An Item that Describes Me...

Looking around my apartment I find it rather difficult to find just one item that can sum up my entire person. There are quite a few things that my roommates and I share that define us all in different ways. Walking into my own room... I have a Hamsa hanging in the middle of one of my walls that I purchased in Israel, Jerusalem specifically. I love the fact that I purchased it in a place that's halfway across the world, also in a place that means to much to me. I've been to Israel twice now and going back to study for an extended period of time. I cannot wait to submerge myself in the culture and just experience life there. So, having an item hanging in my room (actually multiple things, but I just chose to pick the Hamsa...) from there reminds me of the connection I feel to to that land. It's special and unspoken, but I smile subconsciously every time I think about it or look at it.

There are so many different models and looks for a Hamsa. It can be ingraved, gold, silver, colorful, big or small. But it tends to have a common meaning for everybody.

More than anything, I like what a Hamsa represents. The Hamsa hand is popular in both Arabic and Jewish cultures; I like that fact because it brings the two different groups together with a common object. Hamsa translates to "five" which represents the five fingers that are on the hand. Most Hamsa's have an "eye" in the middle of them which represents a sort of protection against the "evil eye." I'm a strong believer in Karma and I try my absolute hardest to only treat people in the fairest and best way possible, just the way I would want to be treated. The Hamsa is a token item in the Middle East, for all cultures. I have a necklace with a Hamsa a poster with one, and this one that hangs in the middle of my wall.


Three Questions:
1. When you first became involved with this movement, what were people's perceptions of you? How did they react?
2. Has the environment improved at all? Have people responded to the efforts that are being made to make people more tolerant of different sexual orientations?
3. Has there every been a situation in which you personally were discriminated against?


Final Project
For my final paper, I think I've come to the conclusion that I'm going to research and put together as many different peace groups and organizations that have been developed to promote a peaceful solution in the conflict. After elaborating on numerous groups, I will talk about their effectiveness and what may need to change or stay the same in order to promote their main message. Honestly, I still haven't narrowed down exactly what I am doing. This is just one of my ideas. I'm trying to narrow my paper topic down to something more specific, I just haven't decided what I want to do yet.