Write stories about 11 people who inspire me

Prof. B, let’s call him.

Prof. B is a language professor. I had him for Intro Italian.

He made learning fun. He teaches in a way that’s easy to understand. His classes are almost entirely in Italian, but he somehow talks in words we know. Learning a language can be difficult, and it’s hard to learn a language if you don’t speak it, so he had us all speaking Italian, every class. He would ask us questions. We would do exercises in the book. We would read dialogues. And listen to Italian love songs. Once he called up a friend from Italy and we talked to her over speaker phone in Italian. He used such a wide variety of teaching tactics. And he was funny too. Going to class was actually kind of fun, I’ll admit. He was concerned that his students learn the material, not just memorize it. And if you had a question, of course you could speak up, though he might ask you to speak in Italian.

(He did respond to e-mails in Italian. So, it could be difficult if you had a question and then you were unable to understand his answer, but other than that).

I think he’s one of the best professors at my school, and would recommend him to anyone. He’s also a great person outside of the classroom.

(PS- He’s interested in social justice issues, and is very supportive of my social justice group here. He also told me today about his plans to own a green house someday, and how about how he’s greening every thing he can. <3)

An amazing photographer.

He was born in San Francisco, and much of his photography was done in Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, nearby deserts, etc.

His photography evokes feelings. Nearly all his photography was black and white and most of it was of nature and natural settings, but when I look at his work, it’s like I can see the place from his perspective. I can see how he felt about it, how it made him feel. He was an expert at using light- a Romantic photographer, perhaps? His clarity is impeccable- it’s like you are right there looking at the leaf or the mountain- I think it’s even more intense than being there, because how he uses the lighting. You can’t just look at Ansel’s photography casually- it holds you there. It changes how you see things. It inspires me to go out and photograph- bit not merely photograph, to capture how I am feeling, to capture a mood, in nature.

Not only was he one of the greats of American photography, he was also very invested in the environment. And he was just as proud of his work with the environment as he was with his photography. Cool! He was a leader with the Sierra Club and he also worked with Eastman Kodak for a little bit.

Here are some of his works: http://images.google.com/images?q=ansel+adams&hl=en&rlz=1B3GGGL_enUS224US225&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=X&oi=images&ct=title

A few weeks ago I went to a slam poetry night at a local college. They had slam poets from all over the US- most of them younger (in their twenties).

Anyhow, they each came up to the mic and told us a little about themselves and then did some slam poetry.

I really admired their ability to do this. I get nervous just being the center of attention, but here they were on stage, seemingly un-nervous. They had smiles. They were passionate. They spoke with feeling, with expression. You could see in their eyes, in the way they moved their hands, in how they talked to and engaged the audience. I admired how they were able to put what they were feeling in their hearts into words- into coherent stories for us to hear.

I think spoken word is amazing and it just mesmerizes me when people do slam poetry.

Ralph Nader. Let’s talk about him a little.

Over the years he’s done so much for the environment and the public. He helped found the Environmental Protection Agency, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Public Citizen, and several Public Interest Research Groups. He made cars safe for us to drive and got dangerous children’s toys recalled. He’s done countless things to help the public- to help the regular citizen. He’s devoted his whole life to doing that. What does he do in his spare time? Work to help the lives of citizens(!)

He’s walks what he talks and you can tell he believes everything he says. He doesn’t give up- he sticks with what he believes until the end and I really admire him for that. I saw him speak at Powershift in Maryland a few weeks back. And he is a phenomenal speaker, by the way.

I just think he’s an amazing guy, and I’m glad that he was willing to devote his life to helping the common citizen.

I have a cousin who I just think is amazing. I don’t know how she keeps focused and level headed, but she always manages to do it.

Not too long ago she was going to college full time. She was engaged. She worked 2 jobs, one of them full time. And she did all sorts of other stuff on the side: free-lancing, working out, hanging out, whatnot.

I don’t know how she pulled it off. But I do know that she is a determined young lady. If she wants to do something, she’ll find a way. She has that determined, confident, and graceful air about her.

She proves to me that if you are passionate about something, if you are determined, you will find a way to do what you need to do and be able to be the person you need to be.

Sometimes I think of her when I’m feeling bogged down by work and school and bills and trying to sort through all that, and wondering how I’ll make it by, especially after graduation. But then I look at her, and marvel at how she does it, and my confidence returns. I know then that I will be able to do what I need to do.

Who’s he?

Great question.

Jeffrey is the President of Seventh Generation natural household products [located in Burlington, VT].

Why – out of all the people in the world – did I choose to hi-light him?

Well, I’ll tell a story to illustrate it.

Remember, he is the CEO of a rapidly growing company. He makes more than anyone else in the company [which, for the record, is 10x the lowest employee there – compare that to the average CEO]. Just last year he traded in his nice car... for… an old wagon. It’s a 1983. Wagon. That drives real slow. An old clunker. And it runs on vegetable oil.

He practices what he preaches.

When I met him last summer, he was dressed casual and he was easy to talk to – a down to earth kinda guy. He was talking about his company and how they try to make environmentally friendly products [and they do very well, I might add!], but he’s always trying to improve them. Right now the products are all pretty bio-degradable, recycled content, environmentally friendly, all natural things that we need [i.e. laundry detergent, TP, paper towels] – but they could be more sustainable. Sure they sell paper plates made of recycled content, but should we even be using paper plates – I mean they only last one use – that kind of stuff. Jeffrey and his company – and they’re all as wonderful and inspired as Jeffrey – think about these things every day.

And this company…. you write them a letter, you know, with a question – and it’s read by them and responded to thoughtfully. They do their research and write back to each and every question – it’s not just a standard response. They hold their customers very highly.

They have a blog. It’s my homepage.

He just turned 83.

He’s been through everything in his life.

He fought in World War II. He broke both his legs and saw his friends get killed before his very eyes.

He lost the love of his life to breast cancer and had to raise 9 children on his own. He worked several jobs to support the family and somehow always managed to make ends meet.

He’s in constant pain and is having trouble getting daily activities.

Yet he never gives up. He never complains. He just does what needs to be done, simply because they need to be done. He stands up for what he believes in. Nothing phases my grandfather.

He shares his wisdom. And plays with the grandchildren, still doing the famous duck impression that gets everyone to laugh.

He is close to his 9 children and has brought them up to be compassionate, intuitive, and dedicated parents and friends.

He’s one of the strongest people I know, and I admire him.

Two recent teachings of grampa to me:
-Don’t rush. If you’re rushing, you’re probably not enjoying yourself.
-Don’t waste time holding grudges. It’s not worth it.