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British Colonization

In our English class, we got the assignment to write a non-fiction essay about any topic we wanted. I decided to write about British colonization and the extremely negative impacts of it. I hope you like it!

British colonization has left a negative imprint on all the countries affected by its invasion. Many ideas that define the countries were lost to this colonization. Countries’ progressive ideas were lost because of British colonization, like female rights in India, Two-Spirit in many indigenous cultures, and samurai and generals in Japan.

In Indian mythology, there have been many instances of strong female characters, such as Devi, Parvati, Saraswati, Kali, and many, many more. These characters are all incredibly powerful and have been the reason wars are won. This inclusiveness shows how powerful they can be and how they are a part of everyday life and culture.
The Vedas themselves state that, “Where women are worshiped, there the gods dwell”, showing how important and deeply rooted women are in Hinduism. Strong female characters emerge from all corners of the mythology to prove time and time again that women and men are equal.
However, all of these myths and livelihoods died down because of British rule and are not very popular today. Now, in India, many women feel persecuted and have to face abuse and poverty, going against what is defined in the Vedas, the ancient and sacred script, meaning that the effects of British colonization live on today in India.

In Japan, during the 1500s-1600, all men who had a high rank had a boy/male lover accompanying them in the battlefields. All men of rank had these lovers documented, except for one example only. As Keiko Akagi, someone who is originally from Japan has said, “It was almost mandatory custom to have a male lover [for feudal lords], especially for higher ranking ones”,and “It’s almost men’s etiquette to have it [a male lover] at that time”.
While Japan was never formally colonized by the British, it was incredibly influenced by western culture, especially through the period of the 1800s- 1900s. During this time, many of these traditions were taken away, almost purged. Even today, same-sex couples are not allowed the same legal protection that opposite-sex couples are allowed to have and Japan is known to be extremely homophobic.

Two-Spirit is an Indigenous term, where a person might have diverse cultural, spiritual, sexual, and gender-wise identities. It is an umbrella term that varies depending on each nation, but encompasses one main idea of someone who is not cisgender or heterosexual.
As the Provincial Health Services Authority says, “Before colonization, Two-Spirit people were included and respected as valued community members, often holding revered roles”. However, the main keyword here is before colonization. With the British values that came along with colonization, so came the erasure of Two-Spirit identities. They were cast out and occasionally killed, leading to a harsh environment for many people who identified as Two-Spirit.
Today, increased amounts of homophobia and transphobia exist because of this colonization, which can harm Two-Spirit people quite a lot.

Opponents might say that the British didn’t actually mean to spread these ideas and never wanted to in the first place. However, when in India, the British solidified the caste system and placed women at the very bottom of it. So, the British did in fact spready sexism/homophobia where they went. Many countries’ progressive ideas were lost because of British colonization, like female rights in India, Two-Spirit in many indigenous cultures, and samurai and generals in Japan.

The Writing Side of Boston

In my last post, I talked about the places we went to in Boston which had historical significance. Along with those places, we also went to many places that inspired/housed authors, like the Louisa May Alcott house and the Walden pond. We also visited 3 bookstores and they each had their own uniqueness to offer.

We started with the house of the author of Little Women. While we arrived at the Louisa May Alcott house late and therefore couldn’t get a tour, we did get see view the outside of it and the gardens outside. The gardens were planted according to the book, a section corresponding to each sister and what they had planted in the book.

After that we drove to Walden pond and Henry David Thoreau’s house. He drew inspiration from the pond to write his book, so we decided to visit it. The sun was setting just as we arrived, casting everything in a golden glow. It was incredibly beautiful and I enjoyed it a lot! We also saw an eagle on top of a replica of his cabin which was nice.

We also visited many bookstores! On the first day we visited posman books and Brattle Book Shop. posman had many great books and I loved how the shop was decorated. Brattle was unique because it was an used bookshop. However, on the third floor, they had a collection of rare/unique books, like the original Federalist papers and the aeronautical pamphlets from the Wright brothers. Later, we also visited Beacon Hill Books and Cafe, which was such an amazing place. The bookshop was cozy and inviting and I loved their atmosphere.

Lastly, we visited the Boston Library. It’s a beautiful place with paintings and sculptures scattered throughout the library. I really enjoyed walking through it!

Do you know any cities that have thriving areas to write?

The Historical Side of Boston

Recently, we got to go to Boston. In my U.S. History class, we had recently been talking about Boston and how it played a crucial role in the American Revolution, so we made sure to go to the places that were incredibly important.

One of the highlights of the trip was definitely the Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum. We started in a meeting room, with our guides dressed as figures from the 1700’s. They led us to a ship, where we learned about the mechanics of the Tea Party and how it worked. Lastly, we had a chance to throw some tea overboard ourselves. After that, we got to explore the museum which contained remnants of the original Tea Party, like a crate that washed up and a little bit of tea from the crates. It was interesting and I enjoyed the interactiveness of the museum.

There were also a ton of interesting statues all over Boston, many being in the Boston commons and in the Boston Public Gardens. Some of the most notable were a statue of Alexander Hamilton, a statue of George Washington, and a Samuel Adams statue.
I also enjoyed the monuments, for example, one of Lafayette in the Commons and one of the Founding Fathers (though that was in Plymouth, not Boston).

During our trip, we got to see Paul Revere’s house, a statue of him, and the church which signified to him what the British were doing. The house was decorated with furniture that might have come from the 1700’s and a lot of information about the original owner.

We also enjoyed following the Freedom Trail, a walking trail that covers most of the landmarks mentioned above. The Freedom Trail was a great guide, and I was glad we got to finish most of it.

Even though it’s not in Boston, Plymouth played a large part in the history of the American colonies. It was the 2nd permanent colony to be established and was created for religious freedom. We got to see the Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower 2 when we were there. Plymouth Rock is a good marking point of where exactly the Pilgrims landed after sailing from England to America in the original Mayflower. The Mayflower 2 was a replica of the original and I enjoyed exploring it a lot.

What historic places have you gone to? Which one’s your favorite?

Six the musical

I recently got to see Six: The Musical. I’d been listening to the songs for quite a while and I always enjoyed thinking about what the inperson version might sound like and so when their tour started, I had to go. It was such a fun experience and I enjoyed it a lot!

Six is about the 6 wives of Henry the 8th and how they each had their lives ruined because of the king. Each of the queens (Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anna of Cleves, Katherine Howard, and Catherine Parr) had their own song in which they proved exactly how horrible their lives were because of one man.

Two of them were divorced (Catherine of Aragon and Anna of Cleves), two of them were beheaded (Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard), one died of natural causes (Jane Seymour), and one survived (Catherine Parr). All of them were torn away from their lives and forced to be with Henry, whether they wanted it, like Jane, or not, like Catherine Parr.

The set for Six was pretty simple, with no specific setting, only a moment in time for all the Queens to be together. However, while the set wasn’t specific, the lights definitely were. They matched perfectly to the songs playing and truly elevated the whole set. The costumes were also amazing. They were elaborate and shone under the lights. Each costume also catered to the character’s role well.

Have you seen any musicals? What are your favorites?

Our Friendsgiving Party

Recently, we hosted a Friendsgiving party, inviting a lot of family friends to spend time and have fun with us. I really enjoyed this party as well as how we planned for it.

It was a full spread, inspired by the traditional Thanksgiving foods. However, we decided to add an Indian twist to them. For example, we had pumpkin sambar, pumpkin idlis, white pumpkin raita, butternut squash parata, and white pumpkin pachadi to name a few. I also loved the apple cider we had, as it was mixed with ginger ale, giving it a fizzy and overall delightful taste.

The food wasn’t the only attraction. We decorated the house with oranges and golds to highlight the idea of fall and Thanksgiving. Some of these decorations included an orange garland of fall leaves as well as a gold FRIENDSGIVING sign and many, many bouquets of flowers.

Have you ever hosted a Friendsgiving party? How was it?

Being in Theater

I know I recently published a blog about my experiences in theater and a recent musical I went to, but I wanted to elaborate more on a specific year of theater.

This year, I was chosen for UIL theater, a class with 20 students who each have a special passion for theater. For some of us, it’s the acting, while for others it’s directing or backstage work. It’s a tightknit class and on the 3rd and 5th, we got to perform the play we spent 2 months working on. It wasn’t perfect, but we were ok with that! We still had a lot of fun and learned valuable lessons from it. Our theater teacher has promised that for our next play, in the spring, we’ll get even more time to work on it, meaning we’ll have an even better play.

Here’s a short poem I wrote about my UIL theater experiences so far.

Circle up, circle up
A routine we know so well
Set the set, markings clear
Circle up once again

Places, places
We know exactly what to do
Get ready to head on stage
And make sure you just be you

Lines, lines
Etched into the brain so deep
No doubt about what comes next
We could do this in our sleep

Curtain, curtain
The play is now done
Strike the set, put it away
Could we have won?

Waiting, waiting
Holding hands, scared
Hold our breath as they call out names
Four people from our school won medals, they declared

Laughing, laughing
Packing up our stuff
We might not have won, but we had fun
And that is always enough.

Homecoming 2022

This year at my school, we had a Homecoming game and dance! Though I didn’t go to the game, I really enjoyed the dance and being able to see my friends and spend time with them.

One of the best parts was definitely being able to wear a pavadai to this event. Me and my other Indian friend had planned this for a while, so we showed up each wearing a matching outfit, her wearing pink and me wearing blue. I loved how we looked and the way we were able to show off our culture!

Another fun part about the dance was how it was set up. We had three areas we could go to- the gym, the cafeteria, or the patio.
In the gym, there was a lively and bustling environment, with a DJ and a crowd of people dancing along to the music.
In the cafeteria (where I mainly was), some teachers had candy and water, keeping us happy and hydrated. There was also a variety of songs playing and overall, the mood was bright.
Lastly, there was the chess patio. The patio was lit up beautifully, with strings of fairy lights surrounding the whole place. It has a calming atmosphere and was probably the nicest place throughout the dance.

All in all, the Homecoming dance was really fun and I enjoyed meeting all my friends with this and getting to spend 2 hours with them without having school work or anything else to focus on.

Category: writing

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