Revise and reduce paper to 6 pages

Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside,

dreams; who looks inside, awakes. Carl Jung

September 26, 2015, Soul Portrait, how can I write about myself? Is this class the right fit for

me? How can this be a part of an Graduate program? Questions were rotating around my head. All I

heard was the professor saying, “go deep.” Is this your best? It was tough. When I was young I was

taught to never talk about being poor, struggles and escaping to America.

I focused and I went to the most sensitive, locked away and secret part of my life. I went deep

and I recall that at age 4, I had witnessed the torturing and escaping to America. My mother was 7

months pregnant and had 5 young children. Escaping with young children was prohibited. It was

difficult for my parent but their goal for having a brighter future for their children was their strength.

We got rejected by many boatman due to less money and lots of kids. We looked like beggars and were

so skinny due to lack of food. I saw my parents begging people to take it but many refused. While

sitting down with desperation, a kind and sympathetic boatman took us in and helped us escape. We

survived and passed the horror nightmare of darkness, gun fires and dead bodies.

Looking inside this deep chapter of my life, awakened me from understanding that goals are

powerful. When you have goals, you have persistence and determination. They look like they had no

fear. I’m very proud of my parents. The self-reflection of my childhood was not normal, I had to learn

endurances at an early age. I learn discipline and following orders. Now that I think about it, having

high endurance is a gift. We use it in our daily life, with work, school, and kids. It’s one of the strength

to hard working, patience and motivation.

Curtain Up / Curtain Down stories, gave me the knowledge to be quick on my feet. I learned

patience and listening skills. In the begining it was hard because I want to fit everything in 5 minutes.

Juggling the part that was important was a challenge also. I started thinking, “If that was my life, what

part of my story would I want to teach and inspire.” Everything started to come naturally, I started to

rehearse in my brain. It was time for me to present, I got nervous. My nerves were getting the best of

me, but I shook it off. Sam was my mentor for this session. Sam asked me, “from a scale of 1-10, how

confident are you with story telling?” I replied, “1 out of 10.” I’m my worst critic. I started talking and I

looked at everyone in the eyes, the class was silent and everyone was intrigued. I had a strong

beginning and ending, my tones, voice and facial were expressive. I did it and it felt good. Sam said to

me, “Elisema, you’re a storyteller and that was great.” I was so happy and proud of myself. I never

knew I had it in me and hearing the professor say that touched me. I almost went into tears.

Forgiveness exercise was very hard. It was difficult to open this door of darkness. Why do I

have to forgive, I let go already? I guess I wasn’t ready to let go, on the second I opened that door again.

I saw that man that I hate because he abandoned me and my children for another woman. I was loyal,

kind, decent looking and had an education. How can he do this to me? I started blaming myself for not

being good enough. My trust was shattered and my confidence was zero. I dedicated my life to this

man and my love to him. I was ready to retire and grow old with him. I was lost and confused.

I calmed down and I asked him why did you cheated on me, he reversed the role and said, “Did

you cheated on me?” He was denying everything. I can’t believe this is happening to me, we have 3

children together and the youngest was 4 years old. I can’t divorce him, I have to make it work for the

sake of my children. The more I tried, the more he grew apart. He started going out more, drinking and

partying. I was shocked to witnessed how he changed and he started cussing more. I looked at my kids

and see the fear in their eyes of a possible separation, I tried to make it work again. My ex-husband’s

anger started acting up, he started yelling at the kids and calling them stupid. I bared that pain. He

started spanking them and pull the their hair and ears if they don’t listen. I can’t bare no more, I started

thinking. Is this the future I want for my kids and tears started pouring out of nowhere. I had to make

my decision. My love turned to hate and I despise him. Do I pick a future where I will be nothing and

witness my children being abused or a future that will teach them to be strong and confident? I

divorced him and started building a better foundation and future for my children.

Bringing back this past, allowed me to really forgive and let go. Letting go of this heavy weight

of hate feels great and refreshing. I’m very proud of my decision. I don’t hate him anymore, I actually

thank him for making me stronger. My is better without him and I am happy and my children are happy

too. I realized that holding on to something hate does not benefit me, but letting go is powerful.

The River of Life, I’ve never thought or considered writing about my past. Dictating and creating

my very own history story. It’s a lot of work. Brainstorming and planning took a lot of concentration.

By the time I knew it, I was finished. The three main stories that gave me strength was my childhood,

father’s death and my divorce.

Coming to America was already tough but having to deal with racism and bulling was a challenge

of its own. The end of first grade, a report card came and I was nervous. My parents looked at me with

sadness and then they called my name. I was nervous, my heart was pumping fast, I was about to faint.

They broke the news, they informed me that l have to repeat the first grade. I cried, I didn’t want to get

held back, that’s insulting and people will make fun of me. Hearing the word, “Held back” gave me

nightmares. Why me and why am I so stupid?

While going to school, I can hear kids gossiping that I got held back and teased me. They call me

ugly, dum and a mute. Nobody wanted to be near me. Bullies were so cruel. My mom knew that I was

sad and depressed, she sat me down and let me know that it’s okay to get held back. She let me know

that she was proud of me because I did good. She reminded me that I didn’t start from Kindergarten

and not to worry. I felt better.

I recall the darkest part of my life, I was a Sophomore in High School. During a winter morning,

we drove to San Francisco for my father’s soccer tournament. There were lots of people and the game

went well. All of a sudden, I heard the players say, “hurry, someone is down.” They all rushed and my

father’s best friend walked to us, with a sad face and tears in his eyes. He said to my mom, with a shaky

voice, “You’re husband had a heart attack and the ambulance are on their way.” My mother and all 6 of

her children were shocked. She looked like she was going to faint but she didn’t. We were clueless,

scared and worried.

My mother went to the hospital and her best friend drove us home. No one said a single word,

all I heard was weeping and sniffling. Later we heard news that my father died. We all cried for days

and after the funeral, we had to move on. I had to grow up fast because I was the second oldest. My

eldest brother and had to find jobs fast and help our mother with our siblings. We both went to High

School and worked at night. We had to work to help my mother support the family and go to school at

the same time. I had no life, no friends but work and school.

With this chapter of my life I learn that losing the one you love hurts but moving on is a greater

gift. I learn to work at a team, manage my school and work. I also learn to prioritize my homework. I

learn responsibility. My mother taught us to save money and open a bank account.

The divorce was also strength to my process of life. I learn to believe in myself and not let

others influence me. My mother and my ex-mother in law was strongly against my divorce but I didn’t

let that affect me. I learn how to defend myself and my decision. I was very proud of myself!

Sharing and listening to the Soul Portrait and the River of Life was enriching. I’ve always

compare myself to others and judging them from the outside. It’s good to know that others also went

through a rough road and they too tried to find success and happiness. Hearing their stories inspired

me. Some of them are barely learning about themselves and others seem to not learn at all. All those,

made me a better listener and understand that you can’t make everyone happy. The power of

storytelling, kindness and sincerity influences them to better person. This class is like therapy. I

understand now that I was too hard on myself, I’ve always thought that I’m not smart or pretty enough.

I learn that I’m not the only one with problems, struggles and had fallen. Everyone in the class has fallen

and learn how to pick themselves up. I learn not to judge people and that everyone had a hard life.

Hearing their stories taught me that reach out to people.

Another class participation that inspired me was the Card game. It was hard not to tell people

their status. Some people were very good in acting that they made me felt low and belittle. I know

when I was not wanted and that they don’t want to associate with me. Some were kind and said, you’re

a lucky number. That inspired me and motivated me to search. This teaching reminds me of the

managers and staffs in our firm. Managers think they are better than the staff so they don’t associate

themselves with them. I think it’s wrong because it’s poor management skill. In order to have good

people work under you, you need to show that there’s no difference in status. Make them feel welcome

and respected. Make them feel worthy and listen to them when they speak. When you gain respect,

you earn their loyalty and with that, they will work extra hard for you and the company.

The last video about the hospital was very inspirational. They did a great job sending the

message. I was touched and I couldn’t stop my tears from falling. I love how they organized it from the

beginning to the end. If I was in customer service, I would be motivated to reach out to everyone after I

see this video. I’m glad that I have this inspirational personality in me already, that’s why when I saw

the video, I was touched. I naturally treat everyone with kindness and respect. I don’t judge them if

they treat me with disrespect, I just know that they had a bad day.

I value all the lesson and training I received from this class. The flow was excellent from the

beginning to the end. What’s awesome was that the strive to get an “A” did not matter to de but that

fact that I was inspired to make a difference. I was able to absorb everything being taught. I realized

that I am important, valuable, and a leader.

This class help me experience self-exploration. I had the tools to inspire, teach and motivate all

this time but did not know how to use it. Going depth is the most powerful experience because with

that, I can tell a story with meaning. I learn how to tell a story with conviction and inspiration. Talking

from the heart is exceptionally powerful. You taught me to love myself and see my true value. You

taught me that speaking from the heart is enriching. When you find yourself, you find happiness and

nothing can break you!

Everything I learn here applies to the work ethics as well. Before I started this class, I got

promoted. My manager asked me what do I want for my future. I was speechless. Now I’m ready to

answer her. This is also useful for interviews. I confident to talk about myself and my strengths.

I really enjoy writing and receiving a note of appreciation from each student. I went beyond and

got creative. My act of kindness was to create an inspirational note that will touch my colleagues and I

want each and everyone of them to feel special. I made a picture of them, add inspirational quotes and

my comments. Everyone thank and appreciated that hard work I putted into it. It felt great seeing their

beautiful smiles. I couldn’t wait until morning, as I got home, I opened my envelope. It’s wonderful to

hear all the appreciation notes. I felt connected with my classmates. I can see and hear them saying

those kind words to me. I was touched and I almost cry with happiness.

“Men make history and not the other way around. In periods where there is no leadership,

society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change

things for the better. —Harry S. Truman.” I just want to let you know that your last day speech was

wonderful. It touched me and my eyes were red with happy tears. I was touched! Thank you for caring

and loving each and everyone of us, you inspired me. You’ve taught me so much and with that I hope

we can continue to walk the same path. You’re a true leader!

The world is so broken and there’s so many chaos. It’s sad to see how much people are

suffering in this word. There’s hate, misunderstanding and pain. Life is full with people that are greedy,

depressed, sad, hurt, to name a few. I want to build a better future for people and teach them peace,

kindness, and inspiration. My future goal is to build an International Buddhist temple where people can

learn to meditate, learn a different culture, and be strong. I want to be a great leader in everything I do.

I know I have the tools and motivation because I earned my reputations through work, school, family

and friends.

In my community, I treat elders and everyone with kindness. I show my act of kindness by giving

and not expecting anything back. When people see me, they feel love, warmth and inspired.

Everywhere I go people would want to talk to me and be my friend because they felt good vibration

from me. It feels great to be respected. As for young kids, I inspired them with motivation, being playful

and understanding.

At work, I earned my respected status by my computer skills, positive attitude and

professionalism. I was chosen to be the role model for the law firm I worked at. I was placed it the

firm’s website alongside with all the managers. It feels good to be recognized and appreciated.

I want to be successful in life and help those in need. I believe in good karma!

Overall, life is full of obstacles. I realized that I always have to be at the top of my game. People

will try to break you but always keep your calm. There’s light at the end of every tunnel. In this MBA

program, I’ve meet a lot of good people and a lot of challenging people. Just like my work, I learn to

bring them together and work as a team. No matter where we go, there’s always a black sheep in every

group. I don’t let those black sheep control me but I inspire them with my kindness and hard work. So

far it worked.

I will continue learning because learning is the key to success. I want to start practicing talking

in front of class to make me be a good leader. I want to inspire and teach others because their learning

gives me strength to reach out to others. Most importantly, I want to be happy and give people my

positive energy.

Thank you for all that you do. There’s never a dull moment in your class. I love that fact that

you read all our stories. Thank you for letting me know that you cared about my life story, you inspired

me to be a storyteller just like you. Thank you for the countless hours you dedicated to us and reading

our stories. You are very much appreciated!