White Lines...

Well if you have been in San Diego lately or have watched the news then you have surely heard of the racism fiasco that has laid eyes upon UCSD. From the "Compton Cookout" to some people calling blacks something to the effect of "ungrateful n****rs," to someone hanging a noose inside our library. Click here for more info I won't get into my opinion on everything and whether or not I support the student's cause but one thing I'd like to touch base on is the idea of racism and my childhood hero Jackie Robinson. 


A lot of people tend to overlook Jackie's efforts against racism because of the fact that he did it on the baseball field. He didn't give amazing speeches like Malcolm X and MLK, or even die because of his efforts, all he did was put on a uniform and swing a bat. Nonetheless, I believe that Jackie deserves to be honored on the same level as some of the other great African-American civil rights activists. Jackie broke the color-barrier in baseball and opened the gate for all non-white athletes in America. Beyond that, just by stepping on the field he gave blacks, especially the youth, hope that they too can achieve and be successful in what they viewed as the "white-man's world." Personally, I love him because of his ability to speak volumes with his actions. Players often threw baseball's at his head and tried stepping on him with their spiked cleats trying to injure him. He received countless death threats, was called Ni**er, told to "go back to the cotton fields," and was often forced to stay alone in a "colored" hotel while all his other teammates received the 5-star treatment at the "white" hotel. Despite all of this he never retaliated, never let his temper get the best of him, never swung back. He took it all and continued to play ball. He literally turned the other cheek. Because of his efforts he was rewarded. He became MVP of the major leagues, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and had his number 42 retired throughout all of baseball. So what does this have to do with any of us?


Sometimes we get caught up in comparisons. We get caught up in what others have and what we don't. We find faults with ourselves whether it be in the color of our skin or by our body type. Sometimes we complain about the economic position we were born/placed in, we complain how we have to have a job just to be able to afford to go to the same school as these "rich" people. Sometimes we think of how fly we could look "If only" we had the amount of money that others have. Sometimes we complain how its unfair that we have to put in double the amount of studying as some other people just to get the same grade. Yup sometimes our struggles are unfair. But see sometimes our struggles aren't about us similar to the way Jackie Robinson's struggles against racism weren't about him. Sometimes our struggles are about the people that come after us that are in the same positions we once were in, they are about the people we bless, the people we touch, and the people we open the gates for. There are times when I'm struggling that I want to give-up and take the easy route but I have to remind myself that everything I'm doing everything I'm going through isn't about me but the people whose lives I can affect, the people who I can give testimonies to.


So with that I leave you with a famous quote from the one and only Jack Roosevelt Robinson who did so much for blacks and all minorities at that just by stepping over the White Lines in baseball.
"A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives."


Whatever struggles you are going through remember that only the Strong Will Continue.


-La Rhino

So Ambitious...

This past weekend I saw the movie "Sin Nombre" which I believed debuted at the Sundance Festival and won an award. The movie follows a fictional family trying to get to the United States through illegal means as well as a gang member from the Mara Salvatrucha trying to escape for killing his gang's leader. Over all the movie was awesome but what stuck out to me was one line in the movie.

"Half of these people will not make it, but we will"

One of the characters says this referring to all the people heading to the United States as him and his family are waiting for the trains to come so they can jump on top of them and travel through Mexico. Though the movie is fictional, I admire the character's ability to be so bold and make such a statement. To have the type of confidence in one's own ambitions despite the circumstances is remarkable.

Sometimes when I look around in the huge lecture halls here at UCSD I say the same thing to myself, "Half of these people will not make it", while probably 90% of the people in there are pre-med or pre-health half of them realistically will not make it to their ultimate destination. (In no way am I trying to say that the character's situation is on par with my own) Yet I have never said "but we will" or "but I will" and I hope to work on that. I want to have unshakeable faith and confidence in my ambitions like the man in the movie.

Ambition...

Recently, applications for my college's council came out and boy do I want to apply. It's an opportunity to do something that I've never done before in my leadership career. I have decided not to apply though. Because I already have enough on my plate...perhaps even too much. I've realized that while having ambition is nearly essential to get ahead there's a point where that ambition can have it's downside. In my case it means that I am spreading myself too thin. I'm not giving the proper attention to some of my current orgs, friends and studies. And sure in the end my friends are still there, everything works out with my orgs, and I somewhat get the grades I want but I figure if I curb a bit of my ambition I can start turning my A-'s into solid A's, become closer to some of my friends, and never lag in any org related work.

Anyways I better get back to studying for my bio midterm. I'm coming hard this time. My goal is to be in the top 15 scores that set the curve for the midterm.. I guess you can't curb all ambition can you?

Btw if you still don't know who Emilio Rojas is get on it. I had a hard time picking which song I wanted to feature here because they were all brilliant but I chose this one because this line stuck out to me and reminded me of myself and my mother's struggle to send me the best school's possible. "I remember it all, my momma struggling to pay for them church schools" Anyways, Enjoy.

Memories...Hold It Down

I should be studying for my Ochem midterm tomorrow but this has been heavy on my heart for awhile so I'm taking a break to write and be raw.

January was literally a month of "people overload." In my most natural state I am an introvert so coming in contact with so many people (especially different personalities) this past month drained my energy. So this past week I decided to go on a hiatus from people, a "mini-vacation" if you will. No facebook, no AIM, I spent a limited time on email, and turned my phone off for a good portion of the day. I never realized how much of a distraction friends or rather virtual interactions with friends really are. This is what had been heavy on my heart, friends. Now although they CAN be a distraction SOMETIMES, I wouldn't trade them for the world. The mere concept and dynamics of a relationship with someone who is in no way genetically tied to you is quite amazing to me. So the fact that they may take an hour away a day from my studying or that they may involve me in their life dilemmas is fine by me.

But what I've noticed lately is that when I look back to late 2008 early 2009 the strongest bonds of friendship that I had are no more. That's not to say that I'm not friends with those people anymore but the "magic" has been lost if you will. I feel that I'm not building the amount of friendships I have but rather just replacing older ones with new ones. Honestly, its a bit saddening because while I love the friends who I'm close with now I think friendship is something that you continually strengthen and work on. But how can I strengthen bonds with old friends if the minute we are no longer in each other's daily lives we seem to halt all communication. How can I strengthen something that seems to have all but disappeared?

Whether its my fault, their fault, both our faults, or just the course of nature nevertheless it's still disheartening to think that in a friendship perhaps the best thing of value is simply the memories.


Nevertheless, to all the friends (and family) that Hold It Down day in and day out for me these days. Thank you! And you know who you are. The blessings that are raining down on me now and that will in the future shall be yours as well!

To my superb friends --> "Hold it down, if you need to holla at me/ Don't hesitate to call it ain't a problem I can be there I'd ride for you, lie for you/ I know you'd do the same, I will die for you" - J. Cole


Back to studying...

-La Rhino

Don't Call It A Comeback...

you know what comes next...."I've been here for years"

After all the hours toiling, making decorations, losing sleep, having to eat on the go, jumping in the fountain to retrieve our trident, climbing 14 ft ladders, getting a fever mid-RCA work party, and everything else that went with Spirit Night...WE DID IT! Revelle won the Spirit Night Trophy! As one of two Revelle Spirit Commissioners I must say that when I die the moment we won will be on my list of Top Ten Moments of my Life. The reason? No not because we won a trophy but rather its the fact that we were able to rally hundreds of students...we were able to unite an entire college under one roof all rooting and cheering for the same cause. Just imagine if we could do what we did for Spirit Night on a larger scale. Imagine if we could rally hundreds...no thousands... of people for a cause that was of more value than a trophy. Imagine if we could translate all we did for Spirit Night into a real-life victory in which the our opponents were not the 5 other colleges of UCSD but instead were poverty, oppression, cancer etc. I know there will be doubters. Doubters saying that Spirit Night has nothing to do with helping poor people, it has nothing to do with battling cancer and any other disease out there. There will be doubt just like I know Revelle College was doubted when one week before the trophy was to be awarded we were in 4th place out of 6, when the trophy seemed too far from reach.

I'm adding this to my list of goals in life to throw an event of this caliber (nearly 4,000 people attended Spirit Night) where instead of instilling the Spirit of UCSD into the students we instill the Spirit of Hope back into the people. The logistics, details, who and what it will benefit, and what we are trying to actually fight against will be worked out in the years to come when I decide that the time is right to throw this event (and I have the funds) but for now just know that it's coming.

There were times during the entire process that I wondered what was it all for, why was I working so hard for something that in the scheme of things really isn't ALL that important. Now that I think about it I guess you have to start somewhere.  I think it's better that I learned the importance of certain skills, like organization, patience, time management, coordinating events that aren't that important so that when it's time to perform on the big stage where things actually do matter I'll be ready, I'll be prepared.

For now I'll continue to work towards accomplishing my goals for Winter Quarter (not New Year's Resolutions that I shared before) which were
1) To get atleast an A- in all of my classes... because dental school's don't accept mediocrity
2) Lose enough weight to run a 7 minute mile... just a medium that I'm using to teach myself discipline
3) Win Spirit Night for Revelle College... 1 out of 3 accomplished so far!

I know that accomplishing the goals above will take hard work, tenacity, and perseverance among other things. It will be especially hard since Spirit Night has put me behind on my other two goals.

But Don't Call it a Comeback....I've been here for years....it's time to knockout some goals and doubters care to join me?

-La Rhino