What It Means to Take Refuge in Buddhism

When I was six years old a visiting Tibetan Buddhist teacher granted an audience to the kids of Buddhist practitioners in New York City. At the end, a few of us decided to take refuge, a vow that would mean we would, from then on, be Buddhists ourselves. There were three of us who opted into this vow. I sat next to Remy, and was told to repeat line-by-line after the Buddhist teacher. Finally he instructed us to say our name and that we took refuge in what is known as the three jewels of Buddhism.