I’m soooo hyped up from the crazy night that just happened. I can’t sleep. So I’ll tell you about my day.
We had Heroes Training Academy yesterday. I’m one of the team leaders for the Young Heroes so along with Evelyn (a nice lady from the community who volunteered to be a team leader as well) we have a great team of about 13 middle school kids who signed up to be in City Year’s Young Heroes program. I woke up at 5:45 to go help set up. The training lasted from 8-6. We did PT in the morning. I was on PT crew which means I got to help lead PT. It was a blast! The kids were all really into it! And of course I was too. We got to meet our teams and have our “hour one” with them. This was basically a name game, Evelyn and I gave our testimonials and why we decided to be a Young Heroes Team Leader. Then we asked all the kids why they joined Young Heroes and what they hope to get out of it. We went over some rules and expectations and had the kids make a full value contract. We ended with a couple team builders. It was a good time; the kids were great and full of energy. During lunch they got to write a letter to another middle schooler who is also doing the Young Heroes program at another City Year site. They’ll get to be pen pals with this person and talk about this experience. I thought that was really cool. We watched My Friend Martin and then played MLK jeopardy. Jill explained what a hero is and the four Cs (compassion, cooperation, courage, and commitment). We then broke off into our teams and discussed who we think is a hero and which of the four Cs they displayed. Then we made up a skit as a team to portray courage. I think all the kids on our team had a really good time coming up with the skit. And that was basically the day. I had a spectacular time. I am so glad I’m going to be a YH Team Leader. I know it’s extra time on my Saturdays, but it’s time spent doing something I really really really enjoy.
So after the training we went to see A Christmas Carol at the San Pedro Playhouse. It was the musical version so I like it a lot. Some guy fell asleep right behind Jill and I and snored up a storm. Jill left during intermission because she was zonked from the day. After we left the play is when the insanity happened.
So Matt and Robert dropped me off at Jill’s because my car was there. I go inside to get my stuff. Charles and Kristen are there so I chat with them for a minute, but no more than 15. I’m walking back out to my car and when I’m in sight of it I think I see people in my car. I thought I hallucinated. It was the trippiest thing ever. I walk closer and there are definitely people in my car so I start to think maybe it’s not my car. I’m looking around, but as I get close enough to see that it is most definitely my car and there are definitely two guys in the passenger seat and the seat behind that I just stare at them for a second. It clicks for them too that it’s my car so they hop out and run. Thank goodness… So I open my car and the paneling from around the steering wheel is gone. My car won’t start. I go back inside and wake Jill up. And everyone comes out with me. We call the cops, they do their thing and I get it towed back to my house. Basically, I walked out there and two punks were stealing my car! I don’t know what kind of karma it was, good or bad, a little of both I guess. So I’m taking it to this guy to have it fixed today. Like my dad said, just one of those real life things.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Monday, December 8, 2008
A whole month!!!
Wow. I can't believe it's been a month since I've updated. I'm so bad at this. It's been one hell of a month too. Times were tough for a long while. City Year is amazing, but intense. It kind of started to hit everyone. I was taking it in stride until Laurent left. Then things were pretty much rock bottom. I was still loving it. I mean, who wouldn't love hanging out with kids and when you aren't hanging out with them you're planning ways to teach, inspire, and connect with them. But it's typical to get burned out and we were all feeling that. But the couple weeks before Thanksgiving break things started to miraculously look up. My team had been having some issues, which were finally resolved. The connections with our kids were getting stronger and they were filling us with this unbelievable energy. So now I feel myself on the steady climb up. Back to the top of mountain where I know I belong because let's be honest. I dig this place, this work we're doing, and I wouldn't trade this experience for any other.
Jill, Kristen and I went up to Lilly's parents' place for Thanksgiving. It reminded me a lot of my dad's and that helped with the homesickness that comes along with the first holiday away from family. But my family here was a great substitute. I definitely can't wait to go back to Georgia over Christmas. Two whole weeks!!! I know it's going to fly by, but I'm going to soak up as much dad, lexie, leigh, mom, sarah, brooke, ashley, katy, layton, meredith, Athens, and pure Georgia goodness as much as humanly possible. I'm sure Koda and Falkor are going to soak up as much farm time as caninely possible.
Jill and I have been checking out the Unitarian Universalist church here. I really like it, but I've been reminded lately of what attracts me to seminary so much. It's made me think about the importance of finding a Presbyterian church here. This past weekend I went to University Pres and it seemed to fit nicely. It's kinda small, but not too small. There was an inviting group of young adults and decent youth group that I can be involved with. What really sold me is this SOL learning center the church runs. And starting in January one of the classes you can sign up for is cooking: quick, fresh and local. Needless to say I'm definitely sold. I think it's important for me to find an outlet other than City Year. As much as I love living, breathing and embodying City Year to the best of my abilty, I know it'll be healthy for me to have something else passionate in my life.
That's all the updating for now. More to come soon, I promise.
Peace.
Jill, Kristen and I went up to Lilly's parents' place for Thanksgiving. It reminded me a lot of my dad's and that helped with the homesickness that comes along with the first holiday away from family. But my family here was a great substitute. I definitely can't wait to go back to Georgia over Christmas. Two whole weeks!!! I know it's going to fly by, but I'm going to soak up as much dad, lexie, leigh, mom, sarah, brooke, ashley, katy, layton, meredith, Athens, and pure Georgia goodness as much as humanly possible. I'm sure Koda and Falkor are going to soak up as much farm time as caninely possible.
Jill and I have been checking out the Unitarian Universalist church here. I really like it, but I've been reminded lately of what attracts me to seminary so much. It's made me think about the importance of finding a Presbyterian church here. This past weekend I went to University Pres and it seemed to fit nicely. It's kinda small, but not too small. There was an inviting group of young adults and decent youth group that I can be involved with. What really sold me is this SOL learning center the church runs. And starting in January one of the classes you can sign up for is cooking: quick, fresh and local. Needless to say I'm definitely sold. I think it's important for me to find an outlet other than City Year. As much as I love living, breathing and embodying City Year to the best of my abilty, I know it'll be healthy for me to have something else passionate in my life.
That's all the updating for now. More to come soon, I promise.
Peace.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
quick update
This is going to be such an abbreviated blog update. I promise never to let this much time go by…
So Austin. It was amazing. It really is like Katy Roe says, Athens on steroids. I loved it. The feel of it, the size, the culture. It really seems to fit Layton and I could see myself there one day. But I’m glad I’m not there now. I wanted this year to be such a drastic change. And San Antonio is so different from any other place I’ve lived. So it’s perfect. I loved meeting Layton’s friends and finally feeling like our moves out here are complete. We have these amazing separate lives in separate cities, yet we are still undeniably connected. It’s inspiring.
Leigh came to visit. I cried in the airport when I saw her, if that gives you any idea of how excited I was that she was here. She ended up staying for a whole week! I took the Monday she was here off. We went exploring around San Antonio. We went to a couple of the missions. Mission Conception and the San Jose Mission. They were beautiful and we took millions of pictures which was good fun. She hung out with the puppies while I was at work and then we got to hang out. She came to work on Wednesday with us. She wasn’t too bored, which is good. A ridiculous cold front came in so when we went to see the Movie in the Park at Hemisfair it was freezing. We had a great time laughing our butts off at the Birds. Great flick. I made her get up bright and early on Friday morning to come watch us do PT at the Eastside Boys and Girls Club where our Make a Difference Day service event took place. She was entertained at least. She came to MADD on Saturday for a bit at the beginning and the end. Matt Lugo and I had a great big group of fraternity men. They were relatively productive; I could have been a stronger leader. But we got the baseball field all beatified, so it worked out. We just hung out for the rest of the weekend. And the crazy ending to her visit was the puppy! Jill found a puppy outside of their apartments and was set on keeping it or finding a home. So Leigh ended up taking it back to Atlanta. It looks like Lexie and Philip are keeping it until they find a home for it (or fall in love with it). It’s an adorable little Koda looking pup. It was great to have her visit and I’m sad she’s gone…
Alright, so the super sad news. Skip to the next paragraph is you like. I found out last Friday (24th of Oct) that Lauren was leaving. She told us on the way to our big community meeting. There is no easy way to describe how much I miss her. She was a blast and I definitely felt like I could relate to her. I loved her spirit and felt so lucky to know her. I know none of that is gone now, but it’s different when she is not right there next to me. It’s going to be harder getting to know her and building our friendship with her all the way back in New York. But it’ll be worth it.
That’s good enough for now.
PAZ.
So Austin. It was amazing. It really is like Katy Roe says, Athens on steroids. I loved it. The feel of it, the size, the culture. It really seems to fit Layton and I could see myself there one day. But I’m glad I’m not there now. I wanted this year to be such a drastic change. And San Antonio is so different from any other place I’ve lived. So it’s perfect. I loved meeting Layton’s friends and finally feeling like our moves out here are complete. We have these amazing separate lives in separate cities, yet we are still undeniably connected. It’s inspiring.
Leigh came to visit. I cried in the airport when I saw her, if that gives you any idea of how excited I was that she was here. She ended up staying for a whole week! I took the Monday she was here off. We went exploring around San Antonio. We went to a couple of the missions. Mission Conception and the San Jose Mission. They were beautiful and we took millions of pictures which was good fun. She hung out with the puppies while I was at work and then we got to hang out. She came to work on Wednesday with us. She wasn’t too bored, which is good. A ridiculous cold front came in so when we went to see the Movie in the Park at Hemisfair it was freezing. We had a great time laughing our butts off at the Birds. Great flick. I made her get up bright and early on Friday morning to come watch us do PT at the Eastside Boys and Girls Club where our Make a Difference Day service event took place. She was entertained at least. She came to MADD on Saturday for a bit at the beginning and the end. Matt Lugo and I had a great big group of fraternity men. They were relatively productive; I could have been a stronger leader. But we got the baseball field all beatified, so it worked out. We just hung out for the rest of the weekend. And the crazy ending to her visit was the puppy! Jill found a puppy outside of their apartments and was set on keeping it or finding a home. So Leigh ended up taking it back to Atlanta. It looks like Lexie and Philip are keeping it until they find a home for it (or fall in love with it). It’s an adorable little Koda looking pup. It was great to have her visit and I’m sad she’s gone…
Alright, so the super sad news. Skip to the next paragraph is you like. I found out last Friday (24th of Oct) that Lauren was leaving. She told us on the way to our big community meeting. There is no easy way to describe how much I miss her. She was a blast and I definitely felt like I could relate to her. I loved her spirit and felt so lucky to know her. I know none of that is gone now, but it’s different when she is not right there next to me. It’s going to be harder getting to know her and building our friendship with her all the way back in New York. But it’ll be worth it.
That’s good enough for now.
PAZ.
Obama on City Year
So I haven't updated in a while cause my computer has been broken. Soon there will be an update on Austin, Leigh's visit, Lauren leaving, MADD, and lots more. But in the wake of the history that was made last night I felt that this speak from Obama was necessary:
Remarks from President-elect Barack Obama during the 2006 City Year Chicago Ripples of Hope Awards Dinner
May 31, 2006
“I started out as a community organizer—that is what originally brought me to Chicago—so I am well aware, for all the City Year participants, that it is not always glamorous work. I know that you wake up sometimes, and say that ´This is too hard,´ and that ´I don’t feel like I am making enough of a difference,´ and ´I am frustrated, and nobody appreciates me,´ and that, I think, is the nature of a lot of service work. This is not a society that always values it. It certainly does not always reward it monetarily. Despite the fact that in all of life’s journeys there are always going to be disappointments and setbacks I notice that you are still doing it—you are doing it anyway, and I don’t think that it is just out of a sense of obligation. It’s not just because it makes you feel good. It’s also because you have genuinely come to care for the people that you work with—that you’ve seen the look of hope in a child’s face and that makes it worth while, that makes all the frustrations go away.”
"The only caution I have is this: as the City Year participants continue on in life it will not get easier; it will get harder. You will encounter all kinds of obstacles along the way and people who don’t put much stock in empathy. You will find people who, out of fear or the need for power, try to divide us and deny what we have in common. You will hear that American’s who sleep in the streets and beg for food got there because they’re lazy or they are weak in spirit. You will hear that immigrants, who risked their lives to cross a dessert because they just want to make a better life for their children, in fact, don’t belong here. You will hear that inner city children who are trapped in schools with not enough money—not enough resources—that these children can’t learn and won’t learn, so we should just give up on them. You will hear of innocent people who are being slaughtered or expelled from their homes, half-way around the world, are somebody else’s problem and not your problem. You are going to hear all this, and you’ll have to choose, at some point, where your obligations lie."
"Now the easiest thing in the world to do is to do nothing, to turn off the TV set or to put down the paper and to walk away from the stories about Iraq, or Darfur, or poverty, or violence, or joblessness, or hopelessness, to go about your busy lives, wishing these problems away but expecting someone else to do it. There is no community service requirement in the real world. No one forces you to care. No one demands that you extend yourself. And after you leave City Year, you can go, if you choose, to chase after big bucks and the nice suits and all the other things that our money culture says you should want. I hope you don’t do that. I hope that you don’t lose the spirit that brought you here because if you do you will be displaying a poverty of ambition. Nothing’s easier than looking after yourself, but I hope that you do what’s hard, and knowing what you have done so far I think my hope is well placed.”
Remarks from President-elect Barack Obama during the 2006 City Year Chicago Ripples of Hope Awards Dinner
May 31, 2006
“I started out as a community organizer—that is what originally brought me to Chicago—so I am well aware, for all the City Year participants, that it is not always glamorous work. I know that you wake up sometimes, and say that ´This is too hard,´ and that ´I don’t feel like I am making enough of a difference,´ and ´I am frustrated, and nobody appreciates me,´ and that, I think, is the nature of a lot of service work. This is not a society that always values it. It certainly does not always reward it monetarily. Despite the fact that in all of life’s journeys there are always going to be disappointments and setbacks I notice that you are still doing it—you are doing it anyway, and I don’t think that it is just out of a sense of obligation. It’s not just because it makes you feel good. It’s also because you have genuinely come to care for the people that you work with—that you’ve seen the look of hope in a child’s face and that makes it worth while, that makes all the frustrations go away.”
"The only caution I have is this: as the City Year participants continue on in life it will not get easier; it will get harder. You will encounter all kinds of obstacles along the way and people who don’t put much stock in empathy. You will find people who, out of fear or the need for power, try to divide us and deny what we have in common. You will hear that American’s who sleep in the streets and beg for food got there because they’re lazy or they are weak in spirit. You will hear that immigrants, who risked their lives to cross a dessert because they just want to make a better life for their children, in fact, don’t belong here. You will hear that inner city children who are trapped in schools with not enough money—not enough resources—that these children can’t learn and won’t learn, so we should just give up on them. You will hear of innocent people who are being slaughtered or expelled from their homes, half-way around the world, are somebody else’s problem and not your problem. You are going to hear all this, and you’ll have to choose, at some point, where your obligations lie."
"Now the easiest thing in the world to do is to do nothing, to turn off the TV set or to put down the paper and to walk away from the stories about Iraq, or Darfur, or poverty, or violence, or joblessness, or hopelessness, to go about your busy lives, wishing these problems away but expecting someone else to do it. There is no community service requirement in the real world. No one forces you to care. No one demands that you extend yourself. And after you leave City Year, you can go, if you choose, to chase after big bucks and the nice suits and all the other things that our money culture says you should want. I hope you don’t do that. I hope that you don’t lose the spirit that brought you here because if you do you will be displaying a poverty of ambition. Nothing’s easier than looking after yourself, but I hope that you do what’s hard, and knowing what you have done so far I think my hope is well placed.”
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Wyclef Jean = Big Fan of CY
Thought this was cool. Wyclef Jean is a fan of City Year. He's here in this video at a concert for City Year folk doing a Bob Marley Jam session. He breaks into freestyle about City Year. The lyrics he says are below the link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEABRO5Q3bI
City Year, you’re doing a good job
I feel inspired, when I hear your stories
You’ve dedicated your lives so you can help others
Fulfill their possibilities, and don’t forget
To live for yourself is so selfish
But to live for others is your benediction
So City Year, here’s my benediction to you
Cause you have lived for others
The good Lord will bless you
May he guide you, like he guided Abraham
May he guide you, like he guided Moses
May he guide you, like he guided Isaac
There ain’t no wall, that you can’t break through
City Year, there ain’t no mountain too high, that you can’t climb
There ain’t no river wide, that you can’t cross
So let me tell you C-I-T-Y Y-E-A-R, you’re my superstar
C-I-T-Y Y-E-A-R, you’re my superstar
Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah
Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah
Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah
Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah
And I ain’t have nothing written
This is just lyrics, that’s coming from my mind
But it’s inspired from he who is devine
And it’s taken an inspiration to your lives
So let the children come
For they are the blessing of the world
So that you keep teaching the kids
Cause they are the blessing of the world
I know Crips, and I know Bloods
And I know Esses, I know Latin Kings
And I know child soldiers
And every time I meet them
They say Wyclef things would be different
If they gave us a little love
So you keep spreading the love City Year
You keep spreading the love City Year
You keep spreading the love City Year
We gonna take it into the new year
You keep spreading the love City Year
You keep spreading the love City Year
You keep spreading the love City Year
It’s gonna be a new year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEABRO5Q3bI
City Year, you’re doing a good job
I feel inspired, when I hear your stories
You’ve dedicated your lives so you can help others
Fulfill their possibilities, and don’t forget
To live for yourself is so selfish
But to live for others is your benediction
So City Year, here’s my benediction to you
Cause you have lived for others
The good Lord will bless you
May he guide you, like he guided Abraham
May he guide you, like he guided Moses
May he guide you, like he guided Isaac
There ain’t no wall, that you can’t break through
City Year, there ain’t no mountain too high, that you can’t climb
There ain’t no river wide, that you can’t cross
So let me tell you C-I-T-Y Y-E-A-R, you’re my superstar
C-I-T-Y Y-E-A-R, you’re my superstar
Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah
Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah
Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah
Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah, Oh-ah
And I ain’t have nothing written
This is just lyrics, that’s coming from my mind
But it’s inspired from he who is devine
And it’s taken an inspiration to your lives
So let the children come
For they are the blessing of the world
So that you keep teaching the kids
Cause they are the blessing of the world
I know Crips, and I know Bloods
And I know Esses, I know Latin Kings
And I know child soldiers
And every time I meet them
They say Wyclef things would be different
If they gave us a little love
So you keep spreading the love City Year
You keep spreading the love City Year
You keep spreading the love City Year
We gonna take it into the new year
You keep spreading the love City Year
You keep spreading the love City Year
You keep spreading the love City Year
It’s gonna be a new year.
conflicting emotions
WRITTEN A COUPLE OF NIGHTS AGO:
They said it would happen and I didn’t believe them. Not for a minute. I was too surrounded by passion to get swept up in the stereotypical crash after the mountain top high. Don’t get me wrong, this week has still been phenomenal by my pre-City Year standards, but I definitely started to let things wear me down. It started Sunday night. I let petty high school gossiping get the best of me, it outright hurt my feelings. I originately typed a lot more about the subject, but I'll leave it at that.
This week was also rather stressful because I had quite a scare with Koda. I ended up taking her to the vet before work on Wednesday morning because she was obviously sick with bloody vomit (sorry…) Anyways. $114 later the vet chalked it up to the simple fact that something irritated her stomach. I stayed home with her the next day to keep an eye on her. She still wasn’t quite herself Thursday morning and I couldn’t bring myself to leave her alone for 11 hours, but by that evening she seemed pretty much back to her old self. And I got a much needed mental health day.
Earlier this week we were a bit bummed out at McAuliffe. There was a lot testing and lack of interaction and progress with the kids. But my team met with the principal to have all of our lunch clubs approved. So those are starting next week and we also get our tutees and mentees next Tuesday! This means two very detailed lesson plans by Monday morning… but it’s worth it! We also started our CPR training today and even though it was incredibly boring stuff on the computer we get to work with the dummies next week! I also figured out what I want to do for my Leadership Development Internship (this is a 4 hour block we have on Wednesday morning to participate in an internship or volunteer opportunity with any non-profit in San Antonio). I’m going to take Falkor to the State Hospital to work with an adolescent group there! I’m VERY EXCITED about this.
So I know that’s a lot. I’m sorry if I overwhelmed, but this week was rather overwhelming for me as well. It’s over tho and I can start the steady climb back to the top and beyond. Here are some really cool things that show just that:
The Young Heroes team gave their presentation to recruit us to help out next semester and be a Team Leader for the Young Heroes. I’m really excited about getting to work with their team. Young Heroes is a club that was started in City Year for middle schoolers. They give up 3 Saturdays a month to participate in service learning seminars and service projects. They complete 100 hours of service and earn the President’s Award for Service. I can’t wait to work with these inspiring kids!
There is a LiveGreen festival type thing tomorrow that’s being put on by CPS and Saturn (so of course our Saturn sponsored Civic Engagement team is required to help out). I was already interested in going to check it out so I’m going to get hours there by helping out for a bit. I’ll have to remember to post tomorrow about all the cool stuff I see.
They said it would happen and I didn’t believe them. Not for a minute. I was too surrounded by passion to get swept up in the stereotypical crash after the mountain top high. Don’t get me wrong, this week has still been phenomenal by my pre-City Year standards, but I definitely started to let things wear me down. It started Sunday night. I let petty high school gossiping get the best of me, it outright hurt my feelings. I originately typed a lot more about the subject, but I'll leave it at that.
This week was also rather stressful because I had quite a scare with Koda. I ended up taking her to the vet before work on Wednesday morning because she was obviously sick with bloody vomit (sorry…) Anyways. $114 later the vet chalked it up to the simple fact that something irritated her stomach. I stayed home with her the next day to keep an eye on her. She still wasn’t quite herself Thursday morning and I couldn’t bring myself to leave her alone for 11 hours, but by that evening she seemed pretty much back to her old self. And I got a much needed mental health day.
Earlier this week we were a bit bummed out at McAuliffe. There was a lot testing and lack of interaction and progress with the kids. But my team met with the principal to have all of our lunch clubs approved. So those are starting next week and we also get our tutees and mentees next Tuesday! This means two very detailed lesson plans by Monday morning… but it’s worth it! We also started our CPR training today and even though it was incredibly boring stuff on the computer we get to work with the dummies next week! I also figured out what I want to do for my Leadership Development Internship (this is a 4 hour block we have on Wednesday morning to participate in an internship or volunteer opportunity with any non-profit in San Antonio). I’m going to take Falkor to the State Hospital to work with an adolescent group there! I’m VERY EXCITED about this.
So I know that’s a lot. I’m sorry if I overwhelmed, but this week was rather overwhelming for me as well. It’s over tho and I can start the steady climb back to the top and beyond. Here are some really cool things that show just that:
The Young Heroes team gave their presentation to recruit us to help out next semester and be a Team Leader for the Young Heroes. I’m really excited about getting to work with their team. Young Heroes is a club that was started in City Year for middle schoolers. They give up 3 Saturdays a month to participate in service learning seminars and service projects. They complete 100 hours of service and earn the President’s Award for Service. I can’t wait to work with these inspiring kids!
There is a LiveGreen festival type thing tomorrow that’s being put on by CPS and Saturn (so of course our Saturn sponsored Civic Engagement team is required to help out). I was already interested in going to check it out so I’m going to get hours there by helping out for a bit. I’ll have to remember to post tomorrow about all the cool stuff I see.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
So much to write. So little time.
This is a post I wrote last Friday:
I’ve been sick for over a week! I’m finally starting to feel like my old self again today. It’s glorious. We had a multitude of “coming out” events last week for the Corps that I feel I should expound upon. On Wednesday morning we were invited to a Rotary lunch (the biggest Rotary if I remember what Paul said correctly) I read the Invocation, Chrissy gave her testimonial (it made everyone cry, so inspiring). We lined up as a Corps and introduced ourselves (name, age and hometown) and then we recited the CityYear Pledge. We were all sexy in our uniforms, I’m not gonna lie. It made me ridiculously proud. Then we had opening day at City Hall on Friday. That was cool though I really wanted my dad to be there and my sisters. I read the Invocation again (which I had to recall from memory… apparently I’m the Corps Chaplin, not really) anyways, Sapphire and Matt Lugo gave their testimonials. Again, very inspiring. On Saturday we executed the Action Generation Service Summit. City Year spear-headed the coalition for that. I got to be a Project Coordinator for a project at Hemisfair Park. We painted park benches. The coolest part of the weekend was the fact that Layton came to visit! We watched the Dawgs lose on Saturday night… but had a great weekend overall. Jill and I visited the First Unitarian Universalist Church on Sunday and we pretty much fell in love (except for the plethora of spam that’s been invading our inboxes because of the visitor card…) It seemed very much our speed and was a very welcoming place. We’re definitely planning on going back this Sunday and hopefully bringing along some more people who would love it.
And this is what I have to say today. We had another great week at McAuliffe. We got lots of planning accomplished. We hammered out the plans for our first meeting with all our tutees and mentees. We also did a lot of lesson writing for our lunch clubs. On Friday we filled out all the information for our Food Stamps so it’s good to know that the ball is rolling on that one. Saturday was the first big service event that our CE team planned on their own and it was a HUGE success. They did a great job. It was at Avance which is a center for lower-income families, especially with children under 3 years-old. We brought in about 80 students from KIPP Aspire Academy. They worked on painting the fence. We also had volunteers from First Mark and they worked with Matt Lugo, Charles and me on building some benches and picnic tables for the center. It was a lot of fun to have the opportunity to PC a group again like I did last week at Hemisfair Park. Lauren’s boyfriend, Justin, is in town. It’s been great to get to know him. We all hung our at the “commune” last night and watched the Holiday and What About Bob. Today Jill and I attempted to make it to church again, but after missing our exit on the highway we decided to stop at a diner and just have brunch instead. We met Sasha at the River Center Mall and watched Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. It was cute. Then we went window shopping for a while. I was very tempted to buy these amazing cowboy boots. They were way too expensive so I didn’t, but I did decide that a trip to an outlet store to get some is definitely in order.
That’s the quick update on the past two weeks… I won’t procrastinate next time.
I’ve been sick for over a week! I’m finally starting to feel like my old self again today. It’s glorious. We had a multitude of “coming out” events last week for the Corps that I feel I should expound upon. On Wednesday morning we were invited to a Rotary lunch (the biggest Rotary if I remember what Paul said correctly) I read the Invocation, Chrissy gave her testimonial (it made everyone cry, so inspiring). We lined up as a Corps and introduced ourselves (name, age and hometown) and then we recited the CityYear Pledge. We were all sexy in our uniforms, I’m not gonna lie. It made me ridiculously proud. Then we had opening day at City Hall on Friday. That was cool though I really wanted my dad to be there and my sisters. I read the Invocation again (which I had to recall from memory… apparently I’m the Corps Chaplin, not really) anyways, Sapphire and Matt Lugo gave their testimonials. Again, very inspiring. On Saturday we executed the Action Generation Service Summit. City Year spear-headed the coalition for that. I got to be a Project Coordinator for a project at Hemisfair Park. We painted park benches. The coolest part of the weekend was the fact that Layton came to visit! We watched the Dawgs lose on Saturday night… but had a great weekend overall. Jill and I visited the First Unitarian Universalist Church on Sunday and we pretty much fell in love (except for the plethora of spam that’s been invading our inboxes because of the visitor card…) It seemed very much our speed and was a very welcoming place. We’re definitely planning on going back this Sunday and hopefully bringing along some more people who would love it.
And this is what I have to say today. We had another great week at McAuliffe. We got lots of planning accomplished. We hammered out the plans for our first meeting with all our tutees and mentees. We also did a lot of lesson writing for our lunch clubs. On Friday we filled out all the information for our Food Stamps so it’s good to know that the ball is rolling on that one. Saturday was the first big service event that our CE team planned on their own and it was a HUGE success. They did a great job. It was at Avance which is a center for lower-income families, especially with children under 3 years-old. We brought in about 80 students from KIPP Aspire Academy. They worked on painting the fence. We also had volunteers from First Mark and they worked with Matt Lugo, Charles and me on building some benches and picnic tables for the center. It was a lot of fun to have the opportunity to PC a group again like I did last week at Hemisfair Park. Lauren’s boyfriend, Justin, is in town. It’s been great to get to know him. We all hung our at the “commune” last night and watched the Holiday and What About Bob. Today Jill and I attempted to make it to church again, but after missing our exit on the highway we decided to stop at a diner and just have brunch instead. We met Sasha at the River Center Mall and watched Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. It was cute. Then we went window shopping for a while. I was very tempted to buy these amazing cowboy boots. They were way too expensive so I didn’t, but I did decide that a trip to an outlet store to get some is definitely in order.
That’s the quick update on the past two weeks… I won’t procrastinate next time.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
CYSA Corps
This is an amazing group photo at our Basic Training Retreat (at TECABOCA). We're basically awesome, beautiful people. It's going to be a glorious year!!!
Thursday, September 18, 2008
McAuliffe for Life!!!
So we’ve started serving in our schools this week. Well, learning and observing, but still interacting with the kids! They have a Mariachi band at this school and a journalism class. I’m most definitely doing to start a creative writing class… prolly focusing on poetry/song writing. The team seems to be settling into what we’ll be doing this year. We went there Wednesday and today. Kids remembered me from yesterday, which was awesome!! Yesterday we got acclimated to the school, learned about the FitnessGram we’ll be in charge of administering to all the students in the school, and played outside with the special ed class. Today we observed teachers that have good report with their students to get a perspective on how to create that with our tutees and mentees. We joined in on the PE class, which we’ll be doing a lot, especially before the FitnessGram. We stayed after today and went to an 8th grade girls’ Volleyball game (I thought of Sarah the whole time). They won! I’m taking it easy tonight cause the whole Corps is getting up bright an early to go to a Habitat for Humanity build tomorrow. I’m so excited for the weekend. I need to hang out with all my friends cause this week has kept us all busy and tired. I can’t believe we’ll actually be working so much. Roughly 55 hour weeks for the next ten months. And that doesn’t count the times we have blacked out days on the weekend. Apparently around MLK Jr Day we’ll be working everyday for two weeks straight… yikes. I can’t imagine people do that at jobs their not passionate about. This is amazing! If you haven’t gotten this already, I’m in love with City Year and San Antonio and McAuliffe Middle School and everything about this choice I made. The End.
Necessary Disclaimer
The contents of this website do not reflect in any way the positions of City Year or AmeriCorps. For official City Year policy see http://www.cityyear.org
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Weekend of Butterflies
Apparently monarch butterflies come out in swarms this time of year. There have been hundreds of butterflies all over the place. Literally in flocks. It’s awesome. I met three girls who live next door to me while they were outside catching butterflies. They are adorable and so sweet. I was quite the social butterfly myself this weekend. On Friday night Kristen, Lauren, Jill, Sasha, Matt, Liz, Maria and I went the Shisha Café to smoke hookah. I had some Mint Lemonade (delicious, real, fresh mint crushed up right in the glass, it reminded me of childhood) and the smoke some honey-berry hookah. Era muy delicioso. Saturday I slept in until noon. It was glorious. Last night we went to a Silver Stars (WMBA) game. (They played the Sacramento Monarchs...) Solomiya had some free vouchers for us poor City Year folk. It was A LOT of fun. We thought about going out afterwards, but ended up hanging out at the girls’ apartment for a while, watching some more of The Office. This morning I motivated myself to go to First Presbyterian Church. I have to admit, I was nervous, but I wanted another social outlet besides just City Year. The church is beautiful and ENORMOUS!!! There were tons of people, but I managed to find some other people in their 20s to sit with and they invited me to lunch afterwards and to a movie tonight and to their bible study on Tuesday nights. So all in all I would say it was a successful venture.
That was my amazing weekend. It was suppose to storm because of Hurricane Ike, but the weather has been especially beautiful instead.
That was my amazing weekend. It was suppose to storm because of Hurricane Ike, but the weather has been especially beautiful instead.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Action Generation Videos
THESE JUST IN. My 15 seconds of fame. A group of about 10 City Year corps members volunteered to be in these videos that were made to help promote San Antonio's day of service at the end September. So all the people you see are some of my fellow corps members! Check them out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELyuwHtvCEY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahz92bAtMHU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELyuwHtvCEY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahz92bAtMHU
TECABOCA!!!
(TExas CAtholic BOys CAmp) This is where I have been for the last 3 days; in the beautiful hill country of Texas, spending time with the wonderful CYSA Corps. I’m with the McAuliffe Middle School team. I’m very excited about that fact. The school is 95% Hispanic and a large majority of the students belong to migrant families. The dropout rate is San Antonio is 49% so there is a large need. There is also a significant gang problem in the school. We’ll be helping out with a math tutoring program in the morning plus tutoring and mentoring our specific kids. We’ll also be providing after-school activities and clubs centered on athletics (and maybe a creative writing/book club). Everyone is so pumped up and enthused about their teams. Tomorrow we get to go into the community where our school is located and do some community asset mapping. Tomorrow night we’ve invited the whole corps to get together at Fatty’s Burgers and More for some fun karaoke. I can’t wait to have more about our school to write about tomorrow. It is suppose to have great facilities and be out in the middle of nowhere, but I have no other details as of yet. Life is good ; )
Sunday, September 7, 2008
IS IT TRUE!?!?!
Am I home? I made the comment when someone asked me if I was going home for Thanksgiving or Christmas that San Antonio was my home. At the time, that was more of a desperate attempt to make myself believe it; hoping that at some distant time in the future it would actually come true. It’s kind of hard to believe that time is already here. Exactly 3 weeks after I first set foot on the soil of San Antonio. I think it’s the fact that my mom and Lexie left, so I don’t have the anticipation of anyone coming to visit (at least in the immediate future). Also the fact that we’re in training and so now my anticipation is completely focused on what I’ll be doing here and the people I’ll be spending the next 10 months with. I realized last night when Lauren and Liz were talking about being homesick that I’m not. It’s because I’m home. I can do this. I can go to a completely new place with completely new people and survive. No, thrive. I know there will be ups and downs. And don’t get me wrong, there are lots of people back in Georgia that I miss a lot a lot. But it’s not a hopeless longing like I thought it would be. It feels natural. I still talk to them, I still love them, they’ll still be a major part of my life, and I’ll see them soon. Until then, I’m content to be home. I don’t feel like I’m waiting for my life to begin anymore. I’m living. Passionately. And it feels amazing.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Ladies and Gents, training has begun!
Alright, it’s been a while. My mom and my sister, Lexie, came to visit so I’ve been busy soaking up as much time as possible with them. They arrived last Thursday and just left a little while ago. It was great having them here. It was great for my mom to get to see where I was and meet the people I’ll be hanging out with this year so she doesn’t worry as much. And it was just great to show off my sister to all my new friends. She’s awesome and I’m going to miss her so so so so much! AHH! Here are some of the things we did during their stay. Lexie and I went out with Robert, Matt, Jill, Lauren, Lizbeth and Sasha to smoke hookah at Shisha. Lizbeth tried to get the server’s number for me (he was very attractive, nice legs) but also married… oh well. We had the above mentioned girls over for some Taboo fun. On Labor Day Jill, Lauren, Sasha and I escaped the city for some hiking at Guadalupe Park. It was a little pricy, but we got to swim (in our undies… :-O) and relax on the shore “skipping” rocks, to no avail. They came over again last night for some Root Beer/Orange Soda Floats and some Tinto (Lauren's treat from Spain, it's red wine and lemon/orange Fanta).
Tuesday was our first day of training aka painting/cleaning up “J” St Park. It was a great way to bond and get to know some of the other core members. But today was our first official day of training and man o man, am I pumped. I just can’t wait to see what this year has to offer and to take advantage of as many of those opportunities as I can. Grant (one of the 6 amazing Team Leaders) and I were asked to come to a meeting on Friday with a representative from the Senator’s office. City Year is trying to actually meet with the senator so this meeting is to promote that idea and to tell them what City Year is all about so we can just have their overall support in the future. (Sorry, that’s vague… more details to come when I figure them out) Anyways, they want me to share why I chose City Year San Antonio. It made me feel special ^__^ The way they presented all this information to us today was great. The team leaders were so energetic and I was never bored, not once! And we were there from 9-5!! That’s pretty impressive. The idea of doing City Year a second year (hopefully as a team leader) has definitely popped into my brain… it’s too early to make any of those types of decisions, but I could see it happening. I’m even excited about the reading “homework” we have to do tonight.
Here’s another update! We’re going to have another roommate. Her name is Lilly (sweet, I know) she’s doing CYSA and she’s actually from San Antonio. She’s so nice and cool and has a dog named Wavy Gravy. She’ll be moving in Friday and we’ll be sharing my room. I’m so stoked to have another girl in the apartment I can barely stand it. Living with guys is great, more drama free, but the idea of Lilly living here just makes the apartment feel complete. Plus, Wavy Gravy is an energetic Aussie/Cattle Dog mix so hopefully she’ll keep Koda busy so Falkor stops getting picked on so much.
Overall, I’m ridiculously excited about this year. It's still been a lot of getting to know the people we'll be working alongside, but the kids I'll be working with have also been on my mind a lot lately. I can't wait to meet them and to build relationships. To help them learn and most definitely learn from them as well. I can’t wait to find out what team I’m on and to learn more about EVERYTHING! We’re going to this artsie/musicy/awesome festival thingy this Friday called First Friday. It’s suppose to be pretty rad. Until then it’s more training and bonding. I’ll write again soon. Promise.
Peace.
Tuesday was our first day of training aka painting/cleaning up “J” St Park. It was a great way to bond and get to know some of the other core members. But today was our first official day of training and man o man, am I pumped. I just can’t wait to see what this year has to offer and to take advantage of as many of those opportunities as I can. Grant (one of the 6 amazing Team Leaders) and I were asked to come to a meeting on Friday with a representative from the Senator’s office. City Year is trying to actually meet with the senator so this meeting is to promote that idea and to tell them what City Year is all about so we can just have their overall support in the future. (Sorry, that’s vague… more details to come when I figure them out) Anyways, they want me to share why I chose City Year San Antonio. It made me feel special ^__^ The way they presented all this information to us today was great. The team leaders were so energetic and I was never bored, not once! And we were there from 9-5!! That’s pretty impressive. The idea of doing City Year a second year (hopefully as a team leader) has definitely popped into my brain… it’s too early to make any of those types of decisions, but I could see it happening. I’m even excited about the reading “homework” we have to do tonight.
Here’s another update! We’re going to have another roommate. Her name is Lilly (sweet, I know) she’s doing CYSA and she’s actually from San Antonio. She’s so nice and cool and has a dog named Wavy Gravy. She’ll be moving in Friday and we’ll be sharing my room. I’m so stoked to have another girl in the apartment I can barely stand it. Living with guys is great, more drama free, but the idea of Lilly living here just makes the apartment feel complete. Plus, Wavy Gravy is an energetic Aussie/Cattle Dog mix so hopefully she’ll keep Koda busy so Falkor stops getting picked on so much.
Overall, I’m ridiculously excited about this year. It's still been a lot of getting to know the people we'll be working alongside, but the kids I'll be working with have also been on my mind a lot lately. I can't wait to meet them and to build relationships. To help them learn and most definitely learn from them as well. I can’t wait to find out what team I’m on and to learn more about EVERYTHING! We’re going to this artsie/musicy/awesome festival thingy this Friday called First Friday. It’s suppose to be pretty rad. Until then it’s more training and bonding. I’ll write again soon. Promise.
Peace.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
My Address!!!
So if any of you beautiful, wonderful people care to send me anything I would love it! Remember, my stipend is only $165/week, yikes! But seriously, mail is always fun and oh so retro. Here's my address:
1218 Wyoming Street Apt 2
San Antonio, TX 78203
1218 Wyoming Street Apt 2
San Antonio, TX 78203
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Finally… people!
The biggest update, I suppose, is that I’ve met some of the other City Year people and they’re amazing. It all started Sunday afternoon when we went to be in these promo videos for a day of service that San Antonio is putting on at the end of Sept. 10 cats from City Year showed up there. We laughed and had fun, ate some cookie cake, and broke the ice. (Don’t worry; I’ll post the promo videos here when I get them) Then we went to dinner together and later that night we went over to Jill, Lauren, Lizbeth and Sasha’s apartment (which is gi-normous, by the way) to watch Love Actually. Yesterday we had registration, so we met 22 of the other corps members there. We went back over to the girls’ apartment last night to hang out and chat. I learned to play You-kur (I don’t know how to spell it, that phonetically) it’s like Spades, but just with 9s-aces. Today we all went to the Witte Museum because it’s free on Tuesdays. We saw a triceratops skeleton, beautiful butterflies, a mummy, lots of stuffed animals, some live animals, and a ridiculously awesome kids’ museum with all kinds of hands on stuff (Tramelle was right, it’s awesome). Then we ate dinner across the street at Cachito de Mexico; a little Mexican restaurant that boasts “Home of the Homemade Corn and Flour Tortillas” and “Free Sopapillas for Everyone.” So we had to go in. (Sopapillas are fried, fluffy, sweet tortillas. These had cinnamon sugar and molasses on top. They usually have honey and powdered sugar.) It was muy delicioso and the woman who served us was the owner and she was amazing. So sweet. It took us a while to navigate home on the bus, just like it took us a while to get to the Witte. But all in all a fun night and we got to show Lauren a portion of the River Walk for the first time. Lauren and Jill are both college grads like me. Sasha and Lizbeth just finished high school as did one of my roommates, Robert. My other roommate, Matt, is 20 and has been going to LSU for the past 2 years. I cannot wait until tomorrow because my mom and LEXIE will be here!! And Layton may be coming this weekend! I’m keeping my fingers crossed about that. Not sure what’s on the plate for today… going to pick up a couch most likely.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
me. want. internet.
So I'm at Borders, again... with one of my roommates Robert! And I'm watching this old man enjoying a Frappuccino and reading a book (The Time Traveler's Wife, actually) and it's perfect. Robert is great. We had dinner on the River Walk with his parents and they are a riot. I think we’re definitely going to get along swimmingly as roommates. Earlier, we got to try on some uniforms at the City Year office so we have a better idea of what size to order. We also got to talk with a few of the team leaders. They are great! We’re probably going to get a washer, dryer, and living room stuff tomorrow! So life in San Antonio is still awesome! Besides Koda being a bossy bully towards Robert, I really can’t complain. That’s all the updates for now. Sorry, I’m so short winded. If you want more info, you’ll have to give me a call :D
Peace.
Peace.
Banana Pudding
Written at 10:00 pm on 8/20 to be posted at some future point when I have internet access J
Three full days in San Antonio. I have yet to put up pictures, but don’t you worry, they will be arriving soon. I kinda want to wait until my roommates are here and the place is more together :D Since arriving here Sunday morning I have discovered that my landlords are amazing, when it rains it pours and the roads become rivers, you cannot get tired of good Mexican food (no matter how fattening it is…), Fuddruckers touts the “best burgers in San Antonio,” and I’m ready to get this show on the road. I’m glad I’m here early, but after my dad left this morning *tear* all I want is to be consumed in the life I came down here to live. All this waiting around is not healthy for the heartstrings pulling me back to Georgia. Robert, one of my roommates, should be here tomorrow, so I’ll have someone to pick up where my dad and I left off. Exploring the city, getting my bearings, learning the bus routes, and finding a (2nd) job (Oh joy, oh rapture). I felt ridiculously alive when my dad and I were in the City Year office yesterday getting a tour and summary from Tramelle of what the program will look like. I’m so incredibly excited and I feel so incredibly blessed to be having this experience. I know I’m where I’m supposed to be, everything worked out with housing and roommates and it feels right. San Antonio fits.
So here is a little summary of how my dad and I spent my first days here:
My landlords immediately took us out to breakfast. It was delicious and the conversation was enlivening. After that we napped of course. The obligatory Wal-Mart *cringe* trip was made. We tried to go to the slightly better Target, but that failed miserably. After trying a few different methods, we got my tapestries up. We ate the first meal in my apartment, good ‘ol PB & Js. Monday… We had lunch with my dad’s old work friend, Ray. That was when we witnessed the roads transform into rivers. We found internet, the City Year office, the Farmer’s Market. We explored the River Center Mall and River Walk, then ate a light dinner at Chili’s. Somewhere in there we walked the dogs. Tuesday… we road the bus to the City Year office, talked with Tramelle and ate lunch with the Executive Director of City Year, Paul Garro. That was really cool. Went to check out the Alamo (also really cool and free, well donations welcome) and ended up walking all the way back to my apartment from there because we went about the bus thing all wrong (it was hot). We made the trek up to PetsMart and back over to Wal-Mart for some groceries (third trip there… I don’t want to see that place for the next 10 months). Ate dinner at The Republic of Texas where this guy was butchering country music (yes it’s possible). This morning I took my dad to the airport. Walked the dogs around the neighborhood and gave them baths… I talked to my mom a lot today. Talked to friends on the phone a lot. Went to use the internet at Borders… looked for jobs online, chatted, checked out the furniture on CraigsList; those kinds of things. Boring stuff, I can’t wait for my roommates to get here and for everything to get rolling.
Three full days in San Antonio. I have yet to put up pictures, but don’t you worry, they will be arriving soon. I kinda want to wait until my roommates are here and the place is more together :D Since arriving here Sunday morning I have discovered that my landlords are amazing, when it rains it pours and the roads become rivers, you cannot get tired of good Mexican food (no matter how fattening it is…), Fuddruckers touts the “best burgers in San Antonio,” and I’m ready to get this show on the road. I’m glad I’m here early, but after my dad left this morning *tear* all I want is to be consumed in the life I came down here to live. All this waiting around is not healthy for the heartstrings pulling me back to Georgia. Robert, one of my roommates, should be here tomorrow, so I’ll have someone to pick up where my dad and I left off. Exploring the city, getting my bearings, learning the bus routes, and finding a (2nd) job (Oh joy, oh rapture). I felt ridiculously alive when my dad and I were in the City Year office yesterday getting a tour and summary from Tramelle of what the program will look like. I’m so incredibly excited and I feel so incredibly blessed to be having this experience. I know I’m where I’m supposed to be, everything worked out with housing and roommates and it feels right. San Antonio fits.
So here is a little summary of how my dad and I spent my first days here:
My landlords immediately took us out to breakfast. It was delicious and the conversation was enlivening. After that we napped of course. The obligatory Wal-Mart *cringe* trip was made. We tried to go to the slightly better Target, but that failed miserably. After trying a few different methods, we got my tapestries up. We ate the first meal in my apartment, good ‘ol PB & Js. Monday… We had lunch with my dad’s old work friend, Ray. That was when we witnessed the roads transform into rivers. We found internet, the City Year office, the Farmer’s Market. We explored the River Center Mall and River Walk, then ate a light dinner at Chili’s. Somewhere in there we walked the dogs. Tuesday… we road the bus to the City Year office, talked with Tramelle and ate lunch with the Executive Director of City Year, Paul Garro. That was really cool. Went to check out the Alamo (also really cool and free, well donations welcome) and ended up walking all the way back to my apartment from there because we went about the bus thing all wrong (it was hot). We made the trek up to PetsMart and back over to Wal-Mart for some groceries (third trip there… I don’t want to see that place for the next 10 months). Ate dinner at The Republic of Texas where this guy was butchering country music (yes it’s possible). This morning I took my dad to the airport. Walked the dogs around the neighborhood and gave them baths… I talked to my mom a lot today. Talked to friends on the phone a lot. Went to use the internet at Borders… looked for jobs online, chatted, checked out the furniture on CraigsList; those kinds of things. Boring stuff, I can’t wait for my roommates to get here and for everything to get rolling.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Saying goodbye...
This is the way I’ve decided to look at it. Change, adventure, passion. All incredibly important things. The good eggs, the people that really matter, they make all those things come alive. It’s the people, man. And I’m excited to see how our relationships change and grow with every new and exciting experience we go through. Right now, it’s my turn to hit the road, but soon it’ll be your turn for an adventure. And no matter what it is, no matter how big or small the change, I’ll be right there. Supporting you, loving you, growing with you. So I’m trying not to be sad, because in the end, absence makes the heart grow fonder, friends and family are forever, and what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. Three clichés to try and describe the ridiculously unique way I feel. I love you guys and dolls.
Monday, August 11, 2008
PACKING!!!
Oh the joy of squeezing my entire life into a Honda Civic and van. This life, mind you, includes two 45 lb dogs. Deciding what to take and what to leave behind is more heart-breaking than expected, so I'm taking a break to watch a bootlegged version of the Dark Knight my sister found, with the Olympics on in the background, and now a blog post in front of me as well. I'm excited because my housing situation, through all of it's twists and turns, has finally turned into a pretty sweet deal. If all goes as planned, I'll be living in a 3 BR duplex with 2 other City Year team members for less than $300/mo each. Amazing. Everything happens for a reason. I can't wait to be done with all the packing and be there, unpacking (which is my favorite thing to do) and exploring all San Antonio has to offer. I can't even describe all the emotions running through my head! nervousness, happiness, sadness, hope, regret. You have to come to terms with a time period in your life when you find yourself moving into the next chapter. My college years are what they were and I can't say I'm disappointed. I'm in a good place and it's thanks to a multitude of unexpected events, people, and opportunities. I can't wait to see what the next adventure has to offer and the way everyone I care about will grow with me.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
footprints
sometimes i feel like this summer is slipping away too quickly, but in slow motion. i’m trying to stay motivated about applying to seminary. even though i’ve been think about photo journalism… weird, i know, and maybe not possible, wait, anything is possible. i guess that best sums up the way i feel right now. which is making the inevitable and concrete plans i have seem scary. i’m not talking about city year. i’m crazy excited about city year. i just think about all my possibilities. and i’m not scared that i’ll have to pick and choose and not fulfill some of my dreams, but rather, i’m exited that i can do it all. i hope it lasts J leaving is only hard because there are going to be some people that i’ll miss, A LOT. but i know that i want my life to take me to a multitude of places and through a wide variety of experience. and the fact that the people i meet and love in each of those places and the people i grow with through all of those experiences will be my souvenirs, the evidence and memory of what i did and all the good and good times that came out of it. i’ll stay in touch with them, i WILL stay in touch with the ones that change me and they’ll remind me of who i am. of everything that makes up the complicated pattern of my soul, my existence. they will be the proof all over the country (and hopefully, the world) that i exist.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
numero uno
hola mis amigos!
The initial motivation for creating this blog is the fact that I'm going to San Antonio Texas in August to do an AmeriCorp program called City Year. And of course blogs are the most efficient way to keep everyone informed. I've thought about starting blogs in the past, but always to no avail. This one WILL be different. It has to be. Failure is not an option.
I wanted to attempt to describe what this blog will be for me, so you'll know what to expect if you decide to check it out. All I can come up with is expect the unexpected. I've never been able to find a label or a box to push and squeeze myself into. Hopefully, one day soon, no one will be able to. I'm on a constant road of self-discovery so I apologize for the randomness, but I hope you'll find it an eye-opening ride. I do expect a multitude of posts and comments. I thrive on feedback so please please share your thoughts. I could go into all the meanings behind the title. Of course there has to be multiple complex, insightful, inspirational meanings. The ambition is that they will all decide to reveal themselves in due time. The one insight I do want to leave you with is a wonderful mantra from an even more wonderful world changer "light up the darkness."
The initial motivation for creating this blog is the fact that I'm going to San Antonio Texas in August to do an AmeriCorp program called City Year. And of course blogs are the most efficient way to keep everyone informed. I've thought about starting blogs in the past, but always to no avail. This one WILL be different. It has to be. Failure is not an option.
I wanted to attempt to describe what this blog will be for me, so you'll know what to expect if you decide to check it out. All I can come up with is expect the unexpected. I've never been able to find a label or a box to push and squeeze myself into. Hopefully, one day soon, no one will be able to. I'm on a constant road of self-discovery so I apologize for the randomness, but I hope you'll find it an eye-opening ride. I do expect a multitude of posts and comments. I thrive on feedback so please please share your thoughts. I could go into all the meanings behind the title. Of course there has to be multiple complex, insightful, inspirational meanings. The ambition is that they will all decide to reveal themselves in due time. The one insight I do want to leave you with is a wonderful mantra from an even more wonderful world changer "light up the darkness."
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