“This I Believe” Podcast Script Draft

Being at the right place, at the right time, has interesting ways of working its way into one’s life. Depending on the choices made, wonderful things may ensue. I believe in the simple art of doing good unto others. Whether it is my Christian upbringing, or my morally-righteous mother’s influence, I seek choices and actions that would bring benefits not only for myself, but to others in my surrounding. I believe that in doing good for others, and by helping out a neighbor, I will in turn be helping myself by producing this feeling of uplift and satisfaction. Sometimes this means letting someone go in front of me in line, or staying up late into the night, helping my roommate study for a subject I excel in. And sometimes this means doing something I don’t inherently want to do.

A few months ago, I was wrapping up my shift at the local Italian Restaurant where I waitressed. I was eager to leave, as I had a fun social to attend. Clearing the debris laden tables, scrubbing the crusted burners, and counting the scribbled checks, I was bustling about to finish work. Just as I had clocked out and removed my apron, an elderly lady entered the restaurant. I quickly sprang to inform her that the dining room was closed, eager to leave and get on to my party, when she interrupted me and, in the best broken-English she could muster, explained she was lost and needed directions back home. Recognizing her accent, I inquired her native language, and to my surprise, she responded, “Ukrainian.” Being a first-generation born American, I was fluent in the Ukrainian language. “Привіт!” I said, which was “Hello” in Ukrainian, and then preceded to inquire  her troubles, “Як я можу Вам помогти?”

Upon conversing with her, I understood she lived quite far away and had trouble driving at night. She did not have a smartphone to use for directions. Immediately, I recognized an opportunity to help a person in need. I proceeded to get into my own car and have her follow me the full thirty minutes to her hometown. On my way home, bitter thoughts of missing the party entered my mind. Selfishness and resentment flooded my senses. However, I was quick to dismiss these ill notions. By helping a person in a time of need and stress, I was able to not only bring the elderly lady back home safely, but also develop a strong feeling of happiness and generosity myself.

I have always lived by the idea that my choices and other life events will ultimately lead me in the direction of my destiny. While everything cannot always be left up to fate, it is ultimately my responsibility to recognize the judgments I make will place me where I want to be. In this case, while I didn’t exactly end up at the party like I wanted, I did; however, receive a sense of much greater gratification from helping a person in need. Being completely selfless is a difficult endeavor, if not near impossible. However, I live so that others may too. I believe in helping others; whether they are in need or not. I believe in sharing a helping hand without expecting anything in return. And I believe that the choices and decisions I make, when chosen correctly, will lead me there– to the right place, at the right time.

 

2nd Semester Blogs

After reviewing feedback from my peers about my blog ideas, I have decided to continue writing about my Ukrainian culture for my Passion Blog. This blog, called “My Big Fat Ukrainian Life,” is exceptionally interesting and entertaining for me to write. I have many more ideas that I look forward to share with my classmates.

For my civic issues blog, I choose to discuss Education, specifically with a focus on the college admissions process. With personal experiences and speculation, it would be quite interesting and informative to discuss different aspects of admissions, such as Affirmative Action, and the legitimate worth of student’s in relation to their acceptances.

 

Blogging Round Two! ~ Ideas for Blogs

For my “This I Believe” podcast, I plan on delving deeper into personal beliefs I possess surrounding immigrant life, and the subsequent life of struggle AND gratitude I have lived. With these two ideas in mind, I hope to expand my beliefs that growing up in a single-parent immigrant home enriched my knowledge about the world, and allowed me to gain a mature, grateful outlook on life. One course I could take with this podcast, is sharing my belief that “the bad in life, makes the good sweeter.” While immigrant life did not always lend itself to ease or financial security, the times where my family did have monetary opportunities for trips or new things, made me appreciate the rare, small elements in life. This connects to my second idea for the podcast of gratitude and appreciation towards life, despite any obstacles thrown my way. My grandmother would always tell me that as long as I am healthy and that God has blessed me with another day on this Earth, all is well. Often people disregard the positive in life, and instead focus on the negative. I believe that appreciating the good, while also acknowledging the bad, will allow one to grow and generate a proactive way of gliding past struggle.

I plan on continuing my passion blog topic of sharing stories, comments, and observations about my Ukrainian life. My entire family is from Ukraine, and I grew up speaking and living in a mini “Ukrainian world” as I often refer to it. With the influence of American schools and friends, I constantly notice connections between the two cultural ways of life, and often compare and contrast between the two. Aside from this, a different potential idea for my passion blog would be to write about different aspects of the arts, ranging from music to fashion to theatre. In highschool, I was a member of multiple choral groups, all of which captivated my love and passion for musical arrangement and performance.

In terms of the Civic Issues blog, I would prefer to focus on the main category of education. Within this, two potential issues I am interested in are the role of private school education, and the college admissions process. Private school education has always been a willful dream of mine, even though I am proud of the public school district I attended. Whether it was the exclusivity of the students, or the close-knit networking opportunities with alumni, there was some sort of allure of the prep school culture that attracted me. It would be interesting to write about this topic, and to perhaps discuss the pros and cons surrounding this system of education. Another idea that fascinates, and rather infuriates me simultaneously, is the college admissions process. Perhaps my annoyance stems from personal bias, but the idea of Affirmative Action in college admissions failed to ever portray any reasoning or effectiveness behind it. It would be rather interesting to write about not only Affirmative Action, but the college admissions process as a whole, and analyze whether the system currently in place is effective and fair.