So thankful......

Well Thanksgiving break has now "officially" (but not REALLY) begun for me!! :D  Yay!!!!

I still am swimming in papers, digital stories, research and work but I find that I am THANKFUL for all of it.  My semester has been jam packed full of eye opening experiences.  I've been a part of a fascinating class on oral history that has taught me so much about the importance of preserving oral histories (which was a subject that I was ALREADY greatly interested in), and about how a community can come together to make some amazing things happen.  In ten years (let's hope less) when the oral histories I helped to preserve are on display in a museum in Chinatown (Salinas, CA) I will be beaming with pride.  It seems that everyday I am having a revelation about the importance of this project.  I know it will be greatly successful due to the people that are passionately involved and invested in helping it come to life. (Click here for more information on the Salinas Chinatown Renewal Project.)

My other class (Latina Life Stories) has been an equally meaningful class for me this semester.   This is a class where I get to tell a story, but I don't just tell it, I get to make it come to life on screen as well.  My digital story is now done and I am extremely happy with how it turned out.  I worked very hard on it and I hope it shows.  This class is, in one word, empowering.  The ability to tell YOUR OWN story, in YOUR OWN words and have that preserved forever, that is.....well it's simply a great feeling.  How often do you get to express yourself in that way?  My classmates are amazing and they've all told really really REALLY wonderful and deeply personal stories and I am truly lucky to have shared this experience with them.  I have loved every story I have seen thus far.  So bravo 328!!! :D 

And lastly Pre-Capstone.....what can I say about pre-capstone??? It has been thee most challenging class of my college career!  But challenging in a good way.  It's taught me so much about myself as far as my abilities as a student, researcher, thinker......I am STILL learning and am sure I will be right up until the last day of the semester.  

All three of these classes have intersected at one point or another for me this semester.  They all touch on the topics of history, memory, voice, and the importance/empowerment all three posses.  What a powerful semester for me.  It's left me hungry for more; more knowledge, and more projects that inspire myself as well as others.  

So as I sit around my kitchen table this thanksgiving break and eat my turkey, stuffing, and whatever other yummy goodness comes with it, I will be giving thanks to first and foremost God for his many blessings, my family for being there for me for EVERYTHING, and to my professor, classmates, and everyone else who has taught me so much this semester, the lessons are invaluable.  

And just think, three more weeks to go! :D