baruch could have been a hundred times better. I just needed to focus more and get my priorities intact. Therefore, if I could have done it all again, I would have prioritized school over other things that were currently going on in my personal life. Ever since I started attending Baruch college, I’ve noticed the true importance of oneself and work because without doing what you have to do, you cannot advance onwards. If you realize by yourself how important certain things are, then you are able to make a more ethical decision and move on with work or even life in general.

  The careet enrichment workshop did help a lot on me. What interested me most is the part of how to prepare an interview and get to now about the company you will be interviewed for and the part of how the STARR website will help us find the companies who are recruiting exclusively for Baruch students. The very important detail Treven was talking- write a thank you note to who interviews us-is a really sweet idea which I had never noticed, which shows our good manner, and which will give the interviewer a deeper and better impression. The STARR career center and its website will help us a lot in the future and I think we will be much more ready for whatever we will be facing with its help. We are lucky to have such a helpful source.

I didn’t have an opportunity to attend any workshops from STARR Career Development Center due to my work schedule. My career goal is to be an accountant in a Federal Government Services. I didn’t have any clue of the Federal jobs as yet, but I intend to in the near future.

It’s very interesting to hear other people reading, other people’s monologue. It’s a pleasure to see the emotional elements of the readers. It’s like watching a play conducted on the stage except music is missing. Various accents are noticed in one sitting and it is a privilege for me to hear these monologues.

This was the first time I had been to the museum in New York. It was a great experience for me. I had been to two museums back in my country. One is the National Museum and another is concerned with Drugs Eradication Programs. This museum is a colossal building compare to the ones I had been back in my country.

It is very relaxing for me to smell the aromas of the coffee while starring up the giant spiral staircase. I suddenly remembered my friends who are back in Burma and thought about how great will that be if they can all join me in this place marveling at the architecture and great arts.

The most captivating work of art for me is the ice sculpture of the Buddha which is five-feet tall. As a Buddhist, I am totally surprised to see a Buddha statue in this environment. I can appreciate the dedication and professionalizing of work put in to sculpture Buddha figure in ice. I remembered the various Buddha statue curved in stone and in wood and in different shapes and posture back in my country.

Some of the teachings of the Buddha crept into my mind unconsciously. Although it’s 3000 miles away from my country of birth, my mind suddenly raced back to my younger days.

A Jihad for love described in detail the strugles that a person who is gay goes through in the Muslim Community.

I personally,before, during and after this documentary, always, but always, felt outmost respect for all people regardless of their religion or sexual orientation. For the simple fact that they are human beings just like me, therefore they deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.

I didn’t n know how hard it was to be gay in the muslim community. I guess , that is what I always thought in the back of my head anyways, but to actually see it and hear it first hand from people who are experiencing this ordeal, it gave me a new perspective. Their lives are truly difficult, they have to be away from their families, their country , their friends, in oroder to save their life, and eventhough they are away, they still dont feel free, because they fear for the safety of the ones they left behind.

It is absolutely sad and heartbreaking that it has to be that way. According to the Qoran, homosexuality is condemened, My religion also doesnt accept it, (Roman Catholic ), and to be honest I don’t believe any religion does embrace the reality of homsexuality. However I believe that in the name of love and equality we shouldn’t discriminate against someone that has a diffierent sexual orientiation, they should be free, like we all are.

Now that your first semester at Baruch College is nearly complete, how was it? Reflect on the following four questions and craft a response of no more than 500 words. Feel free to integrate media into your post (e.g. a video of Baruch life, picture of Baruch, etc.)

a) Tell us how your experience at Baruch College has lived up to/not lived up to/exceeded your expectations
b) How well do you think your first semester at Baruch College went?
c) What would you do differently during your first semester if you could do it all again?
d) How have you changed since you started at Baruch College?

  When I first stepped into the Rubin Museum, I felt a little bit weird. I didn’t expect it a Buddhism museum; I didn’t expect that a Buddhism museum with a café where people drink; and I didn’t expect that people drink in an environment with that kind of special smell. The feeling was different, however, when I saw the Buddha made of ice. It was really an amazing art work. Looking at it, I felt like the melting process of the ice Buddha is like the process of our own lives. At first, it’s perfectly built and it is brand new as a new born baby. And then it starts melting, just like a baby starts his adventure of the world. The melt water of the ice is like our memory, which will evaporate and disappear eventually. I took a small bottle of the melt water before I left. And it reminded me that it will last if we take a good care of the memory.  And finally, the ice will disappear as our lives will lose at the end. Nothing will leave behind except for the feeling it brings to people.

It’s very interesting watching the performance of the monolog. I always believe that what people write inflects who they are. We can always read the writers by reading their works. And the actors acted like whoever the writer is based on their understanding of the monolog. It was a good way for us to see what other people is like and what they are thinking. For the writers whose monologs were presented, it was a good way to know how their monologs were understood by others and who others think they are by reading their monologs. It is good to hear others’ voices.

However, I think they should choose a better timing to present it. Actually, I was not happy to take a whole day off just sitting there watching a one and a half hours performance of students’ monologs. Noon time is really not a good choice. Even early in the morning or late at the afternoon will work much better than that. The whole thing about Voices and Monologs is a pretty good idea. I just hope that the Voices holders will consider the value of the student’s time and make the time more acceptable.

Voices was a very eye opening experience. Sitting in the theatre with all of the sprig 2011 freshman and listening to the different monologues made me feel a bit more connected to everyone there. Hearing the actors and actresses act out our monologues made me wonder what the writers look like and how they preformed it. My monologue was in the show and I was very excited to see what they did. The actress who preformed mine really brought it to life. I feel like she really gave it her all and even put more emotion in it then I intended. When the other audience members were talking about it I really felt that we all went through the same experience. We all felt connected and wanted to get to know each other more. This makes such a large school like Baruch feel like a family.