Of course my communities have had some effect on me...

When I think about the communities that have influenced me, I first think of my community in junior high and high school. Being White, I was a minority in my school community. I think this was a good experience for me. I feel that while the education systems at the public schools I attended were not the best, the experience and exposure I got from the vast diversity have hindered prejudices or fears from developing in me which many other people have.

Though I went to school with a diverse group of people, my close friends were always White. Looking back, I guess the reason was that this was just the first instinct- to find the people who are similar to you. So, while my school community was diverse, my immediate community was not at all and this widened the gap between myself and those of other races. Because most of my friends stood out with their blond hair and blue eyes, we did not blend in easily which typified us as stuck up (something I don’t think I am at all) (Hewitt 2007, 150). In regards to why I stuck with only my White friends, it was a feeling of security in a place with so many people that were unlike my self. Perhaps this is an aligning action- me trying to make sense out of actions that are unclear to me; perhaps I am making an excuse. Andy Bennet writes in her book, "Culture and Everyday Life," about how people place themselves into communities based on such things as fashion (what people wear), and music; in "My Freshman Year," Rebekah Nathan also talks about the grouping of people (as she investigates them in the cafeteria). All emphasize that people place themselves in communities that make them comfortable, which, many times, is placeing themselves aroung people who are similar to themselves.

My religious community has had a huge impact on me. I was raised in a small Lutheran church, the same church my father grew up in. Every Sunday my family and I went to church and my sister and I went to Sunday school. I still remember the lessons I learned in Sunday school and I know for a fact that as a child, I would implement these lessons into my own life. The story of David and Goliath reminded me that while I was of small stature for my age, I could still accomplish a great amount. Though accomplishing a great amount was at the time winning in activities at recess, the idea was still present. I remember another time one of my Sunday school teachers talking about kids who get picked on or left out and how we need to stand up for those people and show kindness towards them. The next week at recess when I was voted to be a team captain and had to pick teams, I chose the one girl who was always picked last and I still remember the look on her face when I said her name.
When I was going into my freshmen year of high school I decided to make the personal decision to become a Christian and since then, I have been constantly striving to stay on the right path with God. As a Christian, I make sure to have a group of Christian friends close to me, not that all my friends are or should be Christians, but because so much of my life revolves around my faith, there are some things that only those friends can truly understand. When I enter into new relationships, it is always difficult for me to bring up my faith, because there are so many negative images of religion. I do not want to be associated with the negative things that may have come from the church, though these things are all that most people remember. Hewitt says that "identification with a particular community is also a way of differentiating oneself from people who are not members. In many instances, social identity establishes a sense of difference that looks on others with pit, condemnation, avoidance, or even violence." (2007, 104). This is exactly what I do not want people thinking I do or feel. For this reason, I wait to deeply share about my being a Christian and what that means to me until I am at a solid place in my relationships with particular individuals. I don't like just saying I'm a Christian without being able to have a conversation as to why and how I view my faith.


My family is the most influential community in my life. It may not have always been like this, but after my father passed away, my surviving family seemed to have picked up on what is truly important in life. We know the importance of family and we know that we need to make time for one another. We know that when someone else is in the family is in need, we will give. It is really easy to get caught up in things in life that, when you think of the big picture, really don’t matter. People put money, material items, significant others, etc. over their own family and don’t realize that these things are all things that will fade away. My family is always in my mind. It is for them that I am working so hard in my studies and in my extracurricular passions. I want to make them proud and I want them to benefit from my successes.
As I am writing this, I now have begun to wonder what it is that makes blood ties so strong.

If we choose to refer to community as the generalized other, (the imagined perspectives of other people in a society[Hewitt 2007, 75]) I could speak for days on the influences this has had on me. The generalized other influences my everyday actions, from what I wear to how I conduct myself. The influences of the generalized other are so powerful on/in me that I do not think I can clearly distinguish between what is truly me and what I think is me but has been influenced by the generalized other.