Stephanie Prieto
Panther ID 4158941
SLS 1501 Mon & Wed PM Class
Upon entering the grounds of FIU, I immediately knew this would be an invigorating
journey of its own, much like Doc Hendley’s journey to Africa to save people’s lives and
provide them with clean water to drink. College life certainly isn’t as intense or life threatening
as Darfur, Sudan but they do have their similarities when it comes to the fact that I, like Doc,
entered a brand new world and had no idea what to expect. Going in to somewhere completely
new and slowly learning to overcome so many challenges, and co-living with people who were
brought up with completely different cultures or life styles is as fascinating for me as is was for
Doc.
To step into new grounds and not even know what to expect is frightening but exciting,
Doc had no idea where to begin, or how to get to what he wanted to achieve. He had an idea of
what he wanted to do but didn’t know the steps to get there. I know I want to be successful in
school and in life, but how I am going to do it is the question. Hendley didn’t know what career
path to take, and so he went on to Darfur, I don’t know what career I am interested in so I went
on to FIU in hopes of finding what it is I want to do with the rest of my life. I will face endless
challenges and moments of despair throughout my college career, much like Doc did in his
journey. He got to Darfur with a positive outlook, and carried himself proudly even through the
toughest and seemingly impossible scenarios, with that attitude is how he managed to achieve all
that he did. Doc took it one day at a time and though he was extremely lost in some points, much
how I feel now with Biology class, he took it easy and reached his goal to provide thousands of
people with clean water. He was not able to pass through a certain area to get to Jebel Marra
because the Janjaweed did not want to let him and his crew pass through to bring clean water to
the people. He took it upon himself to try and negotiate with them and so he did, he managed to
Stephanie Prieto
Panther ID 4158941
SLS 1501 Mon & Wed PM Class
get to Jebel Marra. I recently faced a problem with one of my professors and much like Doc, I
had to talk to them and though my conversation was not as cracked and dangerous with guns and
threats like Hendley’s, we both got to see each other’s perspectives and come to an agreement.
Entering a new place with different faces, full of strangers, surroundings you are not yet adapted
to, is like the voyage all freshmen in college take.
Coexisting is something we all need to learn how to accomplish, given the fact that our
world is filled with such diversity in races, cultures, and lifestyles. College opens up doors to
new connections, to diverse topics, to new friends/acquaintances. Those we will encounter, we
will meet, and interact with will come from completely different places, and be brought up
differently than we were, with different lifestyles than ours. We learn to develop a sense of
respect for those who are different from us, we learn to appreciate them, and we coexist. Doc
arrived to Darfur, someplace that is like night and day compared to the US. They practiced a
different religion, their day to day life routines were not the same, and their culture was all
dissimilar to what he knew. He lived in Darfur for such a long period that he no longer
questioned the way they lived, but instead observed and became a part of it, while still living his
life the way he was brought up. I have met so many different people from all over the world,
with different cultures and lifestyles at FIU. Before college I use to wonder all about how and
why they were so different, now I am surrounded by so much miscellany in people that I enjoy
getting to know other lifestyles. I feel more knowledgeable, less ignorant to the world outside of
what I am use to seeing. I admire the differences in our cultures and am glad to be part of a
university who has provided me with such an experience.
Stephanie Prieto
Panther ID 4158941
SLS 1501 Mon & Wed PM Class
Darfur,Sudan ultimately sounds crazy to be compared to Freshman year in college but
sure enough we all go through similar experiences that we can relate to when beginning new
chapters in our life.