I came here seeking solitude and thinking I would be alone. But I have been accepted into many communities. I recognize the paradox Mark Nepo describes - we are both unique and the same, inextricably linked together.
One of the communities is a group of researchers who are looking into the stigma of obesity. Obesity is an acceptable form of prejudice in society which excludes people from employment, education, and health care.
I am looking at the interaction between practitioners and patients in an obesity clinic to understand what underlies practitioners' beliefs about people who are overweight and obese.
The experience of social exclusion is common to another group of people, those who live with HIV/AIDs and predominant in Africa. My friend Stephanie is working for an NGO in Botswana addressing this difficult issue. She and I are connected through this and other communities.
We are all connected.
Monday 11 June 2012
Community
I have been busy at school and the blog has suffered for it. The good news by writing on the blog my writing has improved for school.
More good news… many of you have been asking about my dissertation topic. I am ready to share.
My life here relates to the Zulu proverb Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu which translates as “a person is a person because of people.”
According to Afrikan ancestral teachings, personhood is understood as a process and the product of interconnectedness experienced and or achieved in the context of the community. 
I came here seeking solitude and thinking I would be alone. But I have been accepted into many communities. I recognize the paradox Mark Nepo describes - we are both unique and the same, inextricably linked together.
One of the communities is a group of researchers who are looking into the stigma of obesity. Obesity is an acceptable form of prejudice in society which excludes people from employment, education, and health care.
I am looking at the interaction between practitioners and patients in an obesity clinic to understand what underlies practitioners' beliefs about people who are overweight and obese.
The experience of social exclusion is common to another group of people, those who live with HIV/AIDs and predominant in Africa. My friend Stephanie is working for an NGO in Botswana addressing this difficult issue. She and I are connected through this and other communities.
We are all connected.
I came here seeking solitude and thinking I would be alone. But I have been accepted into many communities. I recognize the paradox Mark Nepo describes - we are both unique and the same, inextricably linked together.
One of the communities is a group of researchers who are looking into the stigma of obesity. Obesity is an acceptable form of prejudice in society which excludes people from employment, education, and health care.
I am looking at the interaction between practitioners and patients in an obesity clinic to understand what underlies practitioners' beliefs about people who are overweight and obese.
The experience of social exclusion is common to another group of people, those who live with HIV/AIDs and predominant in Africa. My friend Stephanie is working for an NGO in Botswana addressing this difficult issue. She and I are connected through this and other communities.
We are all connected.
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1 comment:
Brava, Cynthia! Congratulations on framing your dissertation. Did you know, our mutual friend, K, is now Dr.!!!! As I wrote to you on FB, we are all on the verge, unfurling. Warmly, Katharine
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