welcome All Westchester Community College › ... › 06 › InternationalVoices2016_web.pdf · international voices 2016 an annual publication of the writing and artwork of international

International Voices is an award winning annual publication of the writ-ing and artwork of Westchester Community College students. As always, represented here are just some of the many diverse perspectives of the Westchester Community College community.

Change at Westchester Community College has become a recur-ring theme in my welcome letters over the past few years. I guess it’s true that the only constant is change because this year is no exception. The College has continued to fill vacant positions, and we are now pre-paring for the school structure changes that will be realized this fall. Major changes are happening as Dr. Miles implements her vision for the future of the College, and the campus is a whirlwind of activity as the faculty, staff, and administration work tirelessly to ensure that those changes benefit students as they are designed to. It hasn’t always been and won’t necessarily be an easy process, as many of us are shifting into new roles and new ways of thinking that often represent difficult tran-sitions. And of course, we don’t always agree on what needs to be done. It is, therefore, essential that we collaborate on the “work in progress” that has been and will be revised many times as we learn more about how we are affecting our students’ educational journeys.

One thing that will never change, however, is the central focus of Westchester Community College: our students. Our students come from all walks of life and all backgrounds and continue to be the real strength of the College and the reason we all commit ourselves to the College’s mission. Our job is to help them achieve their enormous, and sometimes hidden, potential. International Voices will give you a small taste of that potential, and I hope you enjoy the art and writing herein as much as I enjoy being a part of it.

Kent Trickel

Sincerely,

international voices spring 2016

All Westchester Community College students are invited to submit their own writing or artwork for the 2017

edition of International Voices. Faculty members are also encouraged to rec-ommend exemplary student work for

publication. All writing and artwork submissions are considered although

priority is given to material with an international or multi-cultural theme.

submission guidelineswriters

use MS Word, plain text, or RTF format with minimum custom formatting

artists digital photos or files in .psd, .tiff, or

.jpg formatresolution should be 300 ppi

everyone a cover letter email that includes:

your name the title of your work

your phone number & email address your mentoring professor’s name

(optional) your native country & language

please submit your writing and/or artwork by email to

[email protected]

deadline for International Voices 2017: January 31, 2017

welcom

e

H E LO I S E PAU G A M

PROSEPaul Smith | The Suck 6–7

Carlos Bonilla | The Hill 7

David Quituisaca | Acknowledgement 14–17

Hector A. Rojas G. | Be a Friend 15

Dilan David Rodrigues Clavijo | Time 32

Jingqiu Lopez | Farewell to China’s One-Child Policy 35

Maryana Hnativ | War in my Life 38

international voices 2016an annual publication

of the writing and artworkof international students

Westchester Community CollegeValhalla, New York

writing editorKent Trickel

art editorMatt Ferranto

designerHeloise Paugam

selection committeeKent Trickel, Judy Marano

special thanksto all of the students who

submitted their work to this year’sissue, to faculty, counselors, staff,

and administrators who encouragedstudents to submit their writing andartwork & supported this journal byposting and announcing the call for

submissions, to those who haveprovided a wide audience for our

artists and writers by distributing pastissues of International Voices in their

classes, the library, the AcademicSupport Center, and various offices &

buildings on and off campusprinting

Mount Kisco PressPleasantville, New York

PROSEPaul Smith | The Suck 6–7

Carlos Bonilla | The Hill 7

David Quituisaca | Acknowledgement 14–17

Hector A. Rojas G. | Be a Friend 15

Dilan David Rodrigues Clavijo | Time 32

Jingqiu Lopez | Farewell to China’s One-Child Policy 35

Maryana Hnativ | War in my Life 38

POETRY Madelyn Ramirez | I am Strong 11

Patricia Generoso | Amazon River 13

Laeeqa Goolamhoosen | Untitled 26

Abel Ngegba | What a Beautiful Sierra Leone 28

Maria Camila Isaza | America 32

Medwin Ghabaee | My Son 33

Mayu Thahara | Sounds 40

ARTHéloïse Paugam cover, 32

Sandra Zhinin 9

Amanda Gordon 10

Emmanuel Decaudin 12

Viridiana Vidales Coyt 18

Sebastian Castaño Ospina 19–20

Paulo Reis 22

Gustavo Comonian 23

Pawel Misiak 23

Danielle Ovigli Lopes 24

Montaysia S. Dean 26

Xiaojing Dong 27

Robert Olsson 29

Remy Gutierrez 31

Ishbart Gonzalez 33

Beth A. Garramone-Ross 34

Yuko Kyutoku 39

contents

MEDWIN GHABAEEUNITED STATESENGLISHCommunication and Media Arts major. Aspires to be a great dad and a “renaissance man.”

ISHBART GONZALEZUNITED STATESSPANISH | ENGLISHCommunications major.

GUSTAVO COMONIANBRAZILPORTUGUESE Journalism major.

HECTOR A. ROJAS G. VENEZUELA SPANISHIntensive English Program. Plans to complete a Law degree and become a tax lawyer.

ROBERT OLSSONUNITED STATESENGLISHDigital Arts/Photography majors. Creating meticulously produced images for graphic design enhancement and/or fine art gallery exhibitions.

PAULO REISBRAZIL PORTUGUESEVisual Arts major. Wants to become an animator and open his own animation studio.

YUKO KYUTOKUJAPANJAPANESEVisual Arts major. Plans to transfer to a four year college to complete a Fine Arts degree.

JINQIU LOPEZCHINAMANDARINPlans to pursue education toward a teaching career.

XIAOJING DONGCHINAMANDARINVisual Arts major. Wants to design her own house with a big yard where she can plant flowers and keep a pack of Shiba Inus.

ABEL NGEGBASIERRA LEONEKISSI | MENDIAccounting major. Plans to become a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) majoring in either consultancy or forensic accounting.

MARYANA HNATIVUKRAINEUKRAINIANLiberal Arts/Social Science major. Plans to pursue her education in International Relations.

MONTAYSIA S. DEANUNITED STATES | BARBADOSENGLISHFashion Design and Technol-ogy major. Plans to become a fashion designer and open her own stores as well as operate a community fashion center for youth.

AMANDA MICHELLE GORDONUNITED STATESENGLISH

PATRICIA GENEROSOBRAZILPORTUGUESEElementary Education major. Plans to be a teacher.

LAEEQA GOOLAMHOOSENSOUTH AFRICAAFRIKAANS

DAVID QUITUISACAECUADORSPANISH

PAWEL MISIAK POLANDPOLISHComputer Science major.

BETH A. GARRAMONE-ROSSUNITED STATESENGLISHVisual Arts major.

contributors

HELOISE PAUGAMFRANCEFRENCHVisual Arts major. Plans to become a graphic designer and a freelance photographer.

EMMANUEL DECAUDINFRANCEFRENCHCompleting last year of high school at WCC. Plans to trans-fer to CUNY Macaulay Honors College and major in Political Science.

DILAN DAVID RODRIGUEZ CLAVIJOCOLOMBIA SPANISHVisual Arts major. Plans to transfer to a four year college and complete a Graphic Design degree.

CARLOS BONILLAMEXICOSPANISHOffice Technologies major. Plans to work as a professional administrative assistant.

DANIELLE OVIGLI LOPESBRAZILPORTUGUESENon-matriculated.

SEBASTIAN CASTAÑO OSPINACOLOMBIASPANISHVisual Arts major. Plans to transfer to complete a Bach-elor’s and Master’s Degree and hopes to inspire others with his work.

PAUL SMITHUNITED STATESENGLISHEngineering Science major. Plans to transfer to a four year college and complete a bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering and then work for NASA.

SANDRA ZHININECUADORSPANISHCriminal Justice major. Plans to graduate from WCC and trans-fer to a four year university.

MADELYN RAMIREZGUATEMALASPANISHNursing major. Plans to be a gynecologist and a good mother.

MAYU TAHARAJAPANJAPANESELiberal Arts/Humanities major. Plans to transfer to SUNY Oneonta to student Music Business. Hopes to work at a Japanese music label to introduce foreign musicians to Japan.

REMY GUTIERREZDOMINICAN REPUBLICSPANISH | ENGLISHBusiness Administration major. Plans to have a good life with health, wealth, love, and hap-piness all in balance.

VIRIDIANA VIDALES COYTMEXICOSPANISHCommunications major. Plans to become the Director of communications for a profes-sional soccer team and start a non-profit to help kids through sports. #SportsForSocialChange

6 international voices

A dark cloud looms in the distance. As it draws near, the sky turns red as the cloud descends upon my platoon. Rocks and sand are flung up as we try to find some shelter from the unrelenting force of the storm. While hiding behind a hesco barrier I light up a cigarette, cover my eyes and wait for the storm to pass. These sand storms are a normal occurrence In Musa Qula, Afghanistan. A harsh and violent des-ert that changed me into what it wanted me to be, it changed me into what I needed to be to survive.

Raging on, the storm tears through the land. An opaque brownish red sand makes it impossible to see anything. Thunder erupts, and lighting cracks through the sky. Gale force winds pick up everything from rocks to large pieces of wood and turn them into projectiles. Rocks pelt my helmet and for once I am thankful that I am lugging around this bulky gear. Each piece of rock and debris that hits me, chips away slowly at my resolve. My spirit threatens to break like the weak wooden structures around me.

The sand storm is gone as quickly as it came. It travels along to torment more unfortunate souls. The crimson skies open up and the sun reveals a barren land. Way off to the west, The Hindu Kush Moun-tains tower over the desert. The sand in Musa Qula is not like the flowing soft sand shown in film or televi-sions. It is hard and compact like cement and littered with pebbles and spiky plants. Mud huts scatter the horizon. Most have been abandoned, but some are still home to farmers who scrape by off of the land’s scarce resources. Some farmers work on poppy fields, while others lead herds of sheep to the small patches of dry grass on the outskirts of the fields.

The wildlife is as twisted as the desert itself. Packs of feral dogs patrol the desert, challenging you any chance they get. Ants and flies rule this world, and they constantly harass anyone in their path. At any given time I can shake my arm and five or six flies would take off, and land somewhere else on my body. The ants were numerous and indestructible. Many times I tried to crush them under my boot, but as I lifted my foot they somehow survived and scurried away. Rats were everywhere. Locusts, giant spiders, and scorpions wait for you in every dark spot. At night, it isn’t unusual to feel one or two crawl over my body. At first, it was frightening. The little time I was given to sleep was spent staring at the roof of my tent wondering if every little itch was another creature trying to gain entry to my sleeping bag. But now I am immune to the feeling of rodents and spiders crawling on me and don’t give it a second thought.

PAUL SMITH

7spring 2016

The most frightening thing I encountered during my entire time in Musa Qula was not an over-sized spider or hoards of rats. No, the most terrifying creature was a cat. I happened upon this cat on a pitch black night, on my way to fill up a generator. As I turned the corner of the last tent, the red light of my flashlight landed right on the beast. It was missing an eye, and had a scar on its face. Chunks of its fur had been ripped out; pieces of its ear were missing. The cat reared up, its hair stood on edge and it let out a menac-ing hiss. I thought my life was going to end that very second. The cat ran off into the darkness and somehow I survived to see the light of another day.

The sun that illuminates the desert also brings with it an extreme heat. With every breath I take the air scorches my lungs. The sun beats down on me, searing my exposed skin. There is a constant salty taste in my mouth from the sweat dripping off of my lips. It feels like at any moment, fire and brimstone will fall from the sky. There is no escape from the heat. Even in the shade I feel like I am inside an oven. As a child, I loved the feeling of the summer breeze in my face. But in this desert, love has turned to resent-ment. The wind feels like someone took a hair dryer, turned it on high and aimed it right at my face.

The blistering heat subsides as the sun sets. The Muslim song of prayer can be heard in every direc-tion at dusk. It is eerily beautiful, but is a reminder that this desert is not my home. The song ends as the sun disappears into the night. Devoid of all light, the night sky is strewn with stars and celestial bod-ies. Shooting stars and galactic rivers that I have never seen before are now covering the sky. The moon is large and bright, and imposes itself in the sky. This is the type of night sky many dream of seeing. Instead of being struck with awe by the sheer beauty of the night sky, it enrages me. The stars mocked me. It was like heaven and I was stuck in hell. I could feel Zeus star-ing down at me and laughing.

Musa Qula, Afghanistan warps everything within its borders, including myself. The wicked storms, devilish creatures, the feverish sun, and the tantalizing nights have carved themselves into my memory and I think back to them often. I had come to enjoy the misery and harshness that the desert took pleasure in dishing out. The damning conditions and rugged landscape molded me into a more resilient person, who could easily adapt to any situation. As I boarded the C-130 to return home from my deploy-ment I reflected on my time in Afghanistan. I was grateful to be leaving, but couldn’t help but feel like I was leaving a piece of me behind.


You hold so many secrets; reaching up to you is a big challenge. However, once I pass your obstacle courses,

the beautiful view that you see every day takes my breath away. However, you also hold a big secret;

underneath you lies not dirt but a structure, a master piece... a pyramid. A pyramid built and left behind by the ancient ones, a pyramid that is laid to rest where we live.

Under now.

C ARLOS BONILL A

9spring 2016

C ARLOS BONILL A

SAN

DRA

ZHIN

IN


A M A N DA G O R D O N

11spring 2016

It doesn’t matter how strong the rain is,

I am stronger.

I have walked miles and miles,

Through the road in the desert.

It seems like tonight is the longest night.

I can feel the rain on my shoulders,

I can hear the sound of the raindrops hitting the ground.

I feel the wind from his wings,

I am scared of the big bird and his light.

It can reach me,

It can catch me,

I won’t go back.

My body is shaking,

The cold wraps his arms around me.

I need to run,

Fight,

Break free.

I am running,

I don’t know how long,

I don’t know how far,

But I need to keep running.

MAD

ELYN

RAM

IREZ


E M M A N U E L D E C AU D I N

13spring 2016

I sat on this lonely rock by the river

And stared at my reflection in the

Water,

The cool breeze rushed over my skin

And as the birds sang in the

Background

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes,

And I felt the warmth of the sun on

My face,

It was a moment of peace, serenity

I felt as light as a feather,

And in that instant I was happy.


I was sitting in my seat, waiting for the plane to begin moving. I was nervous and grabbing at the hand rests. The same questions were buzzing around in my head. Is it too late to change my mind? Would they let me off the plane if I demanded hard enough? Why haven’t we moved yet? I realized that I was trembling in my seat. My palms were wrapped around both hand rests so tight that I could see the veins in my arms popping out. I began taking deep breathes to calm myself down. With each exhale I thought words of encouragement to soothe my nerves. It won’t be that bad. There is nothing to be scared of. You can do this! I realized that I had said the last one out loud. The woman next to me looked over and gave me a smile.

“You got a fear of flying? I looked at her, surprised by her question. I did not know how to answer her. She noticed my puzzled look and continued Everyone’s afraid of something. I fly all the time. There really is nothing to be worried about. She gave me another smile and looked forward. Before I could say anything the plane began moving. Slowly but surely it was trudging away from the airport gate and towards the runway. I could

DAVID QUITUISAC A

15spring 2016

feel myself getting nervous again. There was officially no way out. Don’t worry honey, my seatmate glanced over. It’s only an 8 hour flight. You should ask them if they can give you something to help you sleep! I answered her with a smile and a deep breath. She looked forward once again. I got a feeling from her that she didn’t really care about helping me calm down. I think she just didn’t want to be bothered by my nervous rituals during the flight. If I was in her shoes I probably would’ve felt the same way. Although, I was a bit disappointed because I did want to talk to someone about what I was about to do. I wanted to explain to her that my nervousness had nothing to do with the flight. In fact, I loved flying and the entire inflight experience. I wanted to tell her that I was nervous because I was on my way to see my family in Ecuador for the first time in twelve years. And I wanted her to know that I was trembling because I was an openly gay man traveling to a very foreign country to stay with my very conservative family for thirty very long days.

“Flight attendants, prepare for departure. The pilot commanded over the intercom. The crew members walked down the aisles towards the back of the plane, making sure everyone had their seatbelts on. One crew member directed her glance towards me. Are you David? she asked with a beautiful smile, much nicer than of my seatmates. Yes. I responded. Your father wanted me to let you know that he is going to need you to fill out his paperwork for him, so we will just bring it over to you when we get close to our destination. Is that alright? My father had already asked me to fill out his important travel documents before we boarded. He was wheeled into the plane before anyone else by a crew member to his seat in First Class. That he had a flight attendant remind me made me think that he had already taken his sleeping pill. Yes, that’s fine. Thank you! I answered. As she walked away, I could hear the plane in front of us take off. We were next. There was no turning back now. I felt the plane gradually go from a crawl to a full force take off. I closed my eyes, we lifted off the ground. Thirty days starts now.…

“You’re not really that nervous are you? It will only be for one month. In the grand scheme of things that’s really not a long time. My brother was trying to con-sole me before I left for the airport. He had gone with my father to Ecuador earlier that year, so now it was my

turn. Dad liked to go back at least twice a year, said that the fresh air was good for him and his condition, plus the family always treated him well. You are really helping Dad out here. He needs someone he can trust to be his aide.I grabbed a shirt from my pile of clothes and threw it at him, my way of telling him to shut up. It was easy for him to say that this trip was no big deal. When he went he was the pride of the family. The American Nephew who finally came to visit after all these years! We saw pictures of you and your girlfriend onFacebook, she is beautiful. Do you plan on marrying her? How many kids are you planning to have? What’s she like? From what he told me about his trip it seemed that the only thing the family cared to talk about was his girlfriend. You did come up once! he reassured me. They asked if you were still in school. I said yes. Then they asked if Aly was in school. I rolled my eyes and continued packing. Dad said most of the family knows anyway. He told most of them back when you came out in high school, they just don’t talk about it. You really don’t have to worry about them prying! I did not know if he said this to try and make me feel better, or to try to make himself feel better.

I had spoken to my other cousins here in America about my upcoming trip. They all told me the same thing. The family in Ecuador is just interested in our love lives. With good reason! declared my cousin Yesenia. It sucks, I know, but most of us American born cousins are in our early twenties. In Ecuador, it is considered normal to think about settling down and starting a family around that time. It’s just in the culture. As frustrated as that statement made me feel, I knew that she was right. Many of mycousins in Ecuador had settled down and started a family by the time they were twenty two. I was twenty five and single. I knew questions were going to be asked. I did not know how to answer them.

I woke up from my in-flight nap to the pilot speaking in Spanish. He was letting us know that we were close to landing. As I filled out my father’s customs forms I made a deal with myself. I would not bring up my sexuality unless I was asked directly. Regardless of how they feel about it, I am an adult now and must face my fears with confidence. Who knows, they might even understand and throw me a party. I chuckled at my last thought.

We arrived in the city of Guayaquil at the brink of dawn. I pushed my father in his wheelchair towards the


parking lot while an airport employee wheeled our lug-gage behind us. I would ask you to look for your cousin Danny, but you probably don’t know what he looks like anymore. My father was right. I hadn’t seen Danny in years, and even though we were only two years apart he was probably a completely different person now, as was I. I dared not to speak to my father about my grievances. I felt like he would not understand and probably tell me to just get over it. He never took anyone’s woes seriously; especially if you were standing up and talking about it...We looked all over the lot and couldn’t find him. My father joked: Maybe you should start going up to strang-ers and ask them if they are your cousins. I didn’t speak Spanish very well, so I was kind of hoping it didn’t come down to that. Then from behind us we heard a whistle. I turned around and saw a young guy and girl waving towards their truck. Is that them? I asked my father as I turned his chair around. Yep, that’s Danny and his sis-ter, your cousin Prisila. You remember her right? I met Prisila as a preteen twelve years ago. I had no clue how old she was now. Yeah, Sure I bit my tongue and rolled my father towards the truck.

Danny hopped out of the truck as we approached. Hola Tio! he shouted to my dad. Prisila jumped out behind him. Bienvenidos! she yelled at us. She came run-ning to my dad and knelt down to give him a hug then came up to me and extended her arms. I was taken by surprise and jumped back. She did not seem to notice this and continued forward until she embraced me. Hola primo! she said to me. She then said something in Span-ish that I later learned translates to Long time no see! Danny took the luggage cart from the airport employee. Sorry we did not get here sooner, Danny said in Span-ish. Pili thought you said you were coming in at 8am. Prisila burst in surprise, Don’t blame me! Mom told you the right time, you simply forgot. Their banter was hilari-ous. They spoke to each other the same way I spoke to my brother. I enjoyed knowing that sibling banter was the same in every country.

We drove to Cuenca, which was a good six hours out of Guayaquil. My father had a house built in Cuenca made especially for him. He had an elevator built into the side of the house as well as a physical therapy room and a pool in the backyard. I learned that Danny and Pili stayed in my father’s house and were the caretakers of it

while he was in the States. I would be spending most of my time with them at the house. Nobody talked during the long ride. My father was tired from the plane ride and the other two were up front while I sat closer to the back with the luggage. I was able to take in the glorious mountain views. I will never get over how magnificent the clouds look when they are nestled in the steep valleys of the mountains. The country’s entire road system was paved to move along the mountains instead of through them and I could not be more thankful for the scenery.

I forgot about my nerves until we arrived at my father’s house and I peeked through one of the win-dows and saw a slew of unfamiliar faces. Most of my family members had been waiting hours for us to arrive. Danny put the car in park and said to me, Everyone is really excited primo! I asked my father Are they always this excited when you come to visit? He turned is head to face me and grinned. No mijo he started. They are here to see you! In that moment I felt my stomach drop. This is it. I told myself. This is the moment you have been dreading since you agreed to go on this trip. It’s here and there’s no turning back. I began my deep breathing exercises. Danny and Pili got out of the car and helped my father out onto his wheelchair. I fol-lowed behind them into the house.

The door swung open and I was attacked with hugs. So many aunts, uncles and older cousins darted in my direction and wrapped me in their arms. Hola Davey!Look how much you have grown!I can’t believe it, you are so big! Many had tears in their eyes. I could not believe it. Here I was thinking that I was only going to receive fake hellos and formal handshakes, instead I get a reunion out of a television show. It felt amazing. I was the pride of the family.

At dinner, all thirty of us sat in the living room eat-ing cevichecon arroz with some Ecuadorian brand cola. All eyes were on me. I sat next to Danny and Pili on the couch. Next to Danny were his two brothers, my cous-ins Alejandro and Mario. They were twins; both twenty four and both had their own kids. Their respective wives sat across from them. On the other end, Pili sat next to my cousin Maritza, age twenty eight, and her son Franco. Next to them were my cousin Nubelle, age twenty nine, and her two daughters. I realized that Danny and Prisila were both in their twenties and childless like me. I took

17spring 2016

solace in this fact and hoped that it would help keep the conversation away from topics like marriage and chil-dren. I didn’t realize how wrong I was.

My Aunt Laura started So Danny, I haven’t seen you since the summertime. How’s that girl you were see-ing? What was her name? I looked down at my food, I knew that once he answered that I was next in line. I was surprised to hear him stutter a bit. Well, um, I broke up with her. It wasn’t working out. My aunt fol-lowed Mijo, it is not right for you to just leave girls. You have to think of your future.Danny retorted. I know Tia, but I’m focusing on school and I really need to pass this year to graduate.I agreed with his statement and found myself nodding along, with a mouth full of ceviche. Aunt Laura shook her head, and then she tar-geted Prisila. How about you Pili, you have a boyfriend yet? I was shocked when she skipped me but I did not complain. Pili answered No Tia, not yet.Mija, you are a young woman now. You are not going to be young forever, remember that. Nobody likes dating when they are older. Her brother Mario chimed in She doesn’t have a boyfriend cause she’s not looking for one. She’s too busy playing soccer all the time. Pili looked at her brother and glared. Well, I want to play professionally, so it’s important to be on the field and practice. Laura replied Well don’t forget what’s important is marrying a good man, then you can worry about soccer.”

Then it was my turn. I prepared my statement (I’m single. That’s it. No more questions). Aunt Laura batted her eyes at me and asked David, mijo....how’s school going?”

I took my time giving an answer. That was obviously not the question I was prepared for. Fine. I finally said. I start again in January, just two more semesters.Good mijo, it’s important for you to graduate so you can get a good paying job. The rest of the family joined the con-versation. I was asked about my school, my job at the wellness clinic, how was life in America and if I had any plans to travel around Ecuador. My sexuality never came up. My brother was right. They simply did not talk about it.

But my feeling of relief was repressed every time I heard a family member put down Danny for not having a girlfriend or give Prisila a lesson in what’s important to

young women. When I couldn’t take any more criti-cism, I put my plate down, got up and gave Prisila a hug. Prima, I think it’s really refreshing to see a young woman who wants to better herself before she settles down. That is very American of you. She smiled at me and I saw the preteen I met all those years ago. I turned to Danny Primo, there’s plenty of time to date, but school is important. I looked at my aunt Laura. You know, in America most people don’t get married until they are in their early thirty’s Tia! She let out a slight, bothered chuckle and batted her eyes again. Well, we know that things are VERY different in America, David. I think that is the closest I ever got to an acknowledgement of my being different from any member of my family in Ecuador. I excused myself from dinner and went to check on my father.

I locked eyes with Danny and Prisila as I walked towards the stairs. I hadn’t realized that these two had also been fighting the same battle that I faced with my family. In that moment, despite language barriers and sexual identities there was an unspoken recognition between the three of us.

I found my father lying on his bed, still resting from the trip. I layed down next to him and rested my head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around my head, gave me a forehead kiss and thanked me for coming along with him. It’s not so bad here, Dad. I think we are gonna have a great time. As I drifted off to sleep I thought about how nervous I made myself before the trip. Standing up for my cousins really helped me realize that we are not so different in the end. I looked forward to spending the next twenty nine days with them.


V I R I D I A N A V I DA L E S

19spring 2016

SEBA

STIA

N CA

STAÑ

O OS

PINA


21spring 2016

SEBASTIAN C ASTAÑO OSPINA

international voices22

PAU LO R E I S

23spring 2016

PAW E L M I S I A K

G U S TAV O C O M O N I A N


BE A FRIENDI was born in 1984 into a humble and hard-

working family as the youngest of four children. By that time, my parents had had three children, so I had two sisters and one brother. We lived in a small apartment which had four rooms in a neighborhood of hard-working class in Caracas, Venezuela. I had a nice and comfortable childhood even though my fam-ily did not have much money, but we always kept united by our family warmth. My mother always taught me how important it was to help other people while my father taught me the impor-tance of studying a career. I studied in a military high school, so that I had to leave my family when I was twelve years old. However, they were in touch with me whenever I was able.

In July, 2001, I finished high school, and I decided to get into a military university to be an army offi-cer. I got into the National Guard’s University located in Caracas; however, the first year had to be com-pleted in Maracay. So, I went to Maracay which is located far away from Caracas. We were about eight hundred teenagers trying to become offi-cers; in fact, we were divided into groups of 25 called pelotons. Four pelotons shaped a com-pany, and four companies shaped a battalion, and finally two battalions shaped a regiment. We were a regiment, and I was part of the fourth peloton in the second company of the second battalion. There were twenty five people managed by a lieutenant. He taught us about loyalty, brotherhood and support-ing each other.

There was a guy named Guillermo Useche Garcia, who was really rebellious about rules; for example, if the lieutenant said that we had to run, Guillermo

DANI

ELLE

OVI

GLI

25spring 2016

only walked. Consequently, each time that Guill-ermo broke the rules, all the peloton had to do more exercise than usual. Throughout the months, my classmates were really mad at Guillermo because we had been punished many times for his behavior. One day, we had to go to the forest to train. We had to be there for twenty one days, sleeping in deep trenches or in tents sometimes. Also, we did not eat a lot of food, and we only slept about four hours per night.

A cold night came, and we had finished a day of very hard training, running and shooting weapons. Every-body wanted to sleep, but our leader required us to cross a river that was not too deep; it was only up to our knees; however, it was really cold. Unless it was necessary, nobody wanted to cross the cold river. Instead, one by one we were crossing the river try-ing to keep as dry as possible; meanwhile, Guillermo was treated really badly after we arrived at the forest. Actually, he was totally submerged as a punishment for his behavior, and certainly some classmates were really happy for that. After that, we were sent to sleep in huge and deep trenches. Every person was changing his or her socks for dry socks, but Guillermo could not do it because all his stuff was wet.

At midnight, I heard Guillermo breathing fast, and I went to see him. He was wet and trembling, so that I went to talk with our lieutenant. He said that Guillermo deserved that as a consequence of his behavior, but I disagreed with him because Guillermo had hypothermia. So, I went toward Guillermo, and I decided to take off his shirt and boots. Then, I hugged him and covered us with my blanket to keep him warm. After one hour he was much better, so I gave him my dry socks and another shirt. The next day we talked, and I realized that his childhood was sad because his parents did not pay atten-tion to him. I gave him some advice to improve his behavior, and thankfully he did it. Since that day in March 2002, we have been best friends. We have studied the same major and master’s degree. We have had a wonderful friendship for thirteen years, and I can say I am very proud that Guillermo is like a

HEC TOR ROJAS

brother; even though he is not my family, I feel he is my brother.

This particular situation in my life taught me how important childhood is for a person, how important it is to take care of children through their development. My point is, our behavior as adults is based on our childhoods. Also, we should not judge any person if we have not known his or her past. People have trouble, and they could have been in difficult situations that even you do not know; nevertheless, everybody likes to receive attention and be understood. Finally, do not be a judge, be a friend!


When I first left you, I knew it wasn’t forever but I thought I’d be back again soon And it might not be the same as before, but we could still be togetherBut it feels like forever since I’ve been near you to feel your heatIt’s cold and winter, but to me you’re hot and summerPassionate, energetic, creativeIt scares me that I don’t know when I will see you nextI long for you and wishyouwerecloser so there literally wouldn’t be any space between usI sometimes think about coming back to you, butI feel compelled to remain distant and hope that you canForgive meAt least for nowI feel lost, but know I am moving in the right directionPlease don’t make the mistake of thinking I’m not happy or that I made the wrong decisionThose phone calls, though, continue to make me miss you the mostAnd so while days can go by when I don’t think of you, or you’re just a fleeting thought,Sometimes, out of nowhere, in the most random of all places, I see things thatMake me think of youRemind me of youIf I’m at a party and a song comes on that reminds me of when I used to go to your festivalsOr if I’m at a restaurant that serves the food you used to make for me (but it’s never quite the same) Or maybe it’s at a coffee shop and while scrolling through the tea selection, I notice that they have our Tea, Rooibos and exclaim with delightOr walking down the aisle at a grocery store, trying to find that one perfect item to add to my basket and pass an entire selection of Ceres juicesAnd I can’t help but wonder about the what-ifsSouth Africa you will always be home in my heart

L A E E QA G O O L A M H O O S E N

27spring 2016

MON

TAYS

IA S

DEA

N

X I AO J I N G D O N G


How beautiful you look in that colorful green, white and blue dress.

An entrancing African rich with gold, rutile, diamonds and iron ore.

Sweet smelling beautiful flowers, trees and the landscape of your thoughtful look.

As gentle winds blow your palm tresses,

the deep blue Atlantic Ocean caresses your graceful undulating beaches.

The morning birds and cooing doves are at peace in your paradise gardens,

earthworms dwelling in the rich black soil.

Pedro DaCintra, your founding father, was amazed by the crowing ocean

between the mountains which he named “Lion Mountain.”

Alas, you kept yourself to suckle your unborn children.

Like the prodigal son, some of your kids have done you wrong.

Though we have traveled that vast, far-reaching globe,

our feet that revealed our indefatigable endeavors,

we shall always return to your motherly and forgiving bosom.

ABEL NGEBA

SIER

RA L

EON

E

29spring 2016

ROBE

RT O

LSSO

N


It seems what most people need to either spend or fix any event in their life. Tic Tic Tic... What does time really mean? There are many definitions for the word time, and it all varies from point of view or interpre-tation. Sometimes, when I start thinking about what time means, my mind drifts away, and I really start losing myself in my own thoughts. Similar to when people think about death. What’s the next step? Where are we going? What we are going to do? Who are we going to be? Those kinds of questions blow up some-one’s mind and give a sense of feeling useless because people cannot answer this type of questions that are all related to time. However, when people talk about time, you start realizing that it is one of those abili-ties that people want to control if they could. Why? Because most individuals at some point really want to go back to a specific time to either fix something or be with someone once more. Time to me represents all the special moments that you go through in your life. Those moments are special because they were part of your life either to learn or reflect; moments that would help you to be a better person and helped you become the person you are now. Thus, time is one of those

words that people cannot express as one meaning.

Time… time… time…

31spring 2016

R E M Y G U T I E R R E Z


You’re as beautiful as your nameYou’re as free as an eagle You’re as strong as a human spirit And coming here was the riskiest thing we’ve ever doneYet we would do it all over again We will fight until we unite And become one.

MARIA CAMIL

A ISA ZA

HEL

OISE

PAU

GAM

33spring 2016

You’re as beautiful as your nameYou’re as free as an eagle You’re as strong as a human spirit And coming here was the riskiest thing we’ve ever doneYet we would do it all over again We will fight until we unite And become one.

My Son will cure cancer,Retire a strip dancer,And if he feels questionedHe will find the answer

My Son will be a scholarAnd marry a modelHave his face on a dollarAnd his art be glottal

My Son will be a sluggerIn boxing and baseballA saint, tall,Or someone that will paint walls

My Son will travel the starsAnd leagues of the seaHe will drive his favorite carAnd make his dreams reality

My Son will cool the globeFor the masses in robeMy Son will use a stoneFor the use of a throne

My Son will arrive on timeRhyme and chimeSweep her off her feetAfter the wine and dine

My Son will bring world peaceStarting with the Middle EastWith committal guaranteesAnd exclaim “It ’s time to feast!”

My Son will be the bestOne ever could beMy Son will be a classicJust wait and Sea.

I S H B A R T G O N Z A L E Z

M E D W I N G H A B A E E


BETH

A. G

ARRA

MON

E-RO

SS

35spring 2016

On October 29th, a new policy was announced in China that caught the attention of the world. The new policy is to allow all married couples the right to have a second child. After 35 years, Chi-nas one-child policy changed, and it has immediately brought along much discussion. Chris Buckley, a cor-respondent for the New York Times had worked as a correspondent in China since 2000 but was forced to leave Mainland China in late December, 2012 after the government declined to renew his visa for 2013. Responding and delivering the news of the new pol-icy, he wrote China Ends One-Child Policy, Allowing Families Two Children. He provides background information promoting the necessary change of policy based on the disadvantages of the previous one-child policy in China. The article also points out various reactions from people who fall under the eligibility guidelines for the policy.

In 1949, Chinese Chairman Mao Zedong encouraged the growth of Chinas population as the authorities predicted it would help boost the National economy. When the population exceeded the original projections, food supplies became insufficient, which led to a National famine and 30 million deaths in the country. At the beginning of the 1980s, the Commu-nist party decided to restrict the population growth in order to contribute to Chinas economic boom. Follow-ing the decision, the policy limited each family to only have one child. This subject brought so many mem-ories of my upbringing in China. My grandparents

lived in the generation under Chairman Maos rule and his impression that population growth would help strengthen the development of China. In order to fol-low the policy, my grandparents had many children. The grandparents from both of my adopted parents sides had 6 children. Unluckily, all of them suffered through fam-ine and the food shortage period. I remember stories from my grandmother mentioning times where they had nothing to eat or drink. The worst story I heard from my grandmother was a period when she and her fam-ily had a very limited amount food and only consumed rice. Additional stories from my grandmother described times when they were left to eat rice that was infested with ants. As a result of the lack of food and medicine, my adopted mother contracted Tuberculosis when she was a teenager. Due to the famine, the National econ-omy declined.My family had no money to bring her to the doctor, which caused her body to develop abnor-mally. The left side of her ribcage pressed onto her lung. My mother passed away from the eventual loss of both lungs function along with other medical issues. I abso-lutely believe that the population growth projection did not result in the manner Mao wanted it to. Afterwards, many people in China realized the severe damage it had caused.

I was born at the beginning of the 1980s, the genera-tion that was the first to lead Chinas one child policy. At that moment, I very much liked the restrictive one child policy, as I would receive my parents full atten-tion. In contrast, there were many who did not support


the process was completed, a government representative was sent to her house to escort her to the hospital for the process. To avoid the process, my neighbors wife went into hiding for over a year. I remember stories from mother of how scared my neighbors were of being caught.

The one child policy is not only a violation of human rights, but also brought along many issues dur-ing the policys 35 year term. Mei Fong, a journalist with the Wall Street Journal published her first journal report in Hong Kong, then to Beijing in 2003 where she focused on writing about Chinas one child pol-icy. Her first book One Child: The Story of Chinas Most Radical Experiment was released on November 3, 2015, which was moved up earlier from the origi-nal publication date of February because of the recent announcement from the Chinese government allowing all families to have two children. On November 2, 2015 The New Yorker Magazine interviewed her. During the interview, she points out the disadvantages of the one-child policy in China and how the policy has affected the people throughout the country. The interview pres-ents real situations to further support the disadvantages of the one-child policy. One situation addresses the possibility of losing a child from natural disasters, med-ical issues, or accidents. Another situation addressed the extreme pressure from the expectations of parents on the one child.

She used herself as an example to explain how strict the one child policy is. In her interview, she recalls as Mei Fong is the youngest of five daughters, conceived in hopes of a son who never materialized. Be glad were not in the old country, her relatives, who had immigrated from southern China to Malaysia, would tell her. Youd never have been born.The relatives of Mei Fong implied that if they were in China, her par-ents would not have had the opportunity to try and have a boy several times. Traditionally, Chinese fami-lies, especially those living in rural areas, would favor having boys over girls, as the boys would stay home to help with the land before and after marriage.Some families with girls would sometimes resort to infanti-cide or child abandonment to ensure they have another chance to possibly have a boy.

the policy. Chris complicates matters further when he writes, For Chinas leaders, the control was a trium-phant demonstration of the partys capacity to reshape even the most intimate dimensions of citizens lives. But they bred intense resentment over the brutal intrusions involved, including forced abortions and crippling fines, especially in the countryside. What Chris explains is in order to fully implement the one child policy, govern-ment had to take real actions to control the birth rate of couples through forced abortions, sterilization and fines to those who wanted a second child; in my opin-ion, these were severe violations against human rights. On the one hand, I agree with Chris that the actions of the authorities were a violation, but on the other hand, I still insist that in order to successfully gener-ate a new policy, especially with such a large population as in China, the authorities needed to be strict in pre-venting any potential anti-policy cases in Communist Party Society.

Mariam Jaffery, an Executive Assistant at the Law Street Media and a native of Northern Virginia conducted research and wrote an article named An End to Chinas One-Child Policy: What Does it Mean? In her article, Mariam explains in detail how Chinas one-child policy is a violation against human rights, and the effects demographically, socially and economically on the country. It is not enough to just state how the gov-ernment attempted to deter families from having more than one child with forced abortions, sterilization and high fines on families; Miriam makes it real by using data collected by China. According to Mariam, Offi-cial statistics say that there have been approximately 1500 abortions an hour since the implementation of the policy. Another means by which this takes place is sterilization, which is often forced -- nearly 196 million of these procedures have been performed since imple-mentation of the policy.Using the detailed statistics report, Mariam illustrated how harmful the one child policy was and how much of a violation against human rights, especially womens, it was. I remember when I was young one of my neighbors had two children and needed to pay the government a large fine. What my neighbor did not expect was that, in addition to the fine, my neighbors wife was forced to undergo sterilization by the government at the local hospital. To ensure that

37spring 2016

I was abandoned after my parents found that I was a girl. When I was 27, my adopted father told me that I was abandoned in a bathroom right after I was born. At the same time my father told me this news, my biological mother contacted me and gave me some gen-eral information about her and her other children. Not only did I have an older sister, but a younger brother as well. The reason why I was abandoned was pretty clear at that point. Their original intentions were to try and have a boy after their first daughter. Only after giv-ing birth did they realize I was a girl. Afterwards they abandoned me in hopes to try and have a boy. During those times, especially in my hometown, which was a rural area, public bathrooms were in extreme poor con-ditions. As a newborn I could have easily been killed. Fortunately, I was found and picked up by an older lady who collected garbage to sell for scrap material. The woman linked me to my adopted grandmother who brought me to my adopted parents.In China, there are millions of girls like me still waiting to be adopted.

The one child policy also led to an imbal-anced ratio of males to females, which encouraged sex-selective practices like abortions, infanticides, and abandonment of baby girls. Additionally, it is very hard for males to find wives today in China. As the older population of the country increases and the younger population decrease there will be less support for the rapidly growing retiring population. This imbalance will jeopardize Chinas economic future, as the shrink-ing working population will not be able to support the growing aging population.

Another downside of the one-child policy causes problems when unexpected disaster happens. In 2008, Chinas largest recorded earthquake in Sichuan killed more than 70,000 people. Most of the people affected by the earthquake were children because of the time and the location of the earthquake. Making things worse, many bereaved parents could not have any more children because they had been forced to undergo sterilization as part of the policy requirements.

Lastly, the one-child policy inadvertently puts a lot of pressure on the only child of the family. Since parents could only have one child, there are a lot of expectations, pressures and demands put onto the one child to be successful. This sometimes leads to the child

being spoiled. I have seen this with my students who came from China to the U.S. for high school studies. Their parents pay full attention to them and spend lots of money on them to give them what they want, which is not healthy nor good for children to learn how to share and care for others.

Although I agree that the one-child policy is not good for Chinas development anymore, I still feel indifferent about the new two-child policy. Just because the government approved families to have two children does not mean that all families should or will take actions as soon as possible. In todays world, the cost of raising a child is expensive, and in reality many families will not take advantage of the policy based on what they learned and experienced from their child-hood. In summary, the one-child policys intentions were positive; but after 35 years, the negative results from the policy have been revealed.

JINGQIU LOPEZ

WORK CITED Buckley, Chris. “China Ends One-Child Policy, Allowing

Families Two Children.” The New York Times 29 October 2015 Fong, Mei. “How Did the One-Child Policy Change China?” An Interview with Mei Fong. The New Yorker 2 November. 2015 Jaffery, Mariam. “An End to China’s One-Child Policy : What Does it Mean?” Law Street 6 November 2015


Life is a very unpredictable thing. Nobody can even imagine what will happen the next day, next month and next year. People always try to control and to influ-ence events taking place in their lives, but sometimes it is just impossible because there are some things that peo-ple cannot change or affect. War is one of those bad things that can happen to everyone, no matter if you are rich or poor, good or bad, lonely or surrounded by family. And when you see that something bad is going to happen with you and your family, you try to do every-thing possible to escape it, even if you have completely change your lifestyle, environment, country. This is exactly what happened to me over the past two years.

My native country is Ukraine. It is the larg-est country in Europe which has a very favorable geographical location and rich natural resources; therefore, for centuries it suffered from the attacks of other countries who wanted to take it for themselves. 2013 was a critical year for Ukraine. Ukrainian people wanted to be a part of the European Union which the government did not want. The protests started on November 21, 2013 in response to the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to suspend the process of preparing for the Association Agree-ment between Ukraine and the EU and considerably grew after a power crackdown in Kiev on the night of November 30. These protests that took place at the end of 2013, includedrallies, demonstrations, and student strikes called “Euromaidan”.

At that time, I was a student at Vasyl Ste-

fanyk Precarpathian National University, faculty of International Relationships. I was one of those stu-dents who actively participated in rallies. We hoped that the government would hear us, but it did not happen; conversely, police began to suppress strikes and rallies by force. Euromaidan initiated the desta-bilization of the situation in the country and led to the

annexation of the Crimea and Donbas war.Since then, thousands of people have died, young men, men of all ages. Every day, there is a lot of violence. Unfortu-nately, it still continues!

All these events in Ukraine led to an impor-tant decision that changed my life significantly. I immigrated to the United States from my native country. My parents took me to the USA because they wanted to keep our family safe. Now, I have a totally different life than I had in Ukraine. I am trying to make my life better here, but it is very difficult when coming to a foreign country with another language, dif-ferent nationalities, cultures and another mentality. It is really very difficult to be part of society if you grew up in very different circumstances and lifestyle, and speak in another language. It makes you feel alone and out of the group sometimes. The first half year, when I had just come here, it was a difficult time for me. I started to study at Westchester Community Col-lege. I could not even talk to someone because I did not understand, and I was afraid to say something wrong. I was confused by the system of education and studying. I did not have friends because I did not see anything common between me and other stu-dents at school. My adaptation period lasted about a year. Now, this is my third semester as a student at WCC. More than one and a half years have passed and my life has changed. Today, I feel more confi-dent, but still I know that everything is alien for me in this country. I hope some day, the United States will become home for me, not only physically but also mentally. But I will still hope that there will be peace in the world and in my native country, and people will not have to leave their homes and their families in search of a better life abroad.

M A R YA N A H N AT I V

39spring 2016

YUKO

KYU

TOKU


SOUNDS overflow around the world.Voice, Music, Noise

Listen carefullySpeaking voice, Flow of a river

Noise of a subway, Sound of constructionCarol from a church, Sound of typing

ButListen MORE carefully

Beat of a heart, Initial cryBreathe sound, Blood flow

Can you hear “SOUND of LIFE?”But

Listen MORE seriouslyRoar, Scream

Crying of a child, Sound of life-support machineBANG – Sound of a gunshot

BOMB – ExplosionCan you hear “SOUND of Snuffing Out?”

SOUNDS overflow around the world.What SOUNDS can you hear?

MAYU TAHARA

welcome All Westchester Community College › ... › 06 › InternationalVoices2016_web.pdf · international voices 2016 an annual publication of the writing and artwork of international

Documents