Confessions of A Closet Catholic

I found this book to be very interesting. I have never read a book for young readers about religion and trying to find their identity in connection with it. I am Catholic and reading this book was quite and experience. At first I was bothered by the fake confessional in the closet and the first communion process being portrayed as a game or scene to act out. Later after reading the book my opinion changed. I tried to put myself in her shoes. I saw it from an outsider's point of view. She was not trying to offend people who were Catholic. Instead it was put of her search to find her true identity and what religion meant to her. Also I realized that I probably do the same thing when I have a lack of knowledge on a certain ethnic group or religion. For example I might believe certain stereotypes about Native Americans or Asian Americans, but not because I do not like them as a race, but I just have lack of knowledge. In Confessions Of A Closet Catholic, as the book went on when she gained knowledge, her views were different and became more aware of her stereotypes. I think this is the best way to attack these situations. Once you realize your perpections are negative,the want to gain knowledge and be educated more on a topic will help reduce negativity. Overall I have learned not to judge books until you are fully finished reading and can take all the information and form observations from that.

The Mali Exhibit

I am really glad we went to the MSU Museum. I went there my freshmen year with one of my classes, but I did not pay much attention to the exhibits. I just did the activity give by my professor and that was it. When we all went to see the Latino/Latina exhibit it was a great experience. Even though that exhibit was nice, my favorite was the exhibit done by the children of Mali. I never appreciated my life and the many privileges I have so much until I saw these photos.
As I went around the exhibit I just looked at the pictures at first and did not notice the captions. The pictures had their homes, schools, and family members of the children. The conditions were really poor and did not seem like a healthy environment at all. I began to feel sad and wish that the children could have better places to live. About half way through the exhibit I started to read the captions. I noticed the pictures I was viewing were not filled with sorrow, but filled with joy. These students were happy to live in these communities and it was very important to them. Then I found out what the assignment given to the children was truly about. The students in Mali were given cameras and were to take pictures of things in the community that meant the most to them. For example there was a picture of a mother who just gave birth to her child and she was holding the child with blood all over the place. I would have viewed this picture as the family was unable to afford a doctor to deliver the baby and it was unsanitary to have the baby out in the dirty house and still bloody. In the student's eyes they saw a new life was brought into the world and their family was growing with love. Also the mother was wiping the baby down with alcohol to clean the child of all bacteria. Another picture was of a run down house with a girl standing against the wall and someones face on the side of the photo. I would have viewed this as a student taking a picture of the terrible conditions these people have to live in and a girl looking sad and lonely. Instead the student asked their friend to strike a pose for the picture and also the student was happy they were able to catch their other friend off to the side with a big smile!
It is amazing how people perceive things. I decided to go back around the exhibit one more time and get the full effect. I really got a lot of excitement from this exhibit. It definitely shows me the having less is not a horrible thing. I could never imagine living in the conditions the people of Mali deal with on an everyday basis. For them it is a way of life and a big part of their culture. It is who they are and they seem very proud of it. It has surely taught me to be proud of who I am, of who my family is and what my family and I have. My challenges in life that I think are problems are just mere obstacles. There are people out there who live in a world a lot worse then me and as happy as ever! I have learned numerous things from this exhibit. Thanks for the experience Deb!