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My humanities moment happened a few days ago when I was talking to my father about college at a Mexican Restaurant. He talked to me about how lucky I was to be graduating high school and going to college in the fall. I didn't understand why it was such a big deal until he explained to me that since I'm adopted, I'm most likely the only one within my biological family to be going to college. It made me realize that many people didn't have the opportunities I have to go to a performing arts school and attend college. One of my closest friends…

Last summer I went to Nicaragua for two weeks on a service trip. On the tenth day, I went to a small village 30 minutes outside of Managua called San Benito. I went there to build a bridge across a river.
While I was there, I also got to observe their lifestyle and living conditions. The houses were built from scraps, and were each about the size of my pantry or closet. There were dirty chickens and pigs covered in dirt, being swarmed by bugs. Everyone had only two sets of clothes they could call their own. They practically lived in…

To celebrate its 40th year anniversary of grant making, programming, and partnerships that connect Californians to each other, California Humanities invited a group of 40 prominent Californians to explore what the humanities mean to them. For more information visit calhum.org/about/we-are-the-humanities.

Teacher Christina Lohry describes a moment in which she realized how language (and other forms of communication) can profoundly change how we view others, breaking down misconceptions and helping us connect.

Kamille Bostick shares the moment when she first saw the PBS documentary Eyes on the Prize and discusses how the revelations of that film history have contributed to her career and her long interest in history, especially the lives and accomplishments of African Americans.

In this video, Scott Gartlan discusses his reaction to seeing Arthur Miller’s play All My Sons and seeing deep connections between the play’s narrative and his own life story. He goes on to reflect on the power of storytelling to bridge generations and personal circumstances.

About seven months ago, our son was in a tragic ski accident, and was in a coma for close to a month. And during that really painful time, we didn’t know what was going to happen. Was he ever going to wake up? Was he not going to wake up? I, myself, couldn’t sleep and I was haunted all the time by thoughts of what might happen to him in the future, and how did this happen, and thinking about the past. And I remember thinking in one of those late-night moments about “The Odyssey” and about the description of the sirens on the banks. Of…