Coleen Jose

Arabesques by Anton Shammas, A Linguistic Refugee and Literary Diplomacy

Anton Shammas celebrates understanding and discerns peace in cultural noise fit for a modern-day Babel: in shrapnel, family, deep-seeded conflict, or love for the land. In the fictive autobiography, Shammas’ composition or literary technique navigates an identity crisis.  As a linguistic refugee of Arabic and Hebrew, Shammas experiments with an ability to inhabit and communicate opposing beliefs with respect to each side. He strays from his mother tongue and writes Arabesques in Hebrew, which sparks a conversation between two different cultures led on similar grounds.  Parallel to Shammas’ exploration of an individual’s identity, its translation into the wider society, the reflection in this research is just as incomplete because the novel’s original Hebrew form is tailored and interpreted into English. (more…)

From Akbar, Bentinck, to Modernity: the Historical Transformation of Widowhood

Samsara encompasses birth and rebirth, yet life’s in-between, like fleeting moments of being awake before drifting to sleep, holds a place of permanency in experience. Experience in widowhood has one mindset: moksha or liberation from its economically deprived and socially bankrupt status. As a wife, her role is multilayered with responsibilities in raising a family, honoring a husband, (more…)

There is no set date for the announcement show WLKN. This year, spirit week will not be accompanied by students in small television screens dressed to represent an era, pajama or tacky day.

(more…)

A movement is underway, gaining rapturous support from the mainstream arena. A curious passerby enters the One Neighborhood store at Birkdale Village and is transported into a place where diverse items from the world over share a wooden shelf or a corner to form the concept of Fair Trade. The project is a family affair, including husband and wife, David and Margo Cloniger, who dedicate their lives to creating change in America and abroad. Issues prevalent are overwhelming: war, poverty or genocide. The Cloniger’s approach is to choose a cause and take it one step at a time, proving how ordinary actions can achieve extraordinary things.

(more…)

“Tall iced caramel macchiato,” the Starbucks lady beats me to saying it three days in a row. Every morning, I wake up twenty minutes earlier than the average person. One single reason: Starbucks. I’ll admit that in the past, I made occasional trips to Panera for my dose of coffee. After the money ran out of my Panera gift cards, I inevitably came back and drove a parking lot away to Starbucks. One could say that I have followed the evolution of Starbucks like a groupie buying every Justin Timberlake CD. Believe it or not, I almost started a coffee club at my old school. The plan failed after only ten of my friends agreed to join. Proof of my obsession.

(more…)

“All you need is straight A’s” is a lie because intelligence alone does not equate to success. Being beyond book smart means, in addition, being culturally aware. One does not receive the AP Scholar Award by simply knowing who signed the Declaration of Independence last or why the Iron Curtain fell. Facts are nothing when they cannot be applied to today’s world. Essays are boring when history is summarized. Textbook memorization is becoming a hobby, with students calling it a night when three chapters are assigned and accompanying worksheets light up his/her planner.

(more…)

“Loans that change lives,” is the captivating slogan of Kiva.org. The fight against global poverty is more accessible to not only its advocates, but also citizens with the will to create a better world. Logging onto the Kiva.org website, one would see a featured business and lender. The ingenious method allows an individual to lend directly to a specific entrepreneur in a developing nation. A student in Mooresville can loan $25 to a single mother in Mombasa, Kenya hoping to increase her stock of mixed fruits to sell in a local market. The capital helps left her family out of poverty while funding the education of her three children.

(more…)

The morning sun beats down as men and women in business attire come in and out of a coffee shop. In the air, teenagers’ blaring music mixes bass thumps with the sound of heels clicking on the pavement. A particular clicking sound originates from guidance counselor Mrs. Norma Robinson. On her way to accomplish a daily coffee run, she rushes to the door at composed steps, a minuscule checkmark on a never-ending to-do list.

(more…)

The world is becoming smaller and smaller. With 24/7 CNN, iPhones and YouTube, it is easier to grasp the million other events and people making the headlines. Gigabytes get larger, information is more accessible, but we sometimes forget the meaning of connectivity. The Visiting International Faculty (VIF) reminds us of the human aspect missing in our summarized view of cultures outside our own.

(more…)

Inequality ravaged African Americans for years. An explosion of fire hoses, police dogs, tear gas and heavy batons are inches to the miles of overcoming. A woman who refused to move to the back of an Alabama bus ignited a spark, but the fire had long been burning. Thousand of unheralded men and women sculpted the jagged rock of American equality. From an approach of gradual assimilation to a dream declared on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, the Everest of equality proves to be a possible climb.

(more…)