Defining Communitys

I belong to the Arab American Community. I have been apart of this all my life. As a member of this community, my involvement has increased dramatically. As a child I would go to the mosque not very often. I knew about the Arab American community but not too much about it. As I got older I learned more about it and the aspects of it. I began to go to the mosque more on my own and participate in prayers with my community. I feel much more apart of my community now than I did when I was younger. You can tell most of the time when someone isn’t a member of this community. You can tell because our community has certain types of clothing and styles of clothing we wear that stand out than others. For example the hijab is one of them, which is very easy to distinguish. To be a member you have to know a lot about the community and participate in social events around the area. There are lots of values, and beliefs shared by the community, which some people take very seriously. For example there is Ramadan, which is a religious holiday, which is 30 days of fasting. Almost everyone in our community participates and people take this very seriously. Membership in the Arab American Community is important to my personal identity because I am a Muslim and I liked to be looked upon as a good Muslim and being apart of this community and all the activities that come along with it really shows that I am an active Muslim and care a lot about the religion and the community along with it.

The second community I am apart of is the Americore community, which I have been apart of since I was around seven years old. My involvement has gone up in this community as I have grown. Americore is a volunteer program. I have attended food drives, MLK service day, 911-service day, and many other projects every year since I have started Americore. As I got older I began to attend more food drives, and service projects around my area especially during high school. In high school I earned over 1,000 community service hours from Americore. In this community you can not tell if someone isn’t a member. We are very welcoming to any types of people. Everyone comes from different city’s that makes it such an amazing community to be apart of because it’s a unique crowd coming together and making a difference for nothing in return but smiles on people’s faces. To be a member you simply can just come and attend any service projects, you don’t even have to be consistent with all of them. The main idea is just to come and help out when you’re available. There aren’t really certain values, or beliefs held in this community. There are activities, which come with values and beliefs because when participating in an activity you are expected to devote your full attention to the project and give it your best effort. Membership in this community is important to my personal identity to me because it shows that I am a caring person and I can do things for others not for my own satisfaction but for the satisfaction of others who are in need.

I think the most important way of defining a community is looking at all the little things in the community as a whole. The little things are what make the community come together as a whole and really define the community as one and distinguish it from others.

Designing my own neighborhood

If I were given the task to design a neighborhood I would incorporate everything to make it as beautiful and well suited for different types of family’s. I would start off making it a gated community because its safer and makes it more upper class. There will be medium sized homes along with smaller ones that would be more affordable. I will have a pool and lounge area for the people living in this neighborhood. It will consist of only homes and the pool area. No offices, because I want it to have a home like atmosphere all around it. There will be a workout room inside the lounge area too, along with pool, and air hockey tables. Every Friday will be game night for the entire neighborhood to participate and get together. Attracting residents will be easy. You buy a home in this neighborhood, which will be very affordable and along comes free pool service, a workout room, and entertainment, who wouldn’t want that deal? Since we don’t have natural palm trees in Michigan, I would plant fake ones all around the community to give it that liveliness in the atmosphere. There will also be a decent sized park for the children next to the pool area. Around the park there will be a racetrack. I would want the houses to all look the same, but have slight differences. When I picture this community I want it to be as safe as possible with a friendly neighborhood all around.

Being a Tour Guide

If I were a tour guide I would go to five places that are my favorite attractions. I grew up in Dearborn and I’ve been to many amazing places. I would take the guests to places more personalized towards what mean the most to me because it will be easier and more exciting for me to talk about the attractions. 

The first place I would include in my tour is the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn because I am Lebanese and there are so many wonderful pieces in there I have enjoyed seeing. Also my name is on the wall in the museum for donating money to help the museum open and get started, and that is something I would be proud to show on a tour. Next I would go to Dearborn;s Ford Community & Performing Arts Center because growing up it was one of the main spots everyone in the neighborhood would go hang out at. I would show it because there is so much to offer there and it has many different shows, award ceremony’s, and other types of events going on there. It’s a fun place to be, which would make it so exciting to show it off! Then I would head off to Detroit’s Fox theatre. This attraction would be on my tour because it is just beautiful inside. There is always some sort of event going on in Detroit, and Fox theatre is one of the greatest in my opinion to attend an event at. I would than go to the Renaissance center in Detroit which is on the riverfront. Renaissance would be on my tour because of the magnificent restaurants inside there like Coach Insignia, and Joe Muers. The fine dining there would just be the start of showing off this wonderful area. You can enjoy an elegant dinner in the Renaissance and have a view of the riverfront, which is something I would love to show and talk about. The last place I would go to on my tour is Somerset mall, in Troy. This is my favorite mall, which is only one of the reasons it would be on my list. The mall has the most glamorous stores, and when you’re a tourist that’s one of the things you always want to do, shop! There are even some of the best restaurants there. 

When visiting Detroit, there are endless possibilities on where to go and what to do. It is such an amazing city and you can always find entertainment almost everywhere you go!

Disney Land

A city that has such inspiration to it is Disney land. It’s a place where most children like myself grow up wanting to go there. You see it in pictures, books, movies and it always catches your attention. To explore such a wonderland city is a dream come true to some people.

            What dominates this city the most are the huge castles that are so lit up at night. They look like castles right out of a fairytale. The amusement park of Disney land is also an image you see and immediately drop your jaw, especially that Ferris wheel! This city is built on the foundation of Minney and Mickey mouse. Two characters that are dressed up so vibrantly and are represented as one of the main symbols of Disney land. Disney incorporates an ancient look to the castles and a much more modern feel to the actual buildings, restaurants and amusement parks around it. The urban setting somewhat shows you that it is just a real city, even though it has been changed to be so perfect. People can actually live like that because some people are completely peaceful and are always so vibrant and happy! Disney built the city with lots of color to give off a happy feeling to be there. Your emotions from being in the city are mainly filled with excitement and thrill. There is never a dull moment there. You’re flourished with animated characters that are so friendly and there are plenty of activities to keep you busy. Disney land is typically like a fairytale where kids wish they could live. It was built to be a peaceful city with no harm and it really lives up to that. This is a city I would love to live in. I like excitement around me and I think I would enjoy to live in that environment. I would always have something to do and plenty of people to hang around and have fun with right outside my bedroom door!

           Disney spent a lot of time and money to make such a wonderful city. It is like a dream come true being there. There are so many aspects that tie it together to make it just the perfect place to have fun.