Reflecting

"Being different is what makes us the same"

When professor Mark Allman talked to me about IFYI, I wasn't interested at all. I thought about how difficult it would be to take a week off of work, plus I couldn't think of any way IFYI would help me accomplish my dream of becoming a doctor. Some how last minute I changed my mind, and decided to sign up for the program. My friends Neha Patel and Chelsea Comfort signed up too, so I kind of got excited just to hang out with them for the entire week.
After arriving at the program it seemed like the people already knew me because of how they were so welcoming and friendly. I started feeling comfortable and enthusiastic about what I was about to experience. During the program we visited multiple place which included; farm, Harvard art museum, mosque, shabbat service, Garden of peace etc. The place that impacted me the most was the Garden of Peace, which had stones engraved with names of people whose lives where brutally taken from them. It reminded me of the Rwanda Genocide where so many people including my loved ones lost their lives. I couldn't stop thinking about all the violence that was taking place in the world, but at that same exact moment I thought about my IFYI group. It was amazing how people of different religions/races lived together in one place without any violence or prejudice. We all decided to put our differences aside and work together for peace in our hearts, families and communities. I developed a sense of hope that one day the world would be like my IFYI group, different but living together in peace.