April: Firsts

Though it was the ninth month of my fellowship, April was a month of firsts. I received the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C. to present at the National Service Learning Conference on behalf of the Shinnyo-en Foundation. In collaboration with Manuelito, Jana, and our new friends at the White Plains Library in White Plains, New York, I got the opportunity to talk about my fellowship during a thought-leader session entitled "City-wide Collaboration." I had never been to our nation’s capital before, but it was a great experience. I had seen the National Mall and the various monuments and memorials in pictures, but to actually be there was something that had to be experienced. To stand where Martin Luther King, Jr. stood as he gave his famous speech sent chills down my spine. Seeing where Forrest Gump reunited with Jenny was cool too. I also got to meet many new people, including members of the Shinnyo-en Youth Association from various temples around the world, and representatives from other organizations supported by the Shinnyo-en Foundation (such as The School Fund). I was extremely humbled and grateful for the opportunity to travel and represent the Haas Center, the Gardner Center, Redwood City 2020, and the Shinnyo-en Foundation.

I also got the opportunity to create and brainstorm ideas for my first work-related video. I can’t divulge the idea just yet, but I can say that it summarizes my year as the Stanford Shinnyo Fellow pretty well. Please be on the look out for it! I’ll post a reflection on the video-making process in my May summary.

I am extremely grateful for the opportunities afforded me this year. Without the support from many people from different organizations, my experience this year would not have been the great experience that it was, and I would not have had the opportunity to experience all of these "firsts." And the year is only going to get better in the next couple of months! Keep a look out for a summary of the month of May tomorrow, along with exciting news!