Hello everyone! My name is David Kutz and I will be joining Mona Yeh in participating in The Modern Story program this October – March. I am very excited and grateful for this opportunity. I just graduated from the University of New Hampshire in Durham, NH where I studied English, History and Philosophy. I have never been further from the United States than Canada, so I am very excited to soon be in India and am anxious to learn about a new culture and way of life.

Here is a little bit about me – I am 23 years old. I was born in Fall River, Massachusetts. I have one sister, Kristen, who is two years older than me. Kristen, my parents and I are very close and my family has been very important in my life and continues to motivate me to be a better person. As a child, I loved to play sports and spend time with my friends. I especially loved basketball. I went to public schools from kindergarten through High School in Somerset, Massachusetts and was always on some kind of school sports team – whether basketball, soccer, or football. During this time in my life, I was often shooting basketballs in my back yard and watching football on television.

By the end of High School, I began to change. I fell in love with reading and writing and took as many English classes as I could. During this time, I also became interested in international affairs and how the United States interacted with other countries throughout the world. In the thick of my new interests, I decided to quit sports my sophomore year in High School. To fill up my free time, I began playing drums and worked in a local drum shop, where I would eventually teach drum lessons.

After senior year in High School, I was very nervous about going to college and was especially scared of a relatively large state university, like UNH, where there are over 12,000 students. However, after some time I came to love the school and during my years there made the best friends I’ve ever had. It was my involvement in various clubs at UNH, as both a member and a leader, which really helped me to be comfortable being myself around others. I eventually learned the importance of learning from and instructing my peers whenever possible.

My freshman year at UNH, I got involved in creative writing classes. The following year, I began to help the campus television station and spent a lot of time working on student-run television shows and short film projects. I eventually became comfortable enough with the equipment and with my own ideas to produce several short films and a television show. In my free time away from school, I was able to play shows as a drummer in several different bands with my friends. The idea of performing in front of others was at first one of the scariest things I could imagine. After several years of drumming in front of crowds, however, I became more comfortable with the experience and now look forward to any opportunity to perform in front of others. It’s still scary, but it’s also always rewarding and never fails to invigorate the spirit.

My experiences with creative writing, working for the campus television station and playing music have made me respect the value and importance of creativity and art in all forms. This is especially why I am excited to participate in The Modern Story – creative expression is the best way to empower yourself and to instruct and interact with others. That’s all for now. Looking forward to meeting the wonderful students and posting from India!