Ryan Jones Dr. Anne Franklin Lamar UH 103-001 Alabama Action 25 August 2019 An Action-Packed Week The week I spent with Alabama Action was one of the most impactful weeks of my life. Knowing no one forced me to branch out and make connections that could last a lifetime. Being thrown into a completely different environment than my own made me adapt. Through service, lectures, events and buddy time I found myself building friendships that could last, broadening my perspectives on crucial topics, engaging myself in everything that I could make time for, but most importantly growing and changing. Alabama Action was not something I planned on participating in from the start, I stumbled into it by circumstance. I’ve lived in a suburb of Chicago my whole life and to my astonishment, this summer my family decided to drop everything and move across the country to Sacramento. The main reason I took part in Action was that I needed to move in early due to our moving situation. Change was brought into my relatively stagnant life, I was leaving my home where I took my first steps, my childhood friends, and my old self. I arrived in Tuscaloosa on a Saturday and I was alone on that Sunday afternoon. Sent off alone like a baby bird from the nest forced to learn to fly on the way down. I can relate my story to the story of the Riveras' journey into the United States. Henriquez writes through Alma, “We had bundled up our old life and left it behind, and then hurtled into a new one with only a few of our things, each other and hope” (6). By circumstance, they ended up coming to America, forced to leave everything they knew about the world behind them. The Rivera’s had each other to lean on similarly I had my service group who were feeling just as alone and afraid as I was. For me, a big part of Alabama Action was making connections. Our first group discussion was full of failed ice breakers that only left the group feeling more awkward. I looked around to see other groups with smiles on their faces and laughter coming from all directions. It was not until we started working with the kids in Mr. Bowden’s class did, I see the people in my group start to come out of their shells. The first thing I learned in college was from first graders, a valuable lecture on openness, optimism, and joy. One kid came up and gave me a hug, another coming up and asking my name, another asked me questions about myself. The way that the kids took us in as their friends and talked to us like they had known us their whole life was special. I took these teachings outside of the classroom to Action’s planned events at night. In high school, I would have never gone up to sing participate in the talent show or sing karaoke with my new friends in front of a big crowd as I did here, in Alabama. Not only did I make connections with the people in my group, but also the first graders I was working with. One kid took a particular liking to me. He was always moving the other kids out of the way so that he could work with me. A challenge for me was working with him because he had trouble following instructions and was constantly getting distracted. I took it upon myself to help him stay on task by leveling with him while also being stern. One of the ways I accomplished this was by bending my knees so that we were face to face, making sure that he was keeping eye contact and speaking to him in terms that emphasized community. Teaching the kids about community was our goal for the week, so we also spent time learning about the community in our lectures. In prof. Hayes’ lecture he discussed an African proverb that reads, “If you want to go fast, / go alone. / If you want to go far, / go together.” He used the example of how alone one person could make a nice picture but together we could create a beautiful mural. This not only applies to painting murals but life in college. I could spend my time alone studying and do well on my assignments, but when I interact with other students, we not only learn the material, we learn about ourselves and others while helping each other reach the goals we have set for ourselves. Action week defined how I wanted to live out my college career by constantly staying busy and immersing myself in the Tuscaloosa community. It taught me how I wanted to spend my new freedom for the next four years and the rest of my life. I can now go into this school year and the beginning years of my adult life with a newfound perspective. Work Cited Hayes, Trey. 16 Aug. 2019, Tuscaloosa. HENRIQUEZ, CRISTINA. BOOK OF UNKNOWN AMERICANS. CANONGATE Books LTD, 2019.
