The Trajectory of My Life: Pivotal Moments by Paxton Bush

The Brain Drain

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-01 23:09:47 UTC

The Brain Drain was a period during the early 2000s where Canadian academics and graduates moved to the United States to pursue jobs in academia. Particularly in biomedical sciences and biotechnology, due to the draft version of the human genome being sequenced. In 2002, my parents moved to California from Vancouver, so that my dad could complete his post-doctoral work at an private research institute in San Diego.

2002

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-01 23:33:45 UTC

My parents in Pismo beach while on their way to San Diego.

CANADA'S BRAIN DRAIN: MONEY LURES SCIENTISTS SOUTH

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-01 23:44:34 UTC

World War 1

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 00:05:20 UTC

In 1914 during the first World War, my great-great grandfather was taken into the Russian army. In 1915, my great-great grandmother and great grandmother escaped Volhynia, Russia/Poland (now northwestern Ukraine) to find safety northern Germany (they were German but had lived in a German farming community in Russian for generations). They were forced to leave Germany because they were considered “White Russians”, so they went to a refugee camp at the edge of Denmark. 7 years after they had been separated, my great-great grandparents were reunited in Denmark. During this time, Canada was inviting immigrants to come settle on land in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, causing them to arrive by ship in 1923.

The Great Recession

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 00:05:47 UTC

Between December 2007 to June 2009, the world, but more specifically the United States, experienced a period of economic depression. It was triggered by the United States housing market bubble bursting, due to the banking industries loose lending practices. It led to job losses, increased unemployment, and a decline in household wealth. My parents bought our house in June of 2007, and only 6 months later the value of our home decreased by 1/3. If my parents had waited only a few more months to buy our house, they could have spent a lot less than they originally had to.

Germans from Volhynia

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 00:42:51 UTC

COVID

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 00:51:01 UTC

On March 13, 2020, all Fresno Unified schools shut down in response to COVID-19 pandemic. Students were supposed to return to school after spring break, but due to the rapid outbreak of the virus, online schooling did not resume until August. The sudden shift led to a disruption of every aspect of normalcy that I had in my life. All the activities my middle school had planned the following week were cancelled. I had to wait an extra 4 months to get my braces off, and my class never got the chance to go to 6th Grade Camp-something we had all be looking forward to. Online school was not the same. It was very difficult to focus online and students lost valuable instructional time due to the short school days.

The Great Recession + It's Aftermath

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 01:06:39 UTC

Affects on the San Joaquin Valley

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 01:13:01 UTC

Bob Nelson Announcing Cancelling of Classes

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 01:17:17 UTC

Fresno Unified Distance Learning

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 01:37:48 UTC

1923

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 04:41:24 UTC

My great grandmother, Augusta, on the right, with her mother, father, and siblings.

Found Poem

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 17:17:56 UTC

From Revisiting Canada's Brain Drain: Evidence from the 2000 Cohort of Canadian University Graduates by David Zarifa and David Walters

Black Out Poem

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-02 17:18:54 UTC

From Archives of Ontario War Poster Collection, Bring Him Home with the Victory Loan [Canada], [ca. 1918]

Cento Poem

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-03 16:46:43 UTC

Black Out Poem

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-03 20:06:33 UTC

From THE ANNIE E. CASEY FOUNDATION, PANDEMIC LEARNING LOSS AND COVID -19: EDUCATION IMPACTS

The Germans from Volhynia and Russian Poland

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-05 17:03:04 UTC

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-05 17:07:47 UTC

https://irpp.org/research-studies/the-brain-drain-myth-and-reality/

The Great Recession's Impact on the Housing Market

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-05 17:10:21 UTC

https://www.investopedia.com/investing/great-recessions-impact-housing-market/

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Quality of Educational Process: A Student Survey

paxtonbush1 — 2025-06-05 17:17:04 UTC

https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/21/7770