UPbeat Fall 2015

A University Press magazine November 2015

OLD IS NEW Page 12

Inside: • People • Speech • Salimi and more

Junk

Anxiety

Page 12

Page 8

Refugee Page 10

Holidays

People

Page 4

Page 4 EDITOR Lauren Van Gerven

A University Press Magazine November 2015 This issue of UPbeat is a production of the University Press staff.

STAFF Kara Timberlake Haley Bruyn Wesley Williams Desmond Pickens Tim Collins Natalie Avery

Mitchell A. Junious Kyle Swearingen Trevier Gonzalez Kayla Holmes Derrick Owens Josh Aych

UNIVERSITY PRESS ŠUniversity Press 2015

ADVERTISING Melissa Conley

Cover photo by Josh Aych

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Breaking Barriers

Football is a man’s game, but now it’s a woman’s world as well.

From the first female officials to the first female defensive coordinator, women are impacting the game everyday, even at Lamar University. Dominique Edwards is one of Lamar football’s equipment managers and has a deep respect for a game she barely paid any attention to before. “I knew what the obvious stuff was, like a first down or a touchdown, but if you asked me what a specific player was supposed to do on a certain play — I wouldn’t know nothing,” the graduate student says. Dominique joined the team over the summer and interacts with players and films away games.

Text and photo by Wesley Williams

PEOPLE

She also has to wash the player’s dirty laundry. “They don’t bother me much because I’m a girl, they usually just leave me be, but their stuff is so funky that I nearly gag sometimes,” she says, with a laugh. Dominique played for the Lamar women’s basketball team for three years before making the jump to the gridiron and has developed a passion for the sport. “When we beat Sam Houston, I was yelling and screaming so crazy that Sam’s camera people looked at me like, ‘Why is she so hyped?’” she says. “That’s just how much passion I have for them now.” And there’s nothing funky about that.

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Becoming a Fairy Tale DEVYN COLEMAN

Fairy tales. Superheroes. Other realms. We all dreamed of being in some other world as some other person when we were little — maybe we still do, sometimes. Devyn Coleman is making those childhood dreams come true. Devyn is a cosplayer. She designs and creates character costumes. “I get to play these really empowering women and I really enjoy that,” she says. Currently, her favorite costume is Esméralda from Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” The character offers a sultry and powerful personality that Devyn believes she does not portray on her own. Cosplay is a performance art, and it takes a lot of work to achieve the perfect look. “I spend my free time creating just the right look,” she says. She creates her own costumes and wigs for her looks. Devyn says she enjoys becoming other characters. “I don’t consider myself very cool,” she says. “I try not to stand out too much, but when you dress up you get to.” The management information systems major says that she enjoys the contrast between her hobby and her studies. Devyn describes the relaxation she gets from creating her characters as her “Zen.” Overall, Devyn says the most magical part of her cosplay adventures is that when she is in costume, “I become the beautiful and confident princess that I dreamed of becoming when I was a little girl.”

Text and photo by Natalie Avery

Bridging the language gap CHATMAN SIEBEN

Language can be a barrier to communication, but it can also be a bridge to opportunity. Chatman Sieben, the first deaf student to graduate with a master’s in English from Lamar, tutors students, both deaf and hearing at the LU Writing Center. The Beaumont native says that many deaf students struggle with English. “If you understood the history of deaf children, they’ve had a long struggle with reading and writing skills because their native language is ASL,” he says. Students are forced to read an oral language they did not grow up with, he says, so they don’t like English. “My goal is to change that.”

Chatman is working on a doctorate in Deaf Education with a cognate study in English. “I will teach English classes to deaf and hearing students,” he says. “That’s the first time that Lamar will have deaf students being taught by a deaf professor not in their major.”

The most interesting aspect of English, Chatman says, is its malleability. “Students don’t have to be stuck with the sentences they struggle with — they can break it up and move it around,” he says. “One of the main problems is that students think the English language is standardized, but it’s not. It can be different.” Language can be a bridge to new opportunities, and Chatman plans to build that bridge for his students.

Text and photo by Tim Collins

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Just busting a move CEDRIC LYONS JR.

Sophomore and Dallas native Cedric Lyons Jr. started filming all kinds of events from a very young age. “As a kid, I always had a camera on me,” he says. “I really love to edit clips.” Cedric wants to become a professional film editor or a director — not just to be rich and have money but because it’s something he is good at and has a passion for. Along with his more cinematic works, Cedric is a skilled dancer.

“Every once in a while, I’d bust a move here and there, and when I’m alone listening to music, I just get in a groove. I guess I found out on accident that I can dance.” Since high school, Cedric has been making dance videos, but has only just recently started posting any of them on YouTube. Collaboration with others is important to Cedric and he has many projects in the works including a feature film, a collection of different short films that could become a series, and a company where he can focus on the business aspect of film. “I’m a pretty fun guy to be around,” he says. “I like to make sure that everyone feels comfortable and is in a good mood before I tend to myself.

I try to put others before myself.” You can see Cedric’s work on his YouTube channel by searching Cedric Lyons.

Text and photo by Mitchell A. Junious

Girl on Fire ALEX WARNKEN

Her arms moving in a hypnotizing fashion, Alex Warnken smiles as the flames at her fingertips catapult through the air. For the Lamar University alumnus, it is just another evening. “Fire dancing is an adrenaline rush,” Alex says. “It is spinning right across your face sometimes. It’s exciting. I always have that queasiness, but once you are out there, you just have to own it.” After having the idea that Fire Fridays would be a nice addition at Zeus Café where she worked, Alex took four lessons before striking her first performance. “I have a lot of jobs and don’t have time to choreograph beforehand, so I just improv while I’m out there,” she says. “I try to focus on the music and not so much on everyone watching me.” After receiving her art degree from McNeese State University, Alex completed Lamar’s leveling program for Speech-Language Pathology in 2014. The Lake Charles native said performing is great for self-confidence. “I’m usually more of an introvert, so this is great practice for me,” she says.

“Performing gets me out of my comfort zone and makes me more sociable. It really opens me up in a lot of ways.” Her self-esteem rises with the flames.

Text and photo by Kara Timberlake

PEOPLE

‘Rockin’ the passion JORDAN BLANCHARD Sweaty palms slipping on grips. An arm extended trying to grab a rock just out of reach. A risky leap from one crevice to the next. These are just a few of Jordan Blanchard’s rock climbing experiences. “I started climbing when I first got to Lamar during my freshman year,” the Beaumont senior says. “I didn’t start climbing with the intent to stay into it, I just picked it up to keep me busy after I got out of class and before I go to work. But the more I started doing it, I really started liking it — it developed into a passion of mine.” Jordan doesn’t just climb as leisure activity.

“Competitions were something that, as I started getting better at climbing, I really wanted to get into,” the engineering major says. “Coming from a background of doing sports in high school and having a kind of competitive nature, it was something that really appealed to me.” However, Jordan says the competition isn’t an intense affair.

“It isn’t so much competition driven, like one person over another, as it is do your best at climbing and just have fun,” he says. It may be daunting to those who have not climbed before, but Jordan is quick to encourage others to give it a try. “Don’t be afraid to try it out,” he says. “You don’t know what you like until you try it.”

Text and photo by Kyle Swearingen

for more PEOPLE, see page 19

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Standing up to public

COMMUNICATION CLASS PROVIDES TECHNIQUES, HOPE Story by Kara Timberlake

eart palpitations, clammy hands, stiff muscles, increased blood pressure and dry mouth — these are sensations we have all experienced before giving a class speech or presentation.

Most people chalk these uncomfortable feelings up to jitters or stage fright. However, for a portion of the population, these symptoms are only part of a much larger issue that may prevent them from achieving educational, professional and social goals — communication apprehension.

Communication apprehension, the fear of real or anticipated communication, is something that all of us experience, but some experience to such a great extent that it becomes debilitating, Ruth Stanley, Lamar University communication instructor, said.

With a background in communication and communication disorders, Stanley developed a special section of public speaking for students who suffer from public speaking-induced anxiety. The class concentrates on helping students develop confidence in communicating with others in interpersonal, small group and public speaking contexts.

“We noticed that there was a significant percentage of people who were just disappearing at speech time,” she said. “We started studying up and realized that it has a name. I am not only a communication professor, but I have a master’s in speech pathology, so I come at communications from the disorder side. I said, ‘You know, I can work with these people.’ So, we studied up and found methods.”

Stanley said that students qualify to take the class by filling out a Personal Report of Communication Apprehension form. The measure indicates the level of anxiety a person feels about participating in various oral communication situations.

“We focus on communication apprehension, what it is and how it affect us, why it affects us, and we learn techniques and strategies to help each of us deal with our anxiety,” she said. “We try to put them in charge of their anxiety instead of their anxiety being in charge of them. I always tell them I can’t get rid of all of your anxiety because, technically, the only people without anxiety are dead.”

Public speaking is an important part of communication, Stanley said.

“No matter who you are or what your major is or what you do in life, communication is key to operating in the world,” she said. “We have to deal with other

H

people. Public speaking helps you learn how to fashion a message, organize it and present it.

“In real life, there are so many places you need to have public speaking skills. The Association of American Colleges and Universities polled employers who hire people out of four-year institutions and asked them what they wanted (employees) to have, and 89 percent of them said we want them to able to communicate orally.”

Stanley said she tells her students that public speaking is something they can conquer.

“Public speaking does not have to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad thing,” she said. “I tell (students) public speaking may never be your favorite thing, but at least you have techniques and the ability set up to do the best you possibly can.”

After Baytown senior Kaci Davis failed two classes because of her public speaking fear, her advisor recom-

UP infographic by Desmond Pickens

mended that she fill out the PRCA form to see if she qualified for Stanley’s class.

“I was desperate and I needed to graduate,” Davis said. “I’m graduating and I haven’t applied because I’m so afraid of the interview. It sounds crazy, but when it was time to present, I would rather fail than get up. I needed to not run away when it was time to give the speech.”

Davis said she realized she had public speaking anxiety after an experience in her senior engineering design class.

“Engineers have a senior design group where you have to design something, and at the end of the year you present as a group and you show them your designs, what you’re aiming for, stuff like that,” she said.

“The dean comes and it’s a big to-do. I’ve always hated giving presentations as a group in all my other classes.

But I was talking it up in my head, being very positive,

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speaking anxiety like, ‘You know all of this.’”

Then, Davis said, she started to feel physically ill.

“I seriously thought I had a virus,” she said. “I thought I was going to throw up, even though in my mind I wasn’t nervous because I kept talking about it and it wasn’t worrisome. I had my group with me.

We’re in the lab, and I had to take off my cardigan and put my hair up because I was so hot.

“A guy in my group told me that he had anxiety, too, but I told him I thought I had a virus and I was just going to push through this. I’ve been nervous before, but this was sick. I knew then this was something to do with anxiety.”

Davis said she didn’t understand why she couldn’t talk in front of her classmates when it was time to present.

“For my engineering classes, about 40 of us stay in the same classes, so I know everyone,” she said. “I could talk one-on-one with each of them, but it was different when I got up there. No matter how prepared I was, whatever I had in my mind and whatever came out of my mouth was not the same.

“I would stutter. My mouth would get nervous.

When I retook my senior seminar — because I had to in order to graduate — I remember I kept saying ‘umm,’

like I had lost my place or like I didn’t know what I was talking about. I hated that.”

As a mechanical engineering major, Davis said public speaking skills are necessary for her career.

“If you come up with a solution to a problem that works, and is efficient and is awesome, but if you can’t communicate it to your bosses or the people that make it happen, it’s pointless,” she said. “I know communication is an important part of my career, and I’ve made it a goal. If I can’t get up in front of these students my age, how am I going to get up in front of these hot shots at Exxon and present to them?”

Davis said taking Stanley’s class pushes her to do better.

“I came to Ms. Stanley’s class because it was known that it was for people who were afraid of public speaking, and I needed to graduate,” she said. “But once I started, I realized that I don’t just want to make the grade and forget it to just get the degree. I want to take this and apply it to my life.”

Knowing she’s not alone in her struggles has been a huge help, Davis said.

“We’re all dealing with the same thing,” she said. “I feel like before, I’ve told myself that I’m just being dra-

matic and then tried to throw myself into it, but it never worked. She’s taught us why we feel the ‘fight or flight’ reaction, and that we’re not the only ones feeling it.”

The class has made a big impact, Davis said.

“Unlike the other public speaking class I took, this is more put your toe in the water, then your foot in the water,” she said. “Ms. Stanley is understanding that communication apprehension is a real thing. She’s really available even with things not pertaining to class.

Her office is always open, and she’s very much there for her students. I love Ms. Stanley. I love this class.”

Davis said she would like to take another communication or public speaking course before she graduates.

“Public speaking is really nothing to fear,” she said.

“I’ve gone from this irrational thinking to more of a realistic approach.”

One technique that Davis has learned is to keep a journal, she said.

“It asks you questions that make you think and pinpoint what’s happened in the past to make you like this,” she said. “It is more about getting to the root of the problem and facing it even if it’s not comfortable.

See SPEECH page 18

UP Kara Timberlake

Carolyn Ortiz, Houston sophomore, gives a speech in front of her Public Speaking class that focuses on students with “communication apprehension.” Ruth Stanley, left, offers critiques and techniques for those with anxiety about speaking in public.

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Frame by Frame Story by Lauren Van Gerven

Salimi makes journey from Afghan refugee to Beaumont film professor ahmoud Salimi’s life story is like a movie. The Afghanistan native became a refugee in 1993 when he fled his hometown of Kabul from the Taliban. Since then, he has spent time in Pakistan, Germany, Japan and back home in

M

Assistant professor Mahmoud Salimi, left, assists Bruce Wright during a film photography class, Nov. 10.

UP Photos by Trevier Gonzalez

Afghanistan, before moving to the United States in 2006 to pursue a master’s degree in film.

Ever since he was a little kid, Salimi has been fascinated by film.

“I wanted to do film from early childhood,” he said. “I wanted to be in the movies. But then, when I grew up a little

bit, I realized, ‘I think I like being behind the camera more.’ When I finished high school and went to college, I wanted to study film, but there were no programs (at Kabul University).”

Salimi said that the closest program to film that was offered was theater.

“I didn’t know what theater was,” he

said. “I wanted to study music, I like music, but they told me, ‘You don’t have a music background, so you can’t start from scratch, you need to go to music school.’ So, I went for theater. I really, really liked it, it was so much fun.”

It was during his undergraduate years that the Taliban took power in

November 2015 Afghanistan and Salimi was forced to flee to Pakistan.

“In 1993, when I became a refugee, they closed the border,” he said. “There were thousands of Afghans waiting behind a closed door. So, we spent the night there. It poured, it rained, and you couldn’t sleep, because if you slept, you were robbed, raped or killed. There were smugglers. They walked around, talked, asked how much you’d pay to be taken across the border.”

Salimi said he was in group who ended up agreeing on a price of $100 a person.

“A lot of money in ’93, compared to Pakistani currency,” he said. “At four in morning, the guy came with a pick-up truck. He drove until 10 o’clock through the mountains. Then at 10 o’clock — there was no road, no path at all — he asked us to get out. We put our stuff on mules and we walked. There was a really really high mountain — we had to climb it. There was a path so narrow, you could barely walk on it. If you looked down, the people looked tiny. Even the mules were scared. We barely made it to the top, it poured again and it was evening.”

The group of around 10 people was brought to a one-room clay house with a single door where they were to spend the night, Salimi said. The smuggler would pick them back up at 4 a.m. “‘I can’t sleep here,’” he said. “’What if something happens?’ It’s no-mans-land, anything is possible to happen to you because there are smugglers — it’s all mountains, and they have nothing. The only way they survive is by smuggling drugs, weapons and people.”

Salimi said that the smugglers brought them plain rice for dinner.

“It was so delicious,” he said. “It has no salt or nothing. At four o’clock, he came back with a pickup truck. Around 10-11 o’clock, we got to the other side of the border. This was the first time in my life I saw something like this. I got out of the truck, I looked around and there were weapons stores and drug stores everywhere. Big pieces of hash were just hanging there. People would just walk in, buy it, leave, thank you.”

There were policemen sitting all around, like at a checkpoint.

“The police couldn’t do anything to (the merchants) because they were tribal people — the entire checkpoint could

“It poured,it rained, and you couldn’t sleep, because if you slept, you were robbed, raped or killed.” have blown up and disappeared,” he said. “And then it started there — the refugee life.”

Salimi said the refugee life was terrible. He lived a life of unemployment, homelessness, hunger and poverty.

“The one that was the worst, was discrimination,” he said. “You get looked down on — ‘bastard Afghanis.’”

Salimi said he heard from family that is was even worse in Iran.

“We are nasty, disgusting Afghanis in Iran,” he said. “We don’t deserve anything. In some places in Iran, the government tells their people, ‘Don’t sell food to Afghanis. Hospitals — don’t accept

Afghanis. Busses, cabs, don’t take Afghanis anywhere.’ If they do, they will be fined or put in jail. Even the parks, they didn’t let Afghanis go to the parks. It was just like Jews in the ’30s and ‘40s. Not all were like that, I’m talking in general.”

After working his way up from construction and selling goods on the streets, Salimi started working for a nonprofit organization and was able to set some money aside with which he cofounded Exile Theater, a group that performed for Afghani refugees in Pakistan.

“I wasn’t the only one,” he said.

“There were other team members as well. We would rent a tent, chairs, put all

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of it together and invite people — it was always free. We celebrated Afghanistan’s historical and cultural days. It was a great opportunity for us, when you are a refugee, to come together with other Afghans and celebrate.”

However, law enforcement stopped the theater productions, Salimi said.

“There were unknown Pakistani people that reported us,” he said. “Authorities came, and they questioned us. To them, they were asking us legit questions. We were not affiliated with any political party. They would ask us, which party do we belong to, who is supporting us, who is behind us, who is our leader?

“We are Afghan refugees, we just want to celebrate our heritage. So, they threatened us. They said, ‘We are going to throw you in jail if you do that.’ This was right at the time refugees started moving back. Some of our members left to Europe, some went back home, so I moved back to Afghanistan in 2003.”

After finishing his undergraduate studies and spending three years in Afghanistan working in theater and film, Salimi came to the U.S. in 2006 to attend film school after receiving a prestigious Fulbright scholarship, an exchange pro-

See SALIMI page 17

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JUNK or TREASURE?

UPbeat

November 2015

Vendors ply wares in street market

The sun shone bright on a crisp fall day as vendors and buyers flocked to Downtown Beaumont Community Junk Days, Nov. 14. Many of the items were handmade or up-cycled. Proceeds from the event, held monthly, benefits local charities.

November’s chosen recipient was the Southeast Texas Food Bank.

Most of the vendors were local, although some came from as far away as Austin. The stalls featured a diverse collection of wares, from refurbished furniture to artisan almonds. The BAW Resale shop, a warehouse of eclectic paraphernalia, spreads along the block and houses miniature dolls and peddle cars and vintage furniture. The streets buzzed with the sound of vendors and patrons haggling for goods. Junk Days is held on the corner of Fannin and Neches each month, with the next one scheduled for Dec. 5. For more information, visit the Downtown Beaumont Community Junk Days Facebook page.

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Photo story package by Josh Aych with contribution by Natalie Avery

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November 2015

SALIMI from page 12 gram that provides both Americans and foreigners an opportunity for cultural and educational growth.

“I wanted to study film in France, because I like French cinema,” Salimi said.

“Either France or Italy, both are great.

But, I was walking by the American embassy, and I saw that there was an announcement about the Fulbright scholarship. If you met certain requirements, you could apply for it. So, I put the portfolio together and I applied.”

There were more than 400 applicants for 10 places. After going through several interviews and an English test, Salimi found out that he had been selected while he was in Tokyo for a theater production.

“I wanted to go to France, but, hey, Hollywood!” he said. “I was supposed to go to NYU, but then they told me about UCLA. Later on they contacted me again and told me that I was going to study at Savannah College of Arts and Design.

‘Where is Savannah?’ I asked. They said it was in Georgia. ‘No, no, I was supposed to go the United States, not Georgia.’ So, I looked up a U.S. map, and found that Georgia was there.”

Salimi said that he could have picked whatever school he wanted, but he didn’t know anything about U.S. colleges, so he ended up in Savannah.

“I went from Tokyo and New York — where I did my pre-academics — to Savannah,” he said. “It was a culture shock.

Everything was so slow. Kabul city is small, but it is fast-paced. The first three months in school, I was like, ‘I want to get out of this place.’ But, after three months, I started liking it. Savannah became my second home. And, (Savannah College of Arts and Design) is one of the top-25 film schools in the nation.”

Salimi said that people in America often think he’s from South America, but when they find out where he’s from, their reaction changes.

“Quickly, they get the picture,” he said. “War, Taliban, drugs. Stereotypes are there. But so far, I have not been treated badly.”

Salimi said he did have some weird reactions while living in Georgia.

“It was St. Patrick’s Day,” he said. “I was on a bus, when a few stops later some people get on. A nice, middle-aged lady sits next to me and asked where I

was from. Middle East, what part?

Afghanistan. She made a comment, ‘Oh, I hope I don’t get kidnapped.’

“Another time, I was shooting a film and I was looking for props. I went to a flea market in Savannah and walked through it. I talked to people. Finally there’s a store with a white gentleman — I was with a white American friend of mine — so, we introduce ourselves, ‘We’re film students and we are looking for props. We are looking for dummy grenades.’ He looked at me, turned to his friend, ‘Do you have grenades for these Iranians?’ And I just look at him. First of all, I’m not Iranian. I can understand the assumption, but (my friend) is white, he’s American, he has no accent at all.

The other gentleman was nice, he realized that we didn’t feel comfortable and he referred us to another store. The first guy turned back and asked, ‘Do you need missiles, too?’ I was really offended. I got upset and I said, ‘No, thanks. I can take care of things with grenades,’ and I walked away. What did I say that I offended him?”

Salimi said that although Beaumont is a conservative place, he hasn’t had any problems here.

“It’s good at Lamar,” he said. “It’s an academic environment, which makes things a little easier.”

Compared to his previous teaching jobs, Salimi said that at Lamar he has more time to work on his creative projects. He has produced and written both documentaries and films.

“I did a documentary when I came to the United States,” he said. “Savannah is a beautiful place. One day, I was sitting in the city and there were some Asian tourists eating ice cream and taking pictures of the statues. There was a homeless guy sitting there, too. The police came, went directly to that guy and harassed him, asked him to leave. ‘What did I do? I’m just sitting here. You’re harassing people.’ And he kicked him out of that place. It just broke my heart.

“This guy is no less a human being than any of us. He was African-American. I just looked and thought, these are tourists, they have the right to enjoy every corner of this place, I’m an outsider, I have the right, but this guy, who’s an American, doesn’t have the right?

Something is wrong here. So, I went and made a documentary on homelessness, and my entire goal was to link politics —

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Courtesy Image

Mahmoud Salimi, left, is mock attacked by a fellow cast member during a theater production staged at the ruins of the Kabul University school of Fine Arts which was bombed by Mujahedin fighters in the 1990s. that it’s the government’s responsibility.

But after a while, it changed me. Yes, this is the structure, but also, some people made the choice to be homeless.”

Salimi said that through his work he want to make a difference. He would like to go back to Afghanistan and work there, because there is a need for so much to be done.

“At least I can do my part as a citizen of that country,” he said. “And not just that country, my plan is to work in South

America and Africa. There are so many places that need help.

“I believe that artists are global, so are journalists and doctors, and they are international citizens. I know you have a passport, but that’s paper stuff. In your heart, you are international. It doesn’t matter what religion, what belief, what political ideologies you have, but you are

See SALIMI page 18

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SPEECH from page 9 It’s rewarding.”

Stanley said journaling is just one of the various techniques that help students cope with and manage their communication apprehension.

“We start out with deep breathing exercises, starting off with diaphragmatic breathing to help calm ourselves,” she said. “Cognitive restructuring is the next thing we do, which is basically taking your negative thoughts and turning them positive and not dwelling in the negative.

“We also learn some other techniques such as systematic desensitization, which is huge. What that encompasses is, that we learn to relax our body, and then we learn to stay relaxed when we learn about stressful things. Also, we learn mental rehearsal where we visualize and think our ways through things. Mental rehearsal is a powerful tool.”

The public speaking class, offered in the fall and the spring, teaches students that though their fears are real, they’re not always justified, Stanley said.

“So often we have either learned to be afraid of speech because we’ve had a bad experience, or we just have worrisome thoughts about it,” she said.

Elizabeth Aronson, associate psychology professor and director of the Lamar psychology clinic, said a lot of factors contribute to anxiety.

“We think that a lot of people are genetically more likely to feel anxious than others because of differences in the way their brains are wired,” she said. “They may have more receptors for the nerve transmitters that are involved in the fear reaction, or they may have chemical imbalances that make them more prone to anxiety.

Probably some people are set up for it biologically.”

People may also develop fear from having a bad experience or by observing another person’s fear, Aron-

SALIMI from page 17 human. And as a human being, you have a responsibility to help another human being. Whatever you can do.”

Salimi said that he wants his movies to become a voice for people.

“Either make a difference, a positive change in people’s lives, or motivate people to take a stand — meaningful movies,” he said. “My movies revolve around social, political topics.”

The film he is working on right now carries a message of coexistence.

“It’s about an American soldier and an Iraqi suicide bomber handcuffed together,” he said. “It’s like an old couple that don’t like each other. All the time they nag and argue, but they have to live together.

“The whole point is that once you put your religious and political beliefs aside, you respect each other — there

son said.

“So maybe they got really badly teased when they were speaking publicly or talking in front of people where they were being evaluated,” she said. “Or if something negative didn’t happen, they could have learned it from watching other people. So if they knew somebody who was afraid of public speaking, they may have learned from that person’s fear. Or if they watched someone else give a speech and get made fun of, they may have learned that is a dangerous thing to do.”

Aronson said an additional aspect is that people have ideas about how their bodies react that might not be accurate.

“There is a certain amount of adrenaline that comes with a new situation or a challenge,” she said. “If you don’t know that this is normal, and you interpret that as, ‘Oh my god, I’m terrified at this; this is so horrible,’ you can make a bigger deal of that and scare yourself. Once you start to worry about it, the reaction gets worse.”

The best way to get over any kind of fear is to expose yourself to it, Aronson said.

“You experience it and find out that nothing awful is going to happen,” she said. “Then your body learns not to get scared. One of the hardest things about anxiety for people, is that people’s tendency with something that they’re afraid of is to avoid it, which actually then sets up a pattern to strengthen the anxiety because then you feel relief. You feel so relieved by escaping that it’s like a treat for your body in a way.

“Usually people will keep avoiding and avoiding — then, it has drawbacks in terms of their career and their social life.”

Aronson said that the class provides a supportive context to learn how not to worry.

“People can get up and give speeches in front of each other in a warm, friendly environment,” she said.

“They’re with a whole bunch of other people, for instance, who are also in the same boat and will be a

sympathetic audience. They keep giving speeches and giving speeches, and over time, their body is going to learn that this is not a dangerous thing to do.”

Students can discover that public speaking doesn’t have to be a bad experience, Aronson said.

“A little bit of your heart racing or your voice shaking is normal,” she said. “People can learn to not jump to the most worst-case scenario about what might happen, and have a little more realistic understanding about how it’s going to go — something that will often take away from the fear. The class gives you a lot of practice, and it also helps people learn a little bit about what the fear is about.”

Stanley said the class, which began in 2005, allows students to feel empowered and to find their voices.

“The smaller class gives me a chance to build a relationship with each person and to get to know them, and some of their ups and downs and special needs,” she said. “It’s a tough semester, but if they do their homework, it’s just transformative. This class really gives these kids a chance to put themselves in charge of that anxiety.

“It’s so much fun to watch people blossom and find their confidence. They’ll tell me afterward, ‘Oh, wow! My life is changed.’”

is mutual respect. There is so much in common to share — emotions, families, relatives, friends, memories, pain, love, joy — they are all common things that we share, all human beings. And that’s what matters, I think.”

Salimi said that he like movies that make him think.

“I like entertainment,” he said. “But, when I leave the movie theater, I want to feel enriched, enhanced, I want to have learned something. When I’m with my friends, I want to talk about it. When movies spoonfeed me, it’s just like okay, I spent $10 and I’ve been entertained for two hours. But the movie doesn’t make me do something — it doesn’t make me think about it and influence other people by talking about it.”

The situations in his life have shaped the way he looks at film.

“Afghanistan is a big market for Bollywood films,” he said. “I learned Hindi from watching movies. It was those kind of movies that I liked from early on. But when I went to college, I realized that, wait, it’s the

same story told over and over again with different people, there really isn’t much in it. There is more than just Bollywood. So when I watched other, non-Bollywood films, it was so strong, so powerful.”

Whether it is through film or documentaries, ultimately Salimi’s goal is to pay his duties back as a citizen artist and become a voice of voiceless people.

“In life, I have seen so many regimes change and people come to power, and then fighting for God against communism and fighting for communism against the opposition. But who suffers? The people, the ones that get left behind — mothers, wives, children, fathers. These political, religious beliefs, they just take lives away.”

Salimi’s story could be a movie in itself. A story of struggle, of courage and of survival. Most of all, it is a story of a man who has seen the worst of the world, but seeks to make the best of the world — and tell that story.

“It helps people learn a little bit about what the fear is about.”

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Understanding through Art

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PEOPLE from page 7

CARLA TOWSON

Carla Towson is an artist and a teacher, and she uses these skills to guide young minds. “Art and educating are two things that I enjoy,” she says. “Art is an emotion.” The Orange native began her studies at Lamar University before earning a degree in interior design from Texas Christian University.

Carla has been an educator for six years at Central Medical Magnet High School, and says she loves to mentor the students and coach them to express their feelings through art. “I try to understand my students,” she says. “Having someone that understands and relates to you, where you come from, and your feelings truly helps my students.” Although Carla enjoys teaching, she plans to interior design in the near future. “My favorite art is modern and especially pop art, because I love the fact that artists such as Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg took everyday objects and everyday things and turned them into brilliant art, like the Campbell’s Soup art,” she says. Carla has also helped many of her students place in the Southeast Texas State Fair Art Contest. Whether it is designing house interiors or developing the interior minds of her young students, Carla brings creativity to everything she does.

Text and photo by Kayla Holmes

Powerlifting to Gold ALVIN GOLDMAN JR.

Going to the Olympics is every athlete’s dream. But Alvin Goldman Jr. aims to make his dream a reality. The political science major is a powerlifter. The Beaumont native started lifting in seventh grade as a way to relieve stress. “I was always small and short in size, and I hated that all my friends had imposing figures,” Alvin says. “I grew up with anger problems, and after a school fight, a counselor told me to focus that energy in the weight room and see how it turns out.” One thing led to another, and now the Lamar senior is training to being a strong competitor. Alvin won three state championships in powerlifting while attending West Brook High School, and first place in one national championship. Alvin has leg pressed 1,200 pounds and benched 425 pounds. He keeps practicing in hopes that his hard work will pay off.

“Hopefully, I see myself in the Olympics on the U.S.A. Olympic lifting team, which I am currently training for,” he adds. While training, Alvin also finds time to complete his schoolwork and his goal is to become a politician. “I grew up around judges and had the chance to meet a few members of the House of Representatives,” Alvin says.

As hard as Alvin works, he may well bring home the gold in sports and politics.

Text and photo by Derrick Owens

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November 2015

Don’t be ‘Moody’ A quick trip along the Gulf Coast is perfect GALVESTON — The weather is getting colder and the sun sets around 5:30 p.m. What does that mean?

Winter break is just around the corner.

With no classes to attend, LU students will find they have more free time than normal on their hands.

This holiday season, friends, family and loved ones in the Southeast Texas area should hop in their cars and plan a day trip to check out some of the great things happening in Galveston later this month.

Just over two hours from Lamar, Galveston has so much to offer, even for a quick trip. I suggest travelers wake up early and get breakfast in Crystal Beach at Dannay’s Donuts. Their kolaches graced the breakfast table for many of my childhood Fourth of Julys.

Warm and fresh — they should provide plenty of energy to get anyone through the second half of the drive. Most of the remaining trip is a ferry ride. It’s actually pretty fun — sometimes there are dolphins to see. Of course, that is preceded by the interminable wait in the ferry line because, of course, they have decided to cut back to one boat that day. But I digress.

If getting up early doesn’t sound appealing, or maybe you’re just too hung-over from post-exam celebrating to function until the Advil kicks in, having a late lunch in Galveston after a leisurely morning at home is just as enjoyable.

A bit off the

regular tourist beat is Farley Girls, a modern café with something for everyone. The restaurant will probably be filled with locals, including my older brother and his fiancé. They’re regular patrons. Seriously — it’s so good.

If a visitor wants more of the typical island experience, I get it. It’s fun to do the touristy things. Most of the restaurants along Seawall Boulevard, like Gaido’s Seafood, have a great view of the ocean, and the historic Strand district is a great place to grab a bite to eat and window shop for holiday gifts. Visitors should get a henna or airbrush tattoo if they’re feeling frisky.

But please, all I ask: don’t go to a chain seafood restaurant. I’m not saying lunch has to be seafood, but if it is, make sure it’s local. Yes, I understand that just about everyone loves popcorn shrimp, but resist the urge to settle for something you can get elsewhere.

Find somewhere local to get real southern seafood, like Miller’s Seawall Grill. May I suggest seafood gumbo if the weather is extra chilly? Or, for those willing to pay a little more, Fisherman’s Warf has, hands down, my favorite stuffed flounder. Crab and crawfish in a fresh gulf-caught fish? How much more SETX can you get?

Since it is fall, I don’t suggest going swimming off the Seawall or visiting Schlitterbahn Water Park, though they do have a heated indoor attraction for the brave enthusiast (I’m not going to be the one risking hy-

pothermia, thank you very much).

The holiday season is the ideal time of year to visit Moody Gardens. They’re open year-round, but fall and winter is my favorite time to visit. The animals seem friskier and it’s not god-awfully hot walking between the buildings.

Visitors who aren’t a fan of the cold can beat the chill in the Rainforest Pyramid. People can get upclose and personal with exotic animals in the warm tropical habitat.

Here’s fair warning — once you enter the main pyramid, the animals are not contained in typical cages. Monkeys frequently dash across the walkways and perch on the handrails. The sloths, which are a personal favorite of mine, hang overhead, slowly inching their way across their suspended netting. Be careful looking up, though — bird poo is a real and frequent danger.

There are exotic reptiles, mammals, fish, amphibians and beautiful birds filling the enormous structure, and educational resources about rainforest conservation throughout.

According to Moody Garden’s website, the Aquarium Pyramid has been undergoing renovations since August of this year. Thankfully, the first wave of construction was scheduled to end Nov. 13, so the pyramid should be open with the rest of the holiday exhibits. The park is keeping most of the details a secret, so I can’t say what visitors can expect with this month’s re-open, but I’m hopeful.

According to the renovation schedule, the penguins should be on exhibit through January. Honestly, the penguins are my favorite part. They have so many different types, like Emperor and Rock Hopper penguins that waddle and fall, and they swim right up next to the glass.

There are other exhibits and activities at Moody Gardens, and limited engagement events for the holiday season, like the SpongeBob Squarepants Ice Land Exhibit. Artists from around the world were brought in to carve over two million pounds of ice into Bikini Bottom’s most beloved characters. Personally, I don’t get the connection between SpongeBob and Christmas, but it still sounds really cool (pun intended).

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for the holidays Story and graphic by Haley Bruyn

winter pick-me-up Once the sun goes down, one of Moody Garden’s most festive holiday traditions opens — the Festival of Lights. More than one million lights illuminate the park with displays that pay homage to both the holiday season and Moody Garden’s non-human residents. Giant butterflies flap their wings and bright fish splash across the night sky.

As a 21-year-old female, one would think the magic of pretty lights and holiday music wouldn’t appeal like it used to. Well, it does.

There’s something about being surrounded by thousands of shimmering, colorful, happy lights that makes me feel festive in spite of my normal Scrooge-esque outlook on commercialism during holidays.

Visitors can enjoy outdoor ice-skating under the lights, or simply sip on hot cocoa while they wander the path that winds through the park.

People like me may get a kick out of watching native Texans try to ice-skate. (Spoiler: they fall. It’s hilarious).

After all of the sights of Moody Gardens have been gawked over, travelers should go to the Rainforest Café for dinner.

OK, yes, earlier I did advocate for local restaurants only. I’m a hypocrite. So what? And, yes, maybe it’s a bit juvenile — but the animatronic jungle animals, regular pretend volcanic eruptions and large fruity drinks in glowing cups are fun. After an afternoon of rekindling a sense of child-like wonder at Moody Gardens, why not indulge the inner kid and eat somewhere that’s meant to be an experience? And, if patrons are so inclined, there is even a river raft ride inside of the gift shop to finish off the night with one last smile.

There are tons of other things to do and see in Galveston. I’m personally just a big fan of Moody Gardens this time of year, obviously.

My ideal day trip might not be everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s okay. The point is that there is fun to be had without taking a whole, big arduous vacation. Try something new this holiday season. Or, there’s always the option of staying home and crying over student loans.

Your choice.

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