Goals

Hey guys,
Hope everyone is doing well. After meeting you all at orientation (sorry about being so late) this past Saturday, I am even more excited about this summer and am anxious to see all we accomplish at the program's completion. I applied for the SEWA Get Inspired Houston 2009 Internship with two goals in mind: to gain a full understanding of the Bhutanese Refugees and their experiences but also to find some common ground with which to integrate them into the Houston community, as difficult as this may be due to their rough past experiences. I think many times we get so hung up on the cultural differences dialogue that we leave out all humane aspects of a situation. Interacting with the Bhutanese individuals, I think we will all discover the importance of distinguishing between showing sympathy and pity which I don't believe are the same. Pity automatically establishes a superior-inferior dichotomy which is the last thing these individuals wish to be engaged in.
As excited as I am about meeting the Bhutanese women, I hope that by establishing some common ground with them I am able to maintain this separation. Also, by forming friendships with the women, it is my goal to be able to provide individual portraits of them--and not conglomerate them under the label Bhutanese Refugees as I am doing so right now.
I hope everyone is as excited as I am!! I think it is going to be a great lifechanging experience for us all. :) See you all Saturday.

Hiba