Wednesday's front page of The Post urging us all to do something was a profoundly disappointing overview of the resources available in Athens. Eating uptown, going on the bike path and going to a movie are hardly brilliant suggestions to combat boredom. While I also enjoy eating at the Village Bakery, taking a walk on the bike path or making a necklace at Beads & Things, Athens really does offer so much more. The Farmers' Market every Saturday is a great opportunity to mingle with locals (people who aren't 18-22) and try locally-made cheese, salsa, bread, etc. Or why not volunteer? Opportunities abound to help the community, and this kind of activity is more rewarding than simply seeing a movie; you would actually be making a contribution. Passion Works brings the world of art to people with disabilities (www.passionworks.org), Good Works fights poverty and homelessness in Appalachia (www.good-works.net) and My Sister's Place offers services to victims of domestic violence (http://home.frognet.net/~mysis/). There are also any number of organizations (student groups included) working for social change; see the Appalachian Peace and Justice Network (http://www.apjn.org/) for an example, or get involved in the student-led Sustainable Living Organization. And besides all this, every weekend there are cultural events going on at OU. Visit the International Student Union's home page for listings. If you are in need of something to keep yourself busy, try helping out your community or meeting an international student, whether through a job, student group, or volunteer. You'll find that in the process you'll begin to step outside yourself, see the world differently and discover the kind of person you want to be.
Leah Vincent is a graduate student of Spanish.
17 Archives
Letter to the Editor
