My SIMUN Experience

Counting down the days to SIMUN, I was more nervous than I ever had been. I had no idea what to expect. I was afraid I’d say something wrong, something that nobody agreed with; I was afraid I’d be on my own. I thought it was going to be horrible, but I was very wrong.

To prepare for SIMUN, I researched the three topics that were going to be discussed in our group. As the country of Slovakia, I didn’t think that I’d be very involved, but I researched a lot anyways. I also researched the history of my country, which helped me know what my country had done in the past in situations such as war and international conflict. I knew my topics as well as I could, but still felt unprepared. Even though those topics were what we were going to talk about, I was expecting something crazy to happen and I’d not have a clue what to do. After about two weeks of preparation, it was time for the simulation.

On the first day of SIMUN, I walked in scared. There weren’t too many freshmen in our group, and I knew that all of the upper classmen were prepared because they’d done this the years before. I took my seat and we started. For the first scenario, I didn’t participate much. One of the mentors told me I needed to start talking more and I did. Before I knew it, in the scenarios to come, I was making speeches, asking questions to the speakers, and caucusing with other countries. I was really confident and was starting to know what I was doing. Before SIMUN started, I didn’t think I’d have anything to do because I didn’t think my country would be involved, but I was wrong. My country came up in a newsflash – citizens of mine had been killed on a private ship, and I had to do something about it. I made a speech and myself and a few other countries wrote a resolution that got passed and everything was solved. That was probably the most exciting scenario for me because I participated in it the most.

I’m really excited to do SIMUN again next year, but there are some things I’d do differently to prepare and participate. First, I’ll research my country more. I knew the basic history, but I feel like I need to know more than I did to be able to make better decisions in a scenario. Second, I’ll participate as soon as I can. I wish I would’ve done more in the first scenario, but I was too nervous.

Overall, SIMUN was so much fun. I’m considering MAMUN for next year because I think it’ll be even more fun than SIMUN. It was an amazing experience and I look forward to it for next year.

SIMUN Freewrite

If a coup over threw the Pakistani government and threatened to use nuclear material and weapons on the rest of the world, a world leader would need to step in. Not only would this jeopardize the security of surrounding countries, it would pose a national security issue. The United States would most likely step in to secure the nuclear material and help keep order in the region. This would either anger or please other countries around the world, and as Slovakia, I back the United States on their decision to enter Pakistan to secure nuclear material.

As a member of NATO along with the United States, my country is semi-obligated to side with the US along with other members of NATO like the UK. As an ally of the US, Slovakia would not only support their decision, we would be willing to supply extra forces and monetary donations to keep the world safe from nuclear disaster.

The coup and/or terrorist group that overthrew the government would need to be controlled and put to extreme consequences. I would recommend that they be put in jail for time being, then should be brought before the International Court of Justice for further punishment.

UN Peacekeepers could be deployed in agreement with the United States to ensure that no further uprisings or attempt to disturb government would occur. The government would also need to be restored. Slovakia would work in coordination with the United States, United Nations, and other members of NATO to make sure that a stable government is put back in place in Pakistan. All nuclear material would be properly secured and measures to make sure it stayed only in the hands of government would be taken. Peacekeepers could stay in the region if needed; they could also help maintain the security of nuclear material.

As Slovakia, I would fully back the United States decision to enter Pakistan and secure nuclear material. Working together with the US, the problem would hopefully be solved quicker and in a more peaceful way.

Left To Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust

My book, called “Left to Tell” is a memoir about the Rwandan genocide in the early 1990’s. Immaculee, the main character, describes her account of the events that occurred around her home. Just stories from her point of view shed some light on cultural differences between the country of Rwanda and the United States.

Immaculee and her family are considered a higher class family, residing in a nicer home with furnishings, a garden, and a courtyard. Many other homes were smaller and not as nicely finished as theirs was. They had plumbing, as other homes did not. Although the women in this society were still used for house chores and other “women’s work”, children and wives had a close relationship with the fathers and husbands in their lives. Imaculee’s father was considered of high importance in the village. Everyone knew everybody in town, and whenever there was a problem, everyone knew to talk to Leonard.

When the first attacks from the RPF occurred just on the outskirts of the town, flocks of worried men, women, children, and entire families, gathered on their front lawn, asking for his guidance. This shows that although he was not the richest man in the village, his education was considered enough to make him worthy of guidance to the villagers. It also shows that people in this culture placed high importance on education.

Many decisions made in the village depended on your status – Hutu or Tutsi. The Tutsi’s were not favored among the people of Rwanda, especially in the village where this memoir takes place. For example, when Immaculee applied for high school and college, she did excellent on the entrance exams – highest among the girls in her grade, even passing some of the boys. Because she was a Tutsi, she was denied her education. Thankfully, her father was friends of the school teacher and was able to get her into both high school, then college. It’s sad to think that your history and background, religion, social status, or governmental label could prevent you from an education or other privileges.

I hope that in finishing my book, the many questions I have about the Rwandan genocide and culture will be answered. Why did the Hutu extremists believe that the time the war broke out was the right time? How else are Tutsi people discriminated against? What role will women play in the ending of the war? Hopefully all of these questions can be answered, thanks to Immaculee’s memoir.

Who Knew Auditions Could Do So Much

“Attention Stevenson! Auditions for this year’s one act plays will be on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week!” That’s what I heard on the student announcements Monday morning. Usually, I’d think nothing of it. I’d wish I had the courage to do something like that, put it out of my mind, and move on with the day. This time was different. This time, I decided to audition for something I’ve always wished to do – one act plays.

I didn’t come to this decision easily. All day, while trying to encourage myself, I was weighing the pros and cons. I thought to myself, “If I audition, I’ll get the experience and learn from it. I’ve got nothing to lose…but what if I’m really bad…everyone will laugh and I’ll just humiliate myself in front of people who know what they’re doing.” Humiliation was something I wasn’t ready to face, but I was ready to overcome my fear of speaking in front of others.

I walked into the cafeteria; there were experienced actors and actresses surrounding me. I picked up a script and looked over it. I tried to put myself into the role of the character as well as I could. Hands sweating, I read the wrinkled paper, slowly letting myself become the character in the script. Just as I was getting truly into the role, it was my turn to read. I slowly went to the front of the room, took a deep breath, and read. Emotions flooding, heart racing, I became the character. Reading like I actually knew what I was doing, I realized that I wasn’t even worried at all. Speaking in front of a crowd was supposed to be nerve-racking, difficult, and my biggest fear, but this was the easiest thing ever. I left auditions confident of a call back.

I came into school the next day almost positive my name would be typed in solid, black, bold, print on the call back list. I slowly walked up to the showcase and scanned for my name. I kept looking back and forth – my name was nowhere on the list. This was such a dissapointment to me; I thought that I did such a good job. Sure, my acting skills are terrible compared to the other people who auditioned, but I thought I had something. This was an experience that taught me many things. It taught me not to be afraid to try new things. They might seem like obstacles you can’t get over, but if you try, chances are you’ll conquer it. It also helped me over come one of my greatest fears – speaking in public. I may have not made it into the play, but I’m glad I auditioned. It really taught me a lot.