I think for some people when they retire, they tend to spend a lot of time relaxing and enjoying free time with nothing on their schedule. I never really thought my parents would be that way when they retired, and they have proven me right in the years since my dad stopped working. I feel like my parents have never been busier! Right now, things aren’t as busy for my parents as they used to be, but they are still always doing something.
One of the things that my parents do is attend the San Jose Speaker Series. They’ve been doing this for a little while now and they always get to see the most amazing people. Before the pandemic, the Speaker Series was done at a theater. And for a little while, they took a break with the hopes that soon they would be able to restart. But since the pandemic has continued, the speaker series has gone online and is doing as a Zoom presentation. My parents still are watching each one and they always have the best stories after watching a speaker.
They had one with W. Kamau Bell this week, and they ended up having an extra ticket for it. And since this is done over Zoom and anyone in the world can watch, my parents asked me if I wanted the extra ticket! I said yes right away! I’ve heard W. Kamau Bell be interviewed on different podcasts and I’ve always been impressed by what he’s said. And I knew that what he discusses is very similar to the different anti-racism books and research I’ve been reading lately. So I was excited to continue my anti-racism education with his lecture.
It was kind of nice getting to watch the lecture from my house. I had set it up on my iPad but then streamed it to my tv so it would be on a big screen. I was able to be comfortable while watching and looking things up on my phone if he mentioned something I wasn’t familiar with or a show or book I wanted to remember for later.
A lot of what he discussed were things I have learned recently from the news or my reading. One thing he talked about that I’ve been learning more about recently is medical racism. I only knew minimal information about medical racism such as the medical mistreatment in the past. Until recently, I didn’t know as much about how medical students aren’t taught about how different diseases can present with different skin tones. For example, the photos in textbooks of different rashes are usually on pale skin because it’s easier to see them. But that doesn’t teach those medical students about how to recognize the same rash on darker skin. And with the pandemic, medical racism has really become obvious with how some patients aren’t believed when they say they are in pain or are struggling to breathe. It’s awful, but I’m glad I’m learning more about it so I can educate others and make sure I don’t make those judgments about people.
The lecture lasted about 90 minutes, but I wish it was a bit longer. It was so good and I was learning so much. And it didn’t really feel like I was just watching a Zoom presentation. It did help that nobody was on the screen except the speakers, but it still felt different. It almost felt a bit more serious than what most things I’ve seen on Zoom are like. I also loved the idea that even though I was hundreds of miles away from my parents, we were watching the same thing at the same time. It was a live event that wasn’t recorded, which makes it special.
I was talking with my mom after the lecture was done and we were both saying how maybe they will keep the virtual series an option even when they can go back to watching the speakers in person in a theater. If they do that, I might see about getting tickets because I really liked it. And there are amazing speakers in the series each season.
I’ve said how I need to have more fun in my days, and while this was serious it still felt like something fun. It was educational and entertaining and it gave me something to look forward to. I’m still working on adding more things to my days because this proved to me that it’s exactly what I needed. Hopefully, I’ll find more things soon, but for now, I’m just grateful my parents had an extra ticket to the Speaker Series and I got to join them for this one.
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