So, last week we finally had our long awaited presentation on our trip to Mindanao on campus. I am not going to say that I was exactly excited for it because I am a terrible public speaker and having to act a role in front of a group of people is the worst thing that could happen to be. I went in to our rehearsal extremely nervous because I did not know the format of the presentation. Once everyone gathered and we started talking about the ideas that the planning team had come up with and got on the stage to act out our roles, suddenly everything fell right into place. Prof. Iyer was right in saying that we all knew what we had heard on the ground and what we wanted to convey to people, it just needed to said. Even though the rehearsal was tiring and lasted longer than we anticipated, the two groups (Los Angeles team and Mindanao team) came together seamlessly and helped each other achieve the results we all wanted. I think Prof. Iyer was the only common denominator between the groups and helped us understand the commonalities between the two very different places with very similar problems.
The Mindanao team!
Now, I am left wondering how and when will I ever get together with this group to talk and discuss everything that comes to mind about our trip. Off course we learned a great deal on this trip, not just about the conflict but about people and what compels people to flee their homes and take up arms. But I think we also learned a great deal about ourselves and the very tiny bubble of MIIS and what our education means and what do we want out of it. I know these are very big ideas and not everyone on the trip will agree with me but I think we were all compelled to contemplate various aspects of ourselves through out the trip, the debriefs, the conversations we had about Mindanao with others and even as I sit right now to right this blog. Self reflection is key in getting the most out of a field experience and I think or hope that we all have reflected to appreciate the lessons we learned. I want to thank everyone on the trip for allowing me the opportunity to learn from them and Prof. Iyer for all the work she put into giving us a life changing experience.
A stop along the way…