#8 9/11 Healing: Phyllis Rodriguez and Aicha el-Wafi

9/11 Healing: Phyllis Rodriguez and Aicha el-Wafi TED Talk Response:

The stories of Phyllis Rodriguez and Aicha el-Wafi was touching, emotional, but also inspirational.  The two women started off their presentation by sharing the story of their two sons; Rodriguez's son was killed in the 9/11 incident and el-Wafi's son was convicted of taking part in this incident and serving a life's sentence.  This speech was not about forgiveness or justice but rather on the importance of perspective.

I was amazed and touched that these two women did not have anger towards the situation and that they were able to overcome their emotions to think about the other person's situation and had a sense of empathy for them.  Rodriguez and el-Wafi were able to make themselves stronger by bonding with a person who was in a similar situation.  It was inspirational to see them put aside their emotion to comfort each other with their losses and push through the pain.

At one point in the speech, el-Wafi explained how Rodriguez knew where her son is, however, el-Wafi didn't know where her son is, if he is dead, or if he is being tortured and that torments her every day.  Rodriguez also explained how when she told her story to others, they gave her sympathy but when el-Wafi shared hers, there was no sympathy, for the most part.

I could tell that both mothers were very emotional during the speech because they were crying and holding their hearts, however, I could also see a strong friendship/bond showing that both mothers shared something in common and that they supported and comforted each other.  Their movements set the mood/tone of their speech and made it more inspirational and emotional.  El-Wafi had the most distinct speech because she was very soft-spoken and talked faster and it seemed to convey her passion and "heart-brokenness".

One of the main points I found in this speech was to find different perspectives and to find what you have in common to to connect with a new friend.  Both women had their sons disappear because of the 9/11 incident and they knew what it had felt like for the other person through the perspective of being a mother.  Maybe this is what society needs to do more often; put yourself in the other person's situation through a common position.  This way, people could be more empathetic rather than sympathetic to better understand the emotions of the person and this could help them through a hard time during life.
By doing this, people would have the opportunity to connect with others and start a friendship, even if the people speak different languages like Rodriguez and el-Wafi.  Imagine if every person in the world was able to share and experience with someone else, somewhere in the world... there would be peace.  Now I challenge you to forgive that person and make peace with them and imagine the situation from their point of view.

      I find that the timing of the release of this speech could not have been more accurate/useful with the news of Bin Laden's death and the reactions to it...
"I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

#7 Caroline Casey

Caroline Casey TED Talk Response:

Imagine suddenly being told that you were no longer able to do what you dreamed of doing.  This is the story of Caroline Casey who wanted to be a "biker chick" until she was told that she was legally blind at the age of seventeen.  From that moment, she worked her hardest to defy the limitations and labels society placed on her.  She believed that she could do anything with her trust in herself and her confidence to overcome her blindness.  She viewed her blindness as an obstacle rather than part of herself.  But then she talked to an eye specialist and he asked the question that changed her focus, he asked, "Why? Why are you trying so hard not to be yourself?"  She decided to accept blindness as a part of her and realized that people need to accept themselves for who they are.  She realized that she needed to pursue her dream and she did, she travelled across India on an elephant named Kanchi.  She then started a foundation called Elephant Family to help keep the asian elephants protected, she also started a company named Kanchi to help the mindset of society about people with disabilities.   Her story was very inspiring to me and it helped me to believe that anything is possible.

I was surprised when she told the audience that she was legally blind.  Her movements were so natural and it seemed that she could see everything.  She was walking around the stage and moving her hands.  She was very casual and used stories to help the audience understand her.

Caroline Casey ended with the fact that we need to accept all of what we are, without trying to be someone you are not.  I found this fact very important because, as a teenage girl in high school, many girls around me complain about not being "perfect" or not fitting in and they downplay major parts of their personality to be liked by their peers.  The world can learn from Casey's point, everyone has to accept all of themselves and this can be accomplished by not putting stereotypes or labels on anyone who might stand out because it can make them feel less comfortable with their uniqueness.  By doing this, no one feels like they have to defy society's limitations just to accomplish what they dreamed of doing like Caroline first felt she had to.  She rode Kanchi 1000km across India because she wanted to, not because she was expected to.  She accepted herself as perfect in her own way and lived her dream.  After listening to Casey's presentation, I have a question for you: "Why should you try to be perfect?"

#6 Dave Eggers

Dave Eggers TED Talk Response:

Dave Egger's TED Talk was about the necessities for effective learning.  Eggers spoke about one-on-one learning instead of listening to a lecturing teacher.  Using this teaching strategy, people can listen to the student and help them on a personal level instead of being in a class with twenty-five other students.  This type of learning is personalized for the student.

Every student is unique in the way that he/she learns.  Some students can listen to lectures and get all of the information they need, however, some need a more personalized experience to get the learning with the greatest possibilities.  He realized that some students can't reach their full potential by learning the standardized way, so he decided to start a free tutoring system, with the help of his friends, to help students with writing homework using face-to-face interactions.  I thought this was a great approach to education because it helped the student realize what their full potential could be.

At the beginning of his TED Talk, he mentioned that he was very nervous and it was very visible to the audience.  He talked very fast and said "uh" many times and the audience could tell that public speaking made him uncomfortable.  However, this seemed to make his speech more powerful because he still came out to share his idea with the world even though he was uncomfortable.  He shared many stories and experiences with bits of humor to attract the audience to his presentation and his idea.

The learning style is creative and interesting and so is the building that houses it.  826 Valencia was on a retail street, so Egger had to find something to sell.  He decided to make it a pirate supply store selling everything a pirate needs from eye patches to planks.  Many other tutoring centers followed this creative and wacky design to help make learning a fun and interactive experience.

One of the things I really liked about his speech was the TEDwish that he presented at the end.  He shared his wish about the community helping the younger generation to learn through human interactions and its involvement in the schooling system/environment.

Egger's ideas about face-to-face learning environments could help education around the world.  There are many students with many different learning styles, and creating more programs for the different learning styles could help students around the world reach their full potential.  I know that I like to be able to go in and talk to my teachers one-on-one when I need help, and creating a center for this kind of attention would help many students who learn more without the standardized classroom.