#plenary2

For the past few years I have fasted in honor of lent. Coming from a religious family and being raised in a predominantly Christian community I had always considered this rather normal behavior. However after announcing this to my college friends I was rather surprised by some of the reactions I got. I had never really discussed religion to them prior to this point and many were shocked to discover that I was even Catholic. However, after this discovery a few of them started to assume that I was in complete support of all the churches beliefs, going so far as to accuse me of being apposed gay marriage and abortion simply based off their knowledge that I am a practicing Roman Catholic. I think that it is so sad that so many individuals only view religion as something which you are either for or agents and don’t understand how a persons personal beliefs and opinions can affect ones faith. I am so thankful that the plenary was able to touch up on these issues a bit!

Understanding the impact of religion relative to how one defines identity is very important. I come from a religious family, were my beliefs are a the focal point of my everyday life. They impact how I dress, speak, act and even eat. But, I do not think that any of these can singlehandedly speak on how faithful I am. That faith is measured by what is in my heart and my own conviction to these beliefs. I spoke with Atiya Aftab, the Muslim speaker, on her beliefs of hijab. She pointed out how religious dress is falsely seen as an indicator of piety, religiosity and modesty within most Muslim communities. Women who wear hijab are seen in a whole different light, than women who do not. To different communities the hijab comes to define the person wearing it. There are all these preconceived notions of hijab that are associated with the person wearing it.  It is wrong to judge a person based on how they look, how much they cover or how little they cover, or how they choose to express themselves. There are many different ways people can abide by their religious beliefs. Measuring religiosity or the morality of others is not the job of society. You cannot tell someone how to live their life and abide by their religion, and then judge them based on their beliefs. Religion is on a spectrum so that people can each find their place within their own beliefs. Each of the speakers outlined various differences in religious beliefs based on the people who practice it. It is not a one size fits all concept. There is a place for everyone in a religious community. It is about that person’s connection with God, rather than proving their faithfulness to a community. 

The second plenary was definitely something that I could relate to. A woman, coming froma tradtional family from another country, trying to make a career for herself in a man’s world. I identified with that struggle and I found myself hanging on every word that she spoke, as if she was imparting some ancient wisdom on how to be successful. In a way, she was doing that through Chinese proverbs that her father passed on to her. However, I feel like towards the end of the plenary, she touched on something very important to a lot of women: how to balance your personal life and your career. As women, we are usually taught that we will eventually have to pick one. We can’t have it all, they tell us. But Wendy served as an important reminder that it is entirely possible to have the job you want along with the family you want as well.

     Wendy Cai-Lee is a great inspiration for all women around the globe. She is the most famous business women around the world. She was a Rutgers student at Douglass campus which is honorable and to see her giving speech after twenty two years later was a proud moment of her and us. In her speech, the surprising part was that she was a Chinese-immigrant and when she was eleven year old she came to the United States of America. She told about how she was forced to take responsibilities at the age of eleven because her parents did not know how to speak English and she was the only older daughter who can help them on filling up forms and answering calls in English. However, she also included that her secret of success begun from that maturity at that age where she learned how to handle situations and how to deal with people. She described about her father that how he was so conservative and still she is waiting for her fathers’ good comments on her success in the world. She illustrated that in life it’s very important to “get to the table.” That means we should not give up on something by thinking of that we cannot do or how we will do instead we should go there and face it even if we are not prepared. I related to her so much by her family situations and I totally agree about her quotes that “get to the table” because we should not afraid of something which we do not even experience so we should face it and see what happens. Now she is one of my favorite women in the world not just because of her famous status but how she achieved those accomplishments, and her attitude that she is so down to earth which is commendable.

Wendy came to talk to us about how she made her success at a young age in the business field. What I enjoyed most about her speech was her story about growing up as the only person in her family to speak English. PEMI (please Excuse My Ignorance): I had never thought about the struggles of having to file out paperwork, passport, taxes, etc. when coming to the United States and not knowing the language, let alone having to do those things at age 12. (I don’t think I can do those things as a 20 year old, English speaker). She told us how she had to go to every appointment or meeting with her parents and act as a translator. I honestly can’t imagine doing that at such a young age. In a way I felt bad for her for having to grow up at such a young age, but in the end it worked to her advantage and Wendy attests to this. Fast forward another 12 years later, and she had raised 2 million dollars to launch her own company! Its astounding and inspirational to hear her story, especially considering she’s a Douglass alumna. Honestly hearing her talk gave me hope that one day all the hard work I’m doing right now will pay off in the end. Sometimes it’s hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, especially if you don’t have the best support system. Being a workaholic isn’t bad! You CAN do it all! And those words keep me going as I still acclimate my way into Rutgers.

While I also was not as thrilled/excited about this plenary as I was the first, I do believe Wendy Cai-Lee gave us useful information that will prepare us (as women) of what we have to look forward to in the future. One of the best things I liked about her lecture was the fact she didn’t talk at us, but told a story about how she got to where she is today and of her experiences in male dominated field. Honestly I thought she was hilarious; especially, in the little anecdotes about her interactions with her father. Although, at times I thought her processes/ thought patterns were a little disjointed at times, Ms. Cai-Lee was eventually able to pull her whole story together at the end. I guess what I took away from her talk is that I have to “be your own champion”; if I work hard, take a risk, and do what makes me happy then there’s no telling where I could go or what I can achieve in this world.

This past Wednesday, Wendy Cai Lee came to Trayes Hall to discuss her life with DRC women. She began with her childhood history as an immigrant from China. She grew as the member of the family who had to learn English and how to obtain her drivers license so she could teach her parents these things. It was simple for her to attend college because she had already learned to be independent her entire life. Then she went further to discuss her involvement in the business field as one of the few women. She has been sometimes very honest and she admitted to being even a little ‘introverted’. To many, Wendy Cai Lee working over 100 hours a week was a shocking discovery but she had the time and the drive at age 24. When she began to raise a family, she really learned how to handle her time so she did have the chance to be with her family a little more. I couldn’t easily relate to the beginning of Lee’s discussion but what really stood out to me was how she didn’t really care what anybody thought. She had her own voice however; she made sure to maintain a balance between what other people thought and what her family thought of her. Another concept that I related to was Lee’s discussion about time management. That’s something that has always been difficult for me and I think it was important for me to know where I should and shouldn’t be applying my time at different points of my life. The quotes she added to the end were also positive and inspiring. Overall, I thought the plenary was simple and to the point which was nice in a way.

Today I thought I was going to be completely uninterested by the plenary, due to the biography given. I was gladly surprised. I don’t think the speech could've been any more relatable. She was such an amazing speaker and the fact that she used her personal experiences to help us understand how to get ahead in life was so important. I’m glad she spoke about how she doesn’t care what others think of her. I, for the most part, and the same way. If you don’t like me, thats your problem. By her discussing this it motivated me to not let others opinions of me get in the way of my job.