One of the ways that human beings learn to be civic is when civic activities become a part of everyday life. In Chapter One of "Rhetoric and Civic Life," the author brings up an interesting point in saying that most children do not know the meaning of several words in the Pledge of Allegiance, or the meaning of the Pledge as a whole, yet they recite it every day before school. The text points out that while children may not know the precise meaning of the words they recite each morning, they still understand the concept of the importance of patriotism and loyalty to the United States of America. When civic activities are introduced to us so early in life, these activities become ingrained in us and become natural. Eventually, once we learn to understand and appreciate the value of these activities, we truly become civic.
I remember the first time my dad took me to vote. It was a crisp, fall day and I was wearing a pilgrim costume in preparation to rehearse for my school's Thanksgiving play. I was in kindergarten and I was just beginning to confidently cut on the dotted line and recite my ABC's. Even though I did not know anything about the candidates or the current events dominating the election, I felt so proud when I received the "I Voted Today" sticker and when my dad showered me with praise for being a "good American." In that moment, I picked up the importance of voting and being an active citizen, even though I knew nothing about the process.
Each year, my dad took me back to the polls. I'll admit that my main incentive for going back year after year was the free cookies. However, as I advanced from coloring to painting, from ABC's to novels, voting became more serious and interesting for me.
Last year, I was able to vote for myself for the first time, which gave me a great sense of pride and efficacy. I believe this is what being civic does for us as a whole. Learning to be civic is so important because it enables us as citizens to feel involved in society. Introducing civic activities into our lives at a young age prepares us to become successful, productive members of our communities and gives us the potential to contribute positively to society as whole in the future.
I have an obsession with people. It is not the creepy kind of obsession that ends up being the plot of CSI or Criminal Minds, but the kind of obsession that makes going to a school of more than 40,000 students very interesting. I love people-watching. My favorite activity for relaxation involves sitting on a bench and watching the world, and the people living in it, pass me by. I try to watch nonchalantly while "reading a book" or "checking my emails" and blend into the background. For each person that passes, I make up a story. I try to decide where they're going and what they're doing; how many siblings they have and if they're close; what their job or major is; what their hobbies are; and any other interesting things I can glean from their appearance, mannerisms, gait, expressions, and companions. For my blog this semester, I would love to share my thoughts while people-watching around campus and share all the imaginary stories I make up in my head about the people I see.
The challenge with this blog, however, will be to avoid seeming judgmental. You see, it is very difficult not to judge a book by its cover or a person by his or her appearance. The blog would focus solely on creative writing and the stories that I formulate about each person in my imagination. Each week, the stories I make up will most likely be completely false. Since we are all so different and we are part of a unique, diverse culture here at Penn State, there is no possible way to accurately judge a person from first glance. However, it is interesting to try. Hopefully, my blog will be intriguing, insightful, and entertaining.
PSU People-Watching at its Finest
I am also weighing the option of writing about my extensive 47-item bucket list. I would choose ten items from the list, describe them, and discuss how they came to appear on my list of places to go, people to see, and things to do. If people-watching seems a bit too judgmental or controversial a topic, I will gladly write about my aspirations for life, bucket-list style. After all, it is often better to be an active participant in the excitement of life than to sit and watch it stroll by.
