I decided to base my capstone on mental health. Specifically, women facing Domestic Abuse. The inspiration for why I based my capstone on Domestic Abuse, was due to having close relatives and friends who had previously gone through this traumatic experience. Countless stories are being told every single day. But I wanted to take the initiative to uplift those who have once experienced Domestic Abuse. Mental Health is one of the most important elements of well-being. After hearing story after story, and some of the mechanisms people do when they’re in a state of anxiety, shame, guilt, and so on, people tend to make decisions that they’ll either later regret or get trapped in a state where they keep every emotion “bottled up”. For my capstone, I did countless research on safe havens I could potentially reach out to and form activities. That had been one of the most challenging factors I had to endure. Although it had been challenging, I learned that networking is one of the most important skills a person should have throughout their lives.

Volunteering at a safe haven came with many rules and regulations. For instance; Certain pictures and recordings aren’t allowed due to the safety of each woman, which is why my visuals are only a few images, one recording of an interview I did with one of the staff members, and a resume I had created for one of the girls. My visuals represent some of the activities The Girls and I did.

The novel, “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy, is a story that highlights a father and son relationship. Throughout the story, we begin to understand why each character is the way they are. When reading “The Road” for the very first time I thought the man was a selfish character who never saw the good in people, but as soon as I re-read the book for the second time, I realized that the man isn’t selfish.

The man cares about his son’s well-being even though he may sound a bit harsh for the most part. Throughout the book the man begins to understand why the mother of their son, said “You won’t survive for yourself” (pg.57), The man’s only reason to live and have hope is because of the boy. And even though this is true Cormac Mccarthy highlights that the man won’t be around much longer due to the type of dreams the man has been having. which is why the man tries to prepare the boy throughout the book.

To become mentally and physically ready to take on challenges. Now even though the man wants the best for the boy and is preparing him, he also doesn’t want the boy to grow up so quickly at such a young age, which is why even though honesty is important to conserve, there are times he has to lie to the boy for the sake of the boy maintaining the innocence that is left in him. This highlights that the man cares about the boy but is also harming the boy in a way, due to the position they are currently in.

Even though the man is preparing the boy he is also sharing some core memories with the boy, because the man believes the memories won’t ever come back due to what’s left in society. This core memory was shown by two bottles of Coca-Cola they had found in a supermarket.

I believe McCarthy’s message was how even though as a parent one tries to protect their child, you can’t have them unsee, what is right in front of them. Also don’t always focus on what is going to happen in the future, what matters is to conserve what the now is.

This piece of art I have created represents the scene where Offred and the Commander are playing Scrabble in the commander’s office. I thought drawing this scene would be significant due to the meaning behind the act that is occurring between Offred and the Commander. In Gilead, reading and writing are forbidden territory for a woman. Offred is able to play Scrabble due to the Commander inviting Offred to play Scrabble with him. This of course is against the rules. Which is why this is the main scene where questions start rising because we as readers, aren’t sure why the commander is bending the rules, especially bending the rules for a handmaid. While reading chapter 23 and going into depth while reading, I tried picturing the scene between Offred and the commander playing Scrabble. Each time I pictured it, the artwork that I had created showed what I imagined. I pictured the commander’s office as an elegant room with a fireplace and antique candles. Due to the era of the book and the status the Commander holds. As well as Offred and the Commander playing Scrabble. A quote that resonated with the scene, where Offred and the Commander are alone is; “So why does he want to see me, at night, alone? If I´m caught, it´s to Serena´s tender mercies I´ll be delivered. He isn´t supposed to meddle in such household discipline, that´s women´s business. After that, reclassification. I could become an un-women. But to refuse to see him, could be worse. There´s no doubt about who holds the real power ̈. This quote was found on page 136 and it expresses and shows how Offred had no choice but to accept the Commander’s invitation to play Scrabble. In Gilead, there is no way out. You either follow the rules or you don´t which can end up badly for one. Offred understands who has power and what territory belongs to one. Offred understands that Serena is in control of what goes on and should be going on within her home. But the power the Commander holds is anything that is not part of the house or the needs of the house. That is why Offred is afraid to get caught. She does not want to be sent to the colonies because she knows she´ll suffer if she is sent and forced there. The relationship between Offred and the Commander is quite interesting. The type of relationship they have is not only physical tension but the need to learn as clearly shown with Offred and the commander playing Scrabble. Offred knows that even though Serena holds power in the house she knows that she cannot deny the commander. As a reader, I start questioning; who has the power? Is it mutual or does the man continue to hold power due to how Gilead is shaped? If Offred was ever to be caught by Serena, could the commander have a say in whether Offred is either sent to the colonies or remains owned by the commander? This would stir up situations depending on who´s word counts and who´s doesn´t.

The Handmaid’s Tale is a book that unfortunately by parts relates to how society was before the 21st century. The Handmaid’s Tale takes place in the near future in New England. Specifically in a Partichal, white supremacist, dictatorial theonomic state, which is known as the Republic of Gilead. Throughout the book, there have been uncomfortable scenes that symbolize women’s worth in Gilead. Chapters 16 through 25, reveal horrific moments.

In chapter 16 Olfred talks about the uncomfortable moment she is forced to face. Both the commander and his wive; Serena Joy, want to have a child of their own but chose Olfred’s womb to be the one to carry their child. On pg. 94 Olfred says “Therefore I lie on my canopy over my head. I remember Queen Victoria’s advice to her daughter: Close your eyes and think of England. But this is not England. I wish he would hurry up.” This quote just shows that Gilead looks at women, specifically the handmaids as “baby making machines”. That phrase is pretty harsh but is the best phrase I could use to describe this quote in chapter 16. Due to the role Offred has been given, there is no way of escaping this rule. In Gilead, Men have the primary dominicance and privilege over women. Which means, no matter how uncomfortable Offred may be feeling, there is nothing she could do to avoid it or put an end to. This relates to Former Emperor of The french, Napoleon Bonaparte.

Napoleon Bonaparte subordinated women to their father and hubands. He did not approve of women being ones to own their personal property or belongings. Throughout Napoleon’s rules women were forbidden to enter into legal contrats, participate in lawsuits or testify in court. A quote Napolean even said was “Women are nothing but machines for producing children.” While Napolean Bonaparte had been ruling France, It had affected almost every women that lived in france but than women in France decided to take a stand. But even though women had later on took a stand, the emotional damage these women had gone through can never be replaced. Napoleaon had been one of the worst French emperors throughout history due to how he expressed himself about women, and not having equality amongst each other. Always selecting a certain role for a certain group of people.

In Chapter 19, pg. 112 it says; “We didn’t know exactly what would happen to the babies that didn’t get passed, that were declared Unbabies. But we knew they were put somewhere, quickly, away.

I had to re-read this quote multiple of times, because there is clearly something off about it. There is no section in the book that mentions where the “unbabies” are to be sent to or done with. Which just shows even though Gilead isn’t perfect, the rules that have been implemented are to be shape and change how society is in Gilead for the “better”. Gilead does not accept a child that is born with complications or doesn’t fit the standards. This portion of the book specifically resonates with a non-fictional book called the Giver. It’s a dystopian society. Everyone that lives in this society have to follow the rules and if not, one would receive some kind of punishment.

In the book, it talks about how, if twins were born, one immediately has to be dealt with and send to “elsewhere”. Also if the child is born with birth defects or complications, the same procedures will be made. The point I’m trying to make is that these dystopian societies say they want the better for everyone, but it’s the other way around. These dystopian societies are just controlling and allowing fear to build up in certain individuals. Such as women. There was a moment in the book where the aunts spoke about how they were grateful to have gotten their tubes tied. In order to not go through any mishaps. In the book, the Giver, it mentions how each person is assigned to a job, and one has to complete their assessments on time which flows with the Handmaid’s tale, since everyone has a specific role they must meet up to. If not some kind of punishment will be sent to one’s attention.

Overall, the Handmaid’s Tale connects to many different aspects of history, books, and media. One just has to re-read certain phrases in order to understand what the scene is really about because in multiple scenes one can misunderstand a phrase or the overall meaning.

In my previous post I wrote about some of the research I did about my topic which is homeless addicts. I found out that many people have stereotypes about homelessness. One of the most common stereotypes about homelessness is addiction. Most people assume that they choose to live on the streets, which for some could be true but 90% of that is false. Furthermore, I mentioned in my previous post about young people that become homeless addicts. It is discouraging but in reality, many older homeless addicts advise them to have a great life and not become homeless nor an addict. Additionally, in my previous post, I mentioned a woman who spoke about her past and current adversities. Now, she offers advice to young people to have a different life than her. My goal with this project was to help homeless addicts because it’s so sad seeing them struggle. I shared a picture of a group of teenagers that gave out pizza to homeless addicts. This act of kindness reminded me of a similar action I experienced before. I researched possible ways that the community and I could help with this issue.

This is the picture that I showed from my previous post and they inspired to do the act that I chose to do for this project.

There are many different types of organizations within our community. Since we are looking at two separate issues, homelessness and addiction, which are two individual problems, I needed to search for an organization that deals with both. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any; however, I found one organization that helps people with addiction which offers counseling and resources to support them. Many organizations or rehabilitation centers are not known. Even if these facilities aren’t the right resource for every case, there are tons of rehab centers that can be chosen from.

This is the picture of the place I went to donate supplies. (Not my photo)

On another side, I researched organizations that serve homeless people. One of the most known organizations is Project homes Project homes accept donations like clothes, food, and even money. They help give back to the community in so many ways, and for this project, I decided that the best way I could help is to collect supplies from some of my friends to donate. Even though it was not a drastic change, it is significant enough to start by donating the supplies I collected to Project homes. I enjoyed my experience of giving back and helping someone in need. The only thing that wasn’t a success was getting many people to help me collect supplies. Something I learned was that not everything seems like what it is and to never judge how someone looks or their stability. In general, this could be about me or anyone else, but to never judge someone’s situation, If you don’t know what they’re going through.

These are the supplies I collected from friends and family, including: hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, breakfast bars, and water bottles.

Looking back on my project, something I could’ve done better is spreading the word more on collecting supplies and reaching a larger audience. Moving forward, we need to remember to come up with different ways to help and to not lose momentum because a lot of people help and don’t continue helping.

The topic that I chose to talk about is Homeless people in Philadelphia going through addiction. I know that not everyone thinks that homeless people are a big issue in today’s society but I do think it’s a big issue. There are lots of people that need help, who do not seek the right support they need. This topic is honestly major to me because I start to get emotional whenever I see a homeless person using any substance. After all, sometimes I feel the need to help them because I can not even imagine someone I know or a family member using substances and being homeless. It is honestly hard being in their position, even though most people did not choose to be in that position, few were either born into a family that dealt with substances of generations or had a past trauma. I think this problem is important because it could help others understand that other people have different lives and that not everything is what it seems like and to not judge. A personal connection that I have with this topic is that I live nearby people who are homeless and that are dealing with addiction. My goal in learning more about this project is to have a better understanding of how and why homeless people go through that and how hard it is that way I could teach others who are ignorant or just don’t understand how important this problem is in our community. A goal I have is to talk to some different services that help homeless people that deal with addiction and give them an idea that could help prevent people from becoming homeless addicts.

*This picture shows a group of people who went out just to feed homeless addicts and help them feel loved and comfortable. That way they are able to help them get out of addiction.( this inspires me!) *

While doing some research I saw that this issue was significant because many people in Philadelphia are homeless addicts. Although addiction isn’t always the reason why you’re homeless, It could expand the problem that led you to become a homeless person and start using substances. It is important because the population of homeless addicts is growing so much that now it’s accessible for young people to find and use and basically ruin their lives and not being able to be someone important in life. Young people like myself need to listen because this is a serious problem for whoever is living in Philadelphia. A lot of people died because of substances. Homeless people die because of substance because they either do not get the right help or need to stay away from it.

A young homeless addict girl asking for help.

Something important that you should know is that half of the people that become homeless go through things like for example being pressured into doing something, and because of that, they are later on introduced to substances while living in the streets. Now that’s not always the case some are homeless because they were introduced to substance early in there lives and then because of that became homeless but what everyone should know is that not every person who is homeless are dealing with substance they are many other different reasons why they are homeless and that is a myth that needs to stop because everyone thinks the same that every homeless person is an addict. This has impacted my understanding of homeless addicts even more because I did not know that substance could be a tool to help homeless people to help forget about past experiences and or traumas. What I’m wondering now is how people do not understand that addiction isn’t always the reason why they’re homeless. I learned so far that although addiction is either part of someone being homeless most of time people become homeless for just things that the governments does which is raise the rent to an apartment that makes it hard for that person to even pay that breaks my heart because losing a home or even a job must be really difficult and I couldn’t imagine that happening to someone I know. I read this small biography about a homeless women and she talked about how she came from a family that are addicts and how she is trying to do her best in telling other people to stop trying or even try substances because once you try you become an addict and many other people like her are trying to advise young people to follow their dreams and not become a nobody because drugs could ruin the possibility of having a great future. Like why can’t they put themselves in their position? What I’m hoping to learn later throughout this project is why certain people have a stereotype mentality of how and what a person is, by the way they physically look, and also if homeless addicts feel ashamed by the way others look at them.

Trevor Noah inspired me to tell this specific story just because he mentions a lot of things about how not to mix culture with other cultures. He also talked about different challenges and situations that he went through that gave him a different perspective and also to not commit that again. In chapter 13, Trevor talks about how he became friends with this boy named Teddy. They were great friends and always were there for each other but they did illegal things when they were together but one day the police caught them but Trevor managed to run away and not get caught. I still think what Trevor did wasn’t right, but Teddy wanted Trevor to have a good life so he had his back. I know you might think, “what does this have to do with my vignette?” but it somewhat resonates with my story because Trevor and Teddy trusted each other and always had each other’s back. In my case, I knew and trusted some people from that church but they talked behind peoples’ or even my own back, meaning they aren’t trustworthy and because of the mistakes the people made, it was hard to tell if that is what we learned in church or not but I realized that they taught themselves that and brought it to church thinking it was ok when it wasn’t. I liked Noah’s writing style because although there is humor, you can still see the conversations he had with people in that chapter, and so that’s why I chose to do the same as he did. I decided to add a little humor, and I’m not sure if it sounded funny, but to me, I thought some parts of my story were. I also decided to use dialogue. The way I thought of telling my story to other people was by telling them how I felt in that moment by using a little humor and showing the conversation I had listened to, which I think helps the reader know what is going on and puts them in the moment. My vignette addresses one of the essential questions about identity because this story that occurred in my life gave me a different perspective of things and made me realize that I should never mix my two cultures but separately, they can help teach me things that help shape who I am.

Have you ever just sat on your couch and thought “what am I going to do while being stuck in quarantine?” Well that’s what I thought. Not that I don’t like staying home, but I needed to find new things to do. . I know everyone thought of the same idea. Since I was bored in quarantine I decided to become interested in different hobbies like Drawing, Cooking, and Music.

My online art class inspired me to start drawing. On one assignment, we had to analyze our favorite song. My teacher said “ what ideas can you come up with just from listening to the song”. I got really creative and started to think of bright colors and since the song was about letting go I started to draw things that demonstrate that emotion. Although I started drawing in art class, I began drawing outside of class whenever I was upset or had an idea. I think that’s really important because when drawing you can take out your anger or sadness by just drawing on paper. Even if I don’t show my drawings to others I’ll just keep that idea to myself and it’s still special.

During quarantine I started to learn how to cook. My mom would teach me step by step and I even tried to cook on my own. If I needed help, my mom would be there for me and tell me if I was doing something right or wrong..We usually made Colombian or Japanese food together. I already knew some of the fastest food you could cook is rice, Beans, chicken, pasta, and fish. I think cooking is an important skill that you would need to learn in the future because parents aren’t always going to be there to help. We need to learn how to do things ourselves.

Although I have listened to music and sang before, I never thought of actually dedicating Music as a hobby. During quarantine I started to actually find my voice range and the meaning of some songs that I could probably start singing. I thought singing is the best way to let out emotions about things either when being sad or happy.

During quarantine, I developed new hobbies that influenced my life, and that helped me become who I am. I’ll be sure to carry these new interests with me throughout my life.