Bloomfield College News & Events

At Convocation on September 17th, 2001, freshmen from Bloomfield College recited a poem compiled from submissions by the incoming Freshman class.  Below is the text of that poem.

I was born on the Island of St. Thomas.
I was born in Haiti.
I was born in El Salvador.
I was born in Russia.
I was born in Newark, New Jersey.

I was born in Jersey City, and put up for adoption.
When I was a year old I was adopted by a wonderful,
big, Italian family who have given me 
everything I could have ever hoped for.

My family came all the way from Antigua.
My family came to the USA from Portugal.
I am Puerto Rican, Cherokee Indian, 
German and African American.
I consider myself - an Olympian!

My great grandfather was Jamaican.
My great grandmother came to Ellis Island from Germany.
My great grandmother was a Cherokee Indian.
My grandmother came to the US from Puerto Rico, 
and didn't know a word of English.

Every year my family gets together 
and gives my great grandmother a birthday party.
My grandmother came from Colombia to work, 
so she could support four kids back home.  
She brought them all to the US, one by one.

My grandpa came over from Italy, 
and founded an Italian restaurant.
My grandfather used to cook for the soldiers 
during World War II in the Philippines.
My grandfather died when Serbian soldiers 
forced the evacuation of our village.
My grandfather was born in Syria, moved to France,
and then came to America.

My parents fled Cuba in a boat.
My father was a tenant farmer from the South.
My father came to America from Trinidad.
My father came from Puerto Rico to join the marines.
My mother ran away from home to join the army.

My mom is from Panama; she speaks Spanish.
My mom was born on a sharecropper's farm in Alabama, 
but moved north so her children would have a better life, 
and more opportunities for education and work.

My father is from Peru and my mom is Italian.
I was born in Italy, but lived most of my childhood in Peru, 
until we traveled to the US because 
my parents wanted something better for my family.

I was born on a plane. Part of my body came out over Jamaica, 
and the other part over the water.
I was born on December 26th, the same day as my mom.
My mom was in labor for nineteen and a half hours, 
and when I came out, I was asleep.
When I was born, I sneezed instead of crying.
I was born during a blackout.
I was born on Halloween!

I lived in India for twelve years, 
and my parents brought me here for an education.
I am from Bosnia, and I've survived four years of war.
It's so much better here because not everybody hates each other.
I moved from Baltimore to the suburbs, 
and I had to get used to a quiet neighborhood and no corner stores.
We moved into a house. We'd always lived in apartments. 
It was a big change.
I used to live in Irvington with Haitians and Jamaicans.
Now I live in Newark where there are lots of Blacks.
I moved, and forgot my dog.

There's a group of quiet houses on my block, 
but cross the street, and the ghetto comes out.
My town was built for steel mill workers, 
and still has a small town feel.
My neighborhood has a lot of wildlife in it. 
I can see deer, wild turkeys and raccoons.
We don't have grass in our front yard, 
we have dirt!

There were only two black kids in my first school, and
I noticed how much your background can make you seem different.
I started high school as a bad student, then realized it was serious.
So, I started participating in things like chorus, the school newspaper and band. I got better in academics, and developed into a bright individual.

My journey through high school has made me more confident in myself.
Believe it or not, I was extremely shy when I started in high school,
but learned to use my musical talents to break the ice and start conversations.
I write poetry, and my creativity has helped me through high school,
and helped me make many friends.

My school had this project called "Warm Fuzzy," where everybody
had to write something positive about anybody in the building.
Then the papers were put on the school bulletin board for everyone to see.
The project was very hard to get started, but in the end it was successful.
I was surprised to read all the positive things people said about each other.

High school taught me my most important tool: how to respect myself.
I spent a month helping South and Central American military personnel
in a Puerto Rican rain forest to be respectful of human rights.
I was at the Million Woman March.
I marched against police brutality in New York City,
and marched in Philly for Mumia Abu-Jamal.

The most interesting place I've ever been was Japan.
I went on a fourteen-day tour of Germany.
My most interesting visit was to the lost Mayan city of Tikal.
I visited Sidney, Australia, and got to learn a new and unique culture.

I skated on the Great Wall of China,
learned how to dance Egyptian-style in Africa,
and won money in Las Vegas!
My favorite hobby is Middle Eastern dance.
It's the best way I know to express myself, physically.

I performed with my dance group at the Philippine Independence Day Parade
in front of many people and judges.
In 1998, I won my weight class in my county's summer wrestling tournament.
I scored thirty-two points in a basketball game!
I played soccer in Giants Stadium,
and was the ball girl for the Metrostars!

I've always played soccer, and it has taken me to different states,
and let me meet lots of different people.
I met an 83-year-old lady, whose father was a slave.
The most interesting person I've ever met was an elderly blind lady.
She was smart and very happy, and raised a daughter all by herself!

The most interesting person I've ever met had to be one of my teachers
from 7th grade through high school.
She was the one that helped me whenever I needed it.
I always depended on her, and want to make her proud of me in college.
The most interesting person I've ever met - is my father.
Growing up on his own, and surviving the harsh streets of Puerto Rico,
made me realize that I live an amazing life.

I witnessed the atrocities of the 1999 war in Kosovo.
One of my best friends in high school died of a drug overdose.
My best friend's cousin was run over by a pack of ostriches.
Say, what?!
I've seen many things but nothing beats what I saw in the village in New York; a man dressed as a woman, with every feature, and - flawless beauty.
Say, what?!

I witnessed my cousin's birth.
It opened my eyes to the joy of bringing someone into the world.
My personal dream is to become a neonatologist ICU nurse.
I want to be a pediatrician.
I want to be an immigration lawyer.
When I realized my sister will probably never be able
to get the education I can, I dedicated my life
to pursuing all the knowledge I can obtain, and
to one day teach disabled and handicapped children.
My personal dream is to become a physical therapist.
Mine is to get through college, and be a successful black female entrepreneur.

I've always loved playing music, and if it wasn't for that,
I probably wouldn't be here today.
My personal dream is being here today.
My family wasn't able to go to college, or to appreciate the ways knowledge and education can be used to make a positive impact on other people's lives.

My journey to Bloomfield College has made me realize
that anything's possible if you work at it.
My journey to Bloomfield College has made me more open-minded
and understanding of others.
My journey to Bloomfield College has taught me a lot.
I don't do child-like things anymore.
I accept things for what they are.
I'm a young adult, ready to start college, and that's a good thing.
I'm ready for the journey through Bloomfield College.

I think I'm ready.
I know I'm ready.
Yeah, I'm ready.
Ready?

Ready! -
ready to light my journey
through Bloomfield College.

© 2001 - compiled and edited by D. S. Rosenak