The sky has been beautiful the past few days. A mix of peach/salmon-stained clouds and clear skies.
I had an all-day class today at Saint Michael's and it was wonderful. I was strangely nervous and anxious about returning to the journalism department and attending a class at Saint Michael's after fifteen-ish months away, but my fears melted away when I realized how much I loved the experience. It felt like no time has passed when I spoke to some of my closest classmates and my kind professors. I felt welcomed and at home. The days and months ahead will be full but I'm looking forward to this final year.
Photography last night in Vermont:
Lastly, I found this video of Malala Yousafzai addressing the United Nations Youth Assembly to be beautifully inspiring. It just might be the best speech I've ever heard.
It's a full 17 and a half minutes, a few of my favorite quotes (or roughly half of the speech) are below.
"Thousands of people have been killed by the terrorists and millions have been injured, I am just one of them...On the 9th of October 2012, the Taliban shot me on the left side of my forehead, they shot my friends too, they thought that the bullet would silence us. But they failed. And out of that silence came thousands of voices, the terrorists thought that they would change my aim and stop my ambitions. But nothing changed in my life...strength, fervor, encouragement was born."
"I'm not against anyone, neither am I here to speak in terms of personal revenge against the Taliban or any other terrorist group. I'm here to speak up for the rights of education for every child. I want education for the son's and daughter's of the Taliban and all the terrorists and extremists. I don't even hate the Talib who shot me. Even if there is a gun in my hand and he stands in front of me, I would not shoot him. This is the confession that I have learned from Mohammed the prophet of mercy, and Jesus Christ and Lord Buddha. This is the legacy of change that I have inherited from Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Mohammed Ali Jinnah."
"This is what my soul is telling me. Be peaceful and love everyone."
"The terrorists are misusing the name of Islam and Pashtun society for their own personal benefits. Pakistan is a peace-loving democratic country. Pashtuns want education for their daughters and sons. And Islam is a religion of peace...Peace is necessary for education. In many parts of the world, especially Pakistan and Afghanistan, terrorism, war and conflict is structured into the schools...women and children are suffering in many ways in many parts of the world...people in Afghanistan have been affected by the hardship of extremism for decades. Young girls have to do domestic child labor and are forced to get married at early ages. Poverty, ignorance, injustice, racism and a deprivation of basic rights are the main problems faced by men and women."
"We call upon all governments to ensure free, compulsory education all over the world for every child...We call upon the developed nations to support the expansion of education opportunities for girls in the developing world. We call upon all the communities to be tolerant; to reject prejudice based on caste, creed, sex, color, religion or gender. To ensure freedom and equality for women so that they can flourish."
No comments:
Post a Comment