Vanessa's E-Portfolio

Course Description

The humanities are the branches of learning that are concerned with human experience. These experiences manifest through literature, art, drama, music, philosophy, religion, political science etc. They seek to make sense of human experience, relationships, and the events in the world around us. All of these strands of thinking are inextricably linked which is why an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the humanities is beneficial, if not necessary.

Civic Engagement Assignment 

I did my civic engagement assignment at 5 star home & hospice care in Sandy. I volunteered every other Friday starting March 24th up into April 28th for about 1 hour.  The volunteer work I did involved inventory, and one on one with patients.  It was expected of me to be empathetic, do my assigned tasks, and be courteous.

          Inventory is a no brainier I counted medical supplies, and let them know what we needed or didn't. One one one with patients, was a very different experience. I initially expected people on their death beds, but in hospice most of them continue with their daily lives, until they can not. The goal of hospice really is to give the patients the best quality of life as possible.  The patients I got the honor to spend some time with, seemed hungry for social interaction, and I can feel their loneliness as I departed. Honestly, I felt just sitting with them watching TV gave them comfort. Adding on, doing this volunteer work did give my sense of citizenship, as well as, made me feel like I'm giving back to the community. Relating this to engagement to my class is than every human experience matters. In this human experience, I'm dealing with people at their end of their lives, it was a very peaceful, and calming environment. 

          Reflecting on the experience, it was a very spiritual and peaceful experience. My first initial thought of people with 6 months left to live, was sadness. I think I went in expecting a sad environment rather, all were 89+ years old and ready for what face them after this at the end of this life. Everyone seemed at peace and went about with their lives playing bingo. However, may seemed lonely because they don't always have the social interaction they crave, but when give the time to socialize could not stop talking about their full and happy lives. I would keep on volunteering it is a very rewarding and fulfilling experience.

Reflection

I always thought Humanities as a necessary class because I believe it's important to be aware of other human experiences. It's important to be aware that the world does not revolve around yourself. As well as, everyone around us because of the way they come from will react differently in a situation. Adding on it's important to know there is no right or wrong way to handle life. What I most enjoyed about the class was learning about religion. It was an eye opener to see how religion plays a role in every day life. When people in a culture believe strongly in a given religion, it can have a huge impact on their culture. Their culture comes to accept only those behaviors and ways of thinking that are acceptable to their religion.  Overall, I enjoyed this class and learned a lot.