MY STORIES:

• Two Utahns find power in their personal history
• Cal Nez has found his home in Salt Lake City
• Preparation now can pay off later
• American Indians are undervalued because of miseducation
  

MY BLOG: Discovering a World of Difference

As I sat watching a diversity professor talk and expound on her history, her culture, her past, I realized that the little experience I have had in this world has opened up an endless opportunity of learning.

Many times we are born somewhere, grow up there, “experience” life there and die there, feeling that we have learned and discovered the world around us. Once we step outside of ourselves, however, we discover a world beyond our own front door. We discover difference.

In a recent interview with Nola Lodge, a professor at the University of Utah, I realized that the short time I have spent outside the state of Utah and outside the United States has made it possible for me to open my eyes and welcome diversity.

About three years ago I spent five weeks touring Europe with a study-abroad program through the U. One night in Venice, some friends and I went down to the Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square) and danced to the live bands battling for the crowd’s attention. Within just a few short minutes a huge crowd had gathered around to watch, videotape and enjoy the entertainment. We had successfully stolen the show.

A few tourists approached us afterward and asked what company we were with and what we were raising money for. We laughed and explained that we were tourists like them. We just wanted to have a night in Venice that we would never forget.

As I toured and studied the different ways of life from the laid-back, biking culture of Amsterdam to the beauty and prestige of the ancient Romans, I realized that my life in Salt Lake City is fabulous and different than anywhere else.

This semester in my Intermediate Reporting class at the U, our beat has been American Indians. This is one subject that was completely foreign to me beyond Thanksgiving and Christopher Columbus. I have had the chance to, once again, leave my small little life and dance to the music of another culture.

The people I have interviewed, the cultures I have seen and experienced, the lessons I have stumbled upon, all create an appreciation for difference. This difference gives me life beyond myself. It gives me a new perspective on life, an ability to create what others see and to capture the joys and fears of another people. It opens my eyes to the world around me, the one just outside my front door.

These fabulous treasures of knowledge are out there waiting to be found and discovered. They have so much to offer and once they are adopted into someone else’s life, they begin to develop and grow within.

ABOUT ME:

I am a mass communication major at the University of Utah, with an emphasis in graphic design. I love to create and design. I am hoping to eventually work in print design, helping others discover the unknown world.

After graduation I am striving to get hired on at a design firm.

I love to be involved with those close to me. Currently I live in Sandy with my wonderful husband.

I also enjoy art, photography, athletics and the outdoors. We live in a beautiful place and one of my favorite things is to enjoy that beauty.

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