Over the past two years of creativity, action, and service,
I have matured more than I have ever done in the past. I am now confident to
say that I am a better leader than I have been in my life. Although I was a
naïve leader, I am certain that the experiences will always assist me to become
a good leader when I need to be. I am proud that I held onto great
opportunities that shaped who I am right now. I would like to tell my juniors
at the International School of Kenya that you should be thankful for attending
a school with such diverse choices, especially in Kenya, and that you should
never withdraw from taking action because you are afraid. Everything happens
for a reason, so never feel discouraged, but at least try it first.
When I first came to Kenya in 10th grade, I was
extremely uncertain about myself and my future. I always had the dream of
leading a group of people, but I was scared, afraid, and unsure. The only
choice I had was to join as many and diverse clubs, so I started with three
service clubs, two creativity clubs, and two action clubs. I will never regret
giving a shot because I have learned so much from each clubs. Reflecting on how
I feel about each clubs, I feel proud, and I wish to continue them after I
graduate high school.
I was able to expand my individual skills a lot in
creativity and action. My creativity skills stretched through jazz band and my
church worship team. I started learning guitar in 10th grade from my
friend at church, and I was able to stand on stage to perform. Having started
playing flute since 4th grade, I joined jazz band for two years, and
often performed at church for worship. I have also practiced singing, and am
currently a sub-vocalist in the church worship team since last year. These
musical skills allowed me to learn the importance of harmony among groups,
because without team-work, nothing can sound pleasant. Similarly, with sports,
by playing golf and going horse-riding, I was able to learn self-control. Golf
and horse-riding requires a lot of control, which frustrated me in the
beginning, but as I practiced more and more, I learned new tricks and what is
effective.
Service has always been the motivation in my past, is the
motivation today, and will be the motivation in the future. As a child, my parents always encouraged me to live the life of giving
others. But how? I had no knowledge to help the people in need. The only power
I had was my personal backgrounds in Egypt, South Korea, Lebanon, Jordan, the
United States and Kenya. Having lived in the Middle East for six years, not to
mention Kenya for approximately two and half years at the moment, I would say
that my memories were not that pleasant. Memories of people neglected in the
streets, paupers begging, and kids malnourished. I recall a time when I repeatedly
reminded myself, ‘How can I help all these innocent and needy people?’ I
realized there are some similarities among them: no opportunity for education,
unawareness of the importance of improvement, and lack of healthcare.
For the
past two years, I attended one of the biggest national hospitals in Kenya, the Kenyatta
Hospital, for voluntary service. Whenever I visit to share my life stories and
listen to the juvenile patients’, I see the utter dejection in the kids’ eyes –
the kids with cancer, deformed arms and legs, blind, abandoned. Whilst serving
in Kenyatta Hospital, the lack of ability to cure people with advanced
technology came into my regards. Only if the hospital was able to provide
sufficient and appropriate care, the situation would not have been worse. I
still wish that in the near future, I could return to this hospital to comfort
these kids with the biggest smile.
Having encountered Kenya’s harsh conditions, I am well aware of the
social issues here that need to be solved – human equality and rights, animal
poaching, water issues, poverty, and healthcare. After realizing the
seriousness of these specific problems, I thought that African countries, in
particular, need more attention. Of many experiences in Kenya, I clearly remember
one disturbing incident as my family drove by a street. It was shocking to see
Kenyan children washing their bodies in a sewer pipe. Were they aware of the
diseases they could get from it? Did they even care? Without the knowledge,
there cannot be improvement. I strongly feel that informing Africans about
creating quality life is crucial. As the head of the Global Issues Network
club, I noticed how important informing the community about social issues is.
Every day, social issues are created, solved, deteriorated, and ameliorated. To
resolve these issues may take decades, but it is our generation’s obligation to
solve, or at least relieve, them.
Additionally, one of the biggest
accomplishments of my life is climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. “Climbing Mount
Kilimanjaro has been the hardest challenge I have faced this year, and I am
proud to say that I’ve overcome such an obstacle; an obstacle that not just
redefined my potentials, but also aided the education of Kenyan local students.”
published in my personal blog Ho-Jin
Style in Kenya.
The primary purpose of this voluntary mission was to
donate money to primary school students who could not afford to get into
secondary school. During the weeks of arrangement and preparation with three
other friends who also volunteered in this mission, we were able to get
sponsors willing to donate the money we needed. We were able to fundraise
200,000 KSH, which is equivalent to $2400, to help ten Kenyan students enroll
in secondary school. Hence, the mission was carried out successfully, under one
condition: we must reach the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, the roof of Africa.
If we fail to reach the summit, our uniform goal would vanish into thin air.
Through hardships and teamwork, my friends and I were all
able to accomplish our mission on January 2nd, 2013. I have to say,
without the encouragement of one another, we wouldn’t have been capable of
hiking for hours each day. No words can describe the happiness that I felt
after my goal was complete.
However, this isn’t the end of my ambition, but just the
beginning. Kenya has directly shown me where I should be heading in the future.
The desire to return back to Africa continues on, and by the time I return, I
dream to carry out community service with the same happiness I felt on the roof
of Africa.
It was just two years ago, when my dad was appointed the
Kenyan superintendent of Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA). Then,
I faced mixed feelings of disappointment and anticipation; I thought Kenya
would be the last country that I will ever live in Africa. But now, Kenya might
not be the last one after all.
