Day 4: Reflections

Hey, it’s Mikhaila! So I know most people have been blogging about our service activities, but, instead, I’ll be blogging about tonight’s reflection exercises. Before I expand on them, I should explain a couple things. First, reflection activities are what separate Alternative Breaks trips from other service trips that I have been a part of before. It allows us AB-ers to think critically about our service and what it means to those who we are serving. And it also opens my eyes to what we should be taking away from each day’s activities. Second, AB-ers follow the Vegas rules: What is said here stays here between us, but what is learned here leaves with us. Though I won’t mention any specific comments, I will provide you readers with what I have learned from one of tonight’s reflection exercises.
Tonight we read an article, (link provided below) written by Kent Annan, calling attention to the differences between traveling as a “poverty tourist” and a citizen of the world. The article outlined what questions to ask yourself in order to make sure you aren’t acting as a “poverty tourist.” Specific questions that I had to think about regarding my own service experiences were: What kind of photos do I take here? Does this experience make a difference to how I live in Maryland? What do I do in Maryland to help? This discussion opened my eyes to being more aware of my actions here and my actions at home after this trip.

Another exercise we engaged in involved us choosing a spot on the spectrum of thin service à thick service as different service activities were read aloud. Ariana did a great job of explaining the differences between thin service and thick service, so refer to her blog post. I especially appreciated this exercise because sometimes it is hard to realize the impact of service activities that you do. This activity made me realize that simply painting a wall can inspire some (depending what is painted on the wall) to do great things, or assembling a bookshelf can encourage young readers to move on to do great things like attend college, and even playing sports with kids can teach them important lessons as well as keep them from getting into trouble. Reflection activities provide us with lenses to look at our experiences here through. It allows us to learn more about our service as well as ourselves. I can’t wait to learn more while I’m here! I’ll talk to you later!

Article Link:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kent-annan/poverty-tourism-can-make-_b_803872.html