Thanks to the COM352 students for contributing a bunch of new pages! I'll be moving these pages into the main area of the wiki soon.

From UMassWiki

Life is a series of experiences-trials and tribulations, that continually alter an individual’s perspective of the world. Just when you think everything is figured out, something more unusual than the human mind can comprehend finds itself a place in your life. But often there is a time in one’s journey when all of the things that held such massive importance seem to fade into the background and a new mindset is acquired. For me, this required leaving the United States. However drastic or dramatic that may seem, it influenced and greatly changed my view of the world and the priorities in my life.

In my senior year of high school, my mom let me go to Spain with my language class during Spring break. First of all, I was completely caught off guard with the idea that I, the youngest child and the only girl, was allowed to go alone to a foreign country at 17. Before I could comprehend the magnitude of this privilege, I was on a plane listening to people speaking in a language that I had only a very basic knowledge of. It was exciting to be immersed in something so, well, foreign. I’ve always been curious about how other societies, cultures and countries conduct themselves and there I was, in the middle of it all. The most interesting part of this whole situation is that the changes I saw in this new culture were not completely overwhelming. I expected to step off the plane and be hit with a ton of bricks. It was the little things, the daily routines, which influenced me most throughout my week and a half there.

Our society is often egocentric, most people seem to forget that we are a minute aspect of a much bigger picture. So, to step outside my comfort zone and the barriers of our country was a huge breath of fresh air. Don’t get me wrong, the liberties and freedoms we have are certainly appreciated, but to be more aware of others is directly related to being more aware of oneself. It’s hard to explain the freedom I felt as I was walking the streets of these tiny Spanish villages rich in history. Even the air was different, everything seemed so much richer. I fully understand that this is partially due to the fact that I was being exposed to a completely new culture and that I was bound to notice the stark differences between American culture and Spanish culture, but my time there has influenced so many of my decisions and ideas since.

One of the most memorable moments in Spain was one night when some friends and I went to see traditional Spanish dancing in a small fishing village outside of Madrid. We rode a tiny bus through even smaller cobblestone streets to what seemed like the middle of nowhere. All of the houses surrounding the restaurant were compact and made of white stone. I got off the bus and climbed up the ancient stone steps listening to the faint sound of a plucking of a guitar and the rustling of dresses. I had no idea what to expect; the only image I had in my head was a caricature of a Spanish man with a greasy ponytail, skin tight belly shirt and leather pants. Frankly, this stereotype wasn’t too far from the truth. As I sat in my chair wide eyed, I silently observed four men stride into the room wearing exactly what I imagined. Following closely behind were the female dancers and musicians. All of them, including one woman who was at least 85 years old, were decked out in extremely elaborate and colorful dresses. Every member of the group was meticulously groomed, down to each polished black shoe.

Eventually, a man with a guitar slowly started strumming a tune. Within minutes, the music swelled into a full sound. The dancers created patterns with effortless clapping and singing, as one couple would step onto the tiny wooden dance floor. As the audience of 40 members watched intently, the two slammed the floor with their high heeled shoes and danced with more passion than I’ve ever seen. The night progressed, and the partners changed. The dancers elicited a new emotion from the crowd. Some of the pairs created an atmosphere of anger and frustration while others conveyed a sense of elation and glee. Watching the passion that this group of six evoked and translated to the crowd was breathtaking. To witness the strong emotional ties Spaniards have to this primitive form of expression opened my eyes. It’s so rare to see someone have such passion for anything anymore; to see a group of people doing what they love and never tiring of it was uplifting. In our society, so much time is spent doing the obligatory things: going to college, getting a degree, finding a respectable and well paying conventional job, getting married and having kids- never straying from the pack. Although there are people who defy the standards of today’s societal norms, they are few and far between. The sight of these dancers pouring their hearts into what they truly love contrasted sharply with American ideals. And I suppose that’s not even the true reason why I was so impressed with what these dancers were doing. The most influential part of their dancing was how affected I felt by the whole experience. Watching the dancers and singers take such pride in what they do was so refreshing. It made me realize how important it is for an individual to follow what he truly wants to pursue in life and not be controlled by society and other people’s opinions. Perhaps that would cure the common frustration many people feel once they enter the work force. More often than not, I hear people saying how unsatisfying or mundane or repetitive their daily life is. Maybe all it takes to be happy in life is to slow down for a second and think about what you truly want.

That’s another reason why this trip was so influential for me; I was in the middle of making “one of the biggest decisions of my life.” I had just gone through a year of looking at colleges, taking the “right” classes, taking the SATs far too many times and writing endless resumes to send to an endless list of colleges. Being faced with the decision to pick where I would inevitably be for the next four years of my life was a pretty large decision. For what seemed like my entire high school career, I had been feeling the most pressure from my father, who wants me to have a better future than he, and with that, wanted me to choose a college based on his criteria. The two schools I was deciding between were UMass and University of Rhode Island, the latter of which I had received a scholarship to, the former; I had been invited into Psych TAP. But, as my father says, psychology is not a “money maker” and therefore not worth doing. So, the situation was created in such a way that choosing UMass would be, in my eyes, betraying my dad. Before I left for Spain, my decision had basically been made for me. I was safe at URI- my brother was there, I had a decent amount of money being offered to me, and I was going to lead the “All American life” of watching football and becoming friends with boys who wear polo shirts and backwards Red Sox hats. Don’t get me wrong, those people are spectacular, just not what I am. UMass isn’t free of this type of person either, but I felt there was a more diverse student body. In settling for URI, I figured “college isn’t such a big deal”, and if I hated it, I could transfer. Spain surfaced just in the nick of time. It gave me the time to process all of the propaganda I had been hearing about each school respectively (my oldest brother being an alumnus of UMass) and truly focus on what I wanted to do. As much as I knew my father would disapprove, huff and puff, mutter comments about tuition under his breath at every waking moment, I knew that I wanted to make the right decision the first time. Of course, I was still wary of the choice I had settled on, but I felt confident that UMass was a better fit for the type of person I am. So, yes, I had to take out more loans than I would have at URI, but I will pay them off with time. I just feel like my happiness is more important than some money. Watching the Spanish dancers do what they love made me realize that I need to make decisions based on my goals and interests instead of appeasing someone else. In hindsight, the choice seems obvious from the beginning- I am fascinated with psychology, I wanted a liberal arts school and business, math and I do not see eye to eye. So, now that my decision about the future was settled, I had time to let Spanish culture fully envelop me.

I learned to appreciate the small things in my life. I remember one specific day that I spent in Granada. My friends and I were sitting in a park outside of the Prado museum, and I was just watching people walk by and enjoying the simplicity of what I was doing. Being able to think about things other than what I had to do was so different than what I am used to. Seeing a new culture and the ways in which another society operates was an eye opening experience. It was imperative for me to see the way another culture lives to broaden my own horizons. However, it wasn’t until I came back into the U.S. that I noticed how different European culture is from what I am used to. Especially Spanish culture, which is extremely socially structured, there is less of a tendency for individuals to be alone and in solitude. In America, there is often a belief that in order to survive in this cut throat world, you need to fend for yourself and have relationships take second place to personal gain. There was a recent poll taken by a University in which the vast majority of people feel they only have one close confidant, as opposed to ten years ago when most had two or three “best friends.” I don’t want to become a person consumed with doing better than everyone else around me; I want to value my friendships over getting a better parking spot then someone else. My trip to Spain made me realize how many of the things I worry about are extremely petty in the scheme of things. It was refreshing to see people enjoying who they are with and what they are doing instead of worrying about getting the best of everything.

After seeing the vast cultural differences between the culture I “identify” with and the culture I was exposed to, I became more aware of what I want out of my own life. Now, certainly, this will have many amendments in years to come, but I know that I do not want to completely disregard other cultures and countries out of ignorance or laziness. Traveling to Spain made me realize how important it is to be knowledgeable of other ways of living in order to create a strong and well-developed sense of self.