This
past week was filled with excitement. The halls were decorated and
everyone was pulsing with school spirit, anticipating the
arrival of Homecoming. That all changed when a man named Mykee Fowlin came to
speak to our school. Fowlin asked the student body a mind-blowing question,
"What kind of legacy will you leave behind?". This caused us all to
slow down and reflect on our lives, hoping that they impacted someone positively.
High school is filled with all different
people, and most of us are all too quick to judge others. We this by
what we see and what others say, if only we "used our brain" like
Fowlin's eight year-old daughter, the world would be much more accepting.
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| Mykee Fowlin |
Stereotypes have been a main topic these past couple weeks, and Fowlin
teaches us that though people act a certain way it is a "mask".
He explains that we as humans show what we want others to see
and hide what we are ashamed of. He gave an example of an all-star
football player that dates girls and exudes confidence, but is really gay.
This is just like the Native Americans on their reservation.
They all conform to the ideal, straight-faced, warrior because that is
what everyone expects them to be. In reality, you can be whoever you
want; Gay or straight, YOU are the one who decides to take off your mask and
flourish in your individualism. Fowlin also touched on the topic of
suicide and not feeling accepted. This reminded me of Equiano and his
story of the journey through the middle passage. Equiano experienced the
most horrible side of humans. He and his fellow Africans were chained and
crammed into tight spaces where there was barely enough room to
breathe. The white men believed they were better than the
Africans and treated them like dirt. Many of the slaves on the ship chose
death over being treated like invisible scum. In the present, many people
decide to take their own lives because they feel like no one cares if they
leave. All it takes is one smile and you may just save a person's life.
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