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My Personal Compass

Encouraging reflection and active listening

Graphic: Many faces

At its heart, My Personal Compass is intended to encourage people of different beliefs to listen to one another. Modeled after National Public Radio’s This I Believe program, it seeks to encourage thoughtful and respectful sharing of philosophical, spiritual, political or civic beliefs by inviting brief essays for consideration and discussion.

Podcasts

Featured essays

Service (Domenic Santangelo, Senior, Political Science)

Photo: Domenic Santangelo

June 2006 · "You have cancer. The oncologist will be in touch." I hung up the kitchen phone, my ears still ringing from the heaviest thing they'd heard in their 17 years. I turned and told my mother what I had heard, then held her in my arms as she cried bitter and frightened tears. Cancer -- a disease usually associated with those far more advanced in years than me -- had come to our house, trying to break our family up. Yet,… [More]

Never Be Afraid (Kumitaa Theva Das, Junior, Biotechnology)

Photo: Kumitaa Theva Das

February 2007 · “Never be afraid to be extraordinary.” The opening statement of the speaker caught my attention immediately. I was attending a seminar about stem cell research. I expected the speaker, a professor from the Vet School of UCD, to talk about the latest breakthroughs in scientific research. Instead, he stressed how we should never be afraid to stand out. He said, if not for that, he would not have achieved all that he had. He would not be standing there that… [More]

Life and Death in the Classroom (Naomi Janowitz, Director/Professor of Religious Studies)

Photo: Naomi Janowitz

September 2005 · “Professor Janowitz, can you write me a letter of recommendation?” Each time I receive this request, I pause for a moment: Is this a good path for this student? In this case, the e-mailed request gave me misgivings. I had recently returned from a three-year stint as Director of the UC Education Abroad Program in Israel. The e-mail was from Marla, now graduated from Berkeley and wanting to return to Jerusalem for an M.A. program at Hebrew University. My sons remembered her… [More]

Becoming the Friendly Giraffe (Leslie Madsen-Brooks, Graduate Student, Cultural Studies)

Photo: Leslie Madsen-Brooks

February 2006 · On Labor Day, I became a mother. Knowing how much I value literature and writing, my friends and family members showered my son with books. Many of these were favorites from their own childhood -- some even donated their original copies to our collection. "Goodnight Moon," "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs," "Where the Wild Things Are". . . There are too many classics to list, and I’ve enjoyed sharing them all with Lucas even though he’s only five months… [More]

Agrarian Values (John Alden Broome, Professional School Student, M.S. Ag. Economics/M.B.A.)

Photo: John Alden Broome

March 2006 · I believe in the values of sincerity, hard work, responsibility, and dedication. These beliefs stem from a family who has supported me to live true to my values, from witnessing peers approach life respectful of others, and from interacting with people who were born with little and strive for betterment. These examples have taught me the value of honest work and to look beyond one’s self interest. My family has been involved in California agriculture for 125 years. Thus, the presence… [More]

Climb Mountains...Move Mountains (Danya Davis, Junior, Geology)

Photo: Danya Davis

January 2006 · I've found that my life experiences are well outlined by Dr. Seuss' book "Oh, the Places You’ll Go!" “OH! THE PLACES YOU’LL GO! You’ll be on your way up! You’ll be seeing great sights! You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.” My parents always told me that I could do anything I wanted to do. They said, “If you work hard toward your goals you will be able to achieve them.” For the most part, I have found this… [More]

On the Plain of Jars (Pam Houston, Director of Creative Writing, Department of English)

Photo: Pam Houston

September 2005 · A few years ago I had the good fortune to go to the country of Laos, and while I was there, visiting the ancient temples of Luang Prabang, the chaotic city of Ventienne, the quieter reaches of the Mekong as it ambles toward the sea, I was taken to a place called Phonsovan, the Plain of Jars, the site of what we now call the Secret War, the years of unreported bombings that followed the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam. In… [More]

On Being a BLEEP (Arthur M. Shapiro, Professor of Evolution & Ecology)

Photo: Arthur M. Shapiro

September 2005 · Several years ago a campus publication ran a profile of me. Then a man I didn't know came over to me and called me an a------. His definition of an a------ was someone whose beliefs didn't "hang together." Either you were a liberal or a conservative, a Democrat or a Republican...or you were an a------. Well, OK. Then I'm an a------. I was fated to be an a------. I grew up in a secular Jewish household in an ethnically- and religiously-mixed working/lower… [More]

Forever Grateful (Beverly Sandeen, Interim Vice Chancellor, University Relations)

May 2006 · Being grateful is foundational to my essence. Every day we receive so much from our world and at every opportunity it seems that we should take a few moments to give thanks. When we rely on others, as we do in our communities and on our campus, it seems to me that we should be thankful and make note of what we've received. My mother always seemed intrigued by my need and drive to be grateful. She would say, "I… [More]

In Pursuit of Cufflinks and the Like (Victoriano H. Castaneda, Senior, English)

January 2006 · It is terribly difficult to explain the comfort I find in hard case luggage when we live in an age of carry-on duffle bags. One will never be able to walk with any sort of panache while toting a collapsible canvas bag. I also advocate monogram linens and iced beverage spoons, but not in a Martha Stewart sort of way. I applaud argyle socks and side tab pants to a certain degree. And there is a definite bliss in a… [More]