Philadelphia, I love you.

"Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion... love actually is all around."

Over the past few days, I've been thinking a lot about where my life is right now: a recent college graduate who is just trying to navigate her way through the eccentricities of life (which is essentially what this blog is all about). I'll readily admit that a lot of change has occurred in my life over the past few weeks in that I've left the comfort of the life I've known for four years in order to experience a year of seemingly crazy transition and will need to adapt quickly. Moreover, the "real-world" is calling and I really do not know where that is going to lead me, especially in these crazy economic times. When reflecting on the last few weeks and the changes that have been made, I remember the opening quote from Love Acutally, one of my favorite movies (seriously...how can you NOT love Colin Firth rushing into a restuarant in Portugal on Christmas Eve to find Aurelia???), which is posted above. In the movie the words signify a great deal about our personal relationships. I would not be what I am today without the love from those who have been with me and supported me the longest. I am truly grateful and appreciative of everything they have ever done for me. However, in another context, those words also exhibit our responsibilities to society, specifically the younger generations out there as it is up to us to show them the love they need to succeed in life.

I was reminded of the ideas I just mentioned above on May 12, graduation day, at approximately 10:30 in the morning when I was sitting at Temple University's main graduation ceremony. The student speaker, who was simply phenomenal, spoke to the importance of greatness and inspiring future generations of greatness by remembering who we are and where we come from before we can make our mark elsewhere. As he said, "We need to ensure that youth today do not become a product of their community, but that their community becomes a product of them."

That got me thinking: "What have I done to ensure that youth today have positive impacts on their community?" Well, I guess that there is the whole teaching thing as well as ESF Dream Camp and PGST. Educating those students to BE THE BEST THEY CAN BE everyday is probably one of the challenging, yet enriching endeavors I could have partaken in my life. I am so happy I did because not only have I made an IMPACT on them, but they have made an IMPACT on me. I've taken a piece of something from every student I have met and they will forever be in my heart. I can see their vigor for life and vitality and love for learning and know that if they stay on the right path, their communities will be improved dramatically based on the great things they have done. Also, through working through Jumpstart, I've learned the importance of reaching students early and look forward to seeing the progress the kids I worked with there have made very soon. Furthermore, I have learned to LOVE through working with all of these students as they love freely, truly, unequivically, and unconditionally, which yet again makes me understand the truth in the Prime Minister's Love Actually statement. 

I've been lucky in that I feel that I had "made it" in North Philadelphia. And as I move on to Valencia, Spain, I will hope to make a mark there. Yet, I will never forget good ol'

North Broad Street

,

Cecil B. Moore Avenue

, the Boulevard, and so many other incredible facets of life that truly and completely make Philadelphia the city of Brotherly Love. I will culminate by providing a quote from none other than Russell Conwell, the founder of the premier institution from which I had the honor of graduating yesterday: "Let every man and woman here, if you never hear me again, remember this, that if you wish to be great at all, you must begin where you are and with what you are. He who would be great anywhere, must first be great in his own Philadelphia."

Temple, Philadelphia, friends and family connected by the bloodline of Phillies red and Eagles green, THANK YOU for the impact you have made on me and the opportunity for me to make an impact on you. Thank you for becoming (if only ever so slightly) a product of what I have left here and allowing me the chance to help others have the same impact. I will LOVE you forever, always remember, and one day, will return.