"Jack, I'm Flying!"

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you all had a great day wherever you are at and that you have a happy and safe New Year's as well! This year definitely was hard to get in the Christmas spirit but I definitely had a great time. Angoche is becoming my home away from home. I am so happy that its just a two hour chapa ride. The volunteers that live in Angoche are amazing and love to host! Christmas on a beach is pretty frickin' cool. We celebrated on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas day. We figured Christmas day was going to be "not do anything because we celebrated the night before" day. So we headed to the beach in the morning, where I bathed in sunscreen and still got pretty burnt...Chega! Afterwards we went home to clean up and relax. We had an amazing seafood dinner and afterwards had a bonfire on the beach. A couple of us took a little swim. I had a really awesome moment where I was floating on my back and looking up at the stars. I still have a hard time believing this is my life. On Christmas day we just chilled out and recovered from the previous night. We had another amazing seafood meal. Today we all had to leave early. A majority of people left at 12:30am to catch a chapa to Nampula City...Arden and I were able to leave around 3:30am because we live a lot closer. This chapa ride was a little more scary for me because I had to stand and the roads are so bad here. I did manage to have a Kate Winslet, Titanic moment, though! The wind blowing through my hair and bugs hitting my face while Mozambicans are laughing at me...ok maybe it wasn't exactly like Kate Winslet's experience, but we were going fast enough that I felt like I was flying! We made it home in one piece though so that is all that matters.

I was honored to spend Christmas with some great people that Peace Corps has brought into my life and I look forward to celebrating future holidays together. I have never laughed so hard in my life!

Take a look at some more pics!

The Air Up There

For those movie buffs out there, you know that the title of this post is actually a Kevin Bacon movie. Kevin Bacon portrays a basketball coach who hears about this phenomenal player in Africa, so he goes to recruit this person. This phenomenal person ends up being the son of a tribal leader...but he really is phenomenal so Kevin Bacon lives with the tribe and learns about them. I won't spoil the ending so go watch it! Anyways...there is a point to the title of this blog. Today I got to play basketball with an Indonesian priest, a Mozambican teenager and my roommate with a bunch of Mozambican kids watching. It was like a movie. It was awesome. For those of you who know me, know that I love basketball. The only basketball court in the vila is at what I like to call my second home. It is the catholic compound where the priests and nuns live. It is actually pretty close to where our future house is, which is great! One of my goals in the next two years is to start a girl's basketball team. This morning Father Marcelo picked us up bright and early and took us to a machamba (farm/big field). He gave us a tour and we helped plant corn...the old fashion way...by hand. It was fun but hot! Father Marcelo has become a fast friend! We have lunch together and tomar cha (have coffee/tea). He loves to listen to Alan Jackson when he drives, so he is going to be my best friend. He loves country music! Have I mentioned that he is Indonesian?! Hahaha...he is a great guy.

Christmas is quickly approaching! A group of us are going to Angoche and to the beach to celebrate. It has been hard to get in the Christmas spirit. I miss my family and the....COLD! I also have a different perspective on things now since arriving in Africa. People have next to nothing here, live in reed huts with no energy or running water, have no clothes and the clothes they do have are torn and dirty, and have barely any food. It is sad but people are so nice here and seem to be content. I am learning a lot about myself and what I want out of life and how I want to live my life. I want you all to think about your lives and what you find important. Do you really need to complain about the things you complain about? I definitely took a lot for granted in the U.S. I hope I can help change some people's perspectives with my experiences and blog posts. I don't want to come off as sounding pompous or that "I know all" but I definitely want to shed light on what life is like in one of the poorest countries in the world. According to the United Nations, of the 187-ish countries, Mozambique is ranked 185th in human development (learn more here).

Anywho, I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Be safe and enjoy your time with your loved ones!

On the Road to Angoche...

So this post is going to have a little bit of everything in it...some fun stuff and not so fun stuff...some interesting stuff and not so interesting stuff...bear with me.

Yesterday marked our one week anniversary at site. We are not in our house yet but we are hoping to get moved in this week! We ran into our first of many roadblocks on Friday. We were wanting to go to Angoche so we went to the chapa stop to catch a chapa. There is this guy in our vila that has some mental problems and hasn't caused us any harm. He is just annoying and always around and follows us everywhere. Let me give you some background on gender inequality here in Mozambique...it is frustrating! The men here have it easy. The women cook, clean, fetch water, take care of the kids and house, etc. The men get to enjoy the food, the clean house, the water and don't have to worry about watching the kids. This being said the retention rate of keeping girls in school is so low because of all the responsibilities they have at home. Have no fear, that is why I am here! I am looking forward to mentoring the young women here and empowering them to explore their potential! Anyways back to the crazy guy. He was really persistent and wouldn't leave us alone at the chapa stop so we cancelled our Angoche trip and locked ourselves in our house.

Yesterday we woke up at 4am and went to the chapa stop again to see if we would have a better chance of getting a chapa to Angoche...and sure enough at 6:30am we were on our way to the beach! There are two current volunteers in Angoche, one of which was not there this weekend, but we got to meet and hang out with the other one. They have an apartment that has ocean views and washing machine! It is super fancy. They love hosting people because they have the space and the location is just perfect. Maria took us to the beach. A beach that we could only get to by canoe. Yay for adventures! We noticed on the walk there that it was getting pretty cloudy and dark over yonder. We decided to just go with it and continue on. Once we got to the beach we took picks and I put my toes in the INDIAN OCEAN...hello bucket list! I got some good pics too so check out my pics page. As we were waiting for the canoe to get us it started to rain a little and once it got to us it was pouring. We took the canoe back with some fisherman who caught a humungous fish. By the time we got across we were soaked. The next adventure was walking back. I fell in the mud and ended up walking barefoot a majority of the way back. At least I can laugh about it. Only in Africa can you walk around barefoot drenched head to toe covered in mud. After we got dried off and cleaned up we just chilled and relaxed and waited for the rain to stop. For dinner we went to an ice cream place. I know what your thinking..."Ice cream for dinner?!" First we had a fried egg with mayonaise and ketchup in a tortilla type thing. I know it sounds gross but it wasn't that bad. We had ice cream for dessert! We grabbed a beer down by the water at one of Maria's favorite places and met a friend of her's who is a dentist.

Today we woke up at 3am to catch a chapa back to Liupo. Imagine a bed of a truck that is about 8 feet by 5 feet more a less. Now imagine big bags of rice, beans, vegetables, clothes, tools for farming in that bed. Now imagine 31 people, including yours truly, 3 kids and 4 babies piled into that bed, as well. What I just described is the normal public transportation here in Mozambique. I have bruises everywhere from being sat on and pushed around. We made it back to Liupo, though, and we were happy to be home!

Hopefully the next time I post, it will be from our new home!!!! Thanks for all of your continued support!

"Insert Clever Title Here"

Today has left me with so much excitement about my future, not only here in Liupo, but in general. The people I have met in the 3 and a half days I have been here, have changed my life and the way I am looking at life. This journey has already had a profound impact on my life and it is an experience that is just beginning. I have two more years of experiencing these moments of clarity. I honestly believe that I was meant for this journey. It hasn't always been easy but these moments of clarity I have been experiencing more than make up for those tough times.

Yesterday, I attended a catholic service where I took communion. Taking communion at a catholic service in-the-middle-of-nowhere, Mozambique wasn't on my bucket list but it should have been. It was a very emotional experience for me. I wasn't expecting it to be. All I could think about was wanting to talk to my Grandma Kearney about it because I knew she would have loved hearing about it. This experience is making me feel closer to her. After the service, one of the nuns introduced herself and invited us over to meet the other nuns. Once we left the church we stopped by the local "establishment", which happens to be across the street from our future house, for a soda and some mangoes with a couple of colleagues.

Today we went to the school and took a look inside our future house. It looks super tiny from the outside but seems pretty spacious inside. It has two bedrooms, living room, a kitchen and a nice back yard where our bathroom is. I never thought I would say this but I love having a pit in the ground for a bathroom! After lunch and a nap we headed back to the school where we met up with Vincente, a colleague, who took us to see the nuns. They were so nice and funny. They have some spunk too! We had soda and cake and they gave us a bag full of mangoes...we LOVE mangoes! Sister Rosalind gave us a little tour of the compound and I found a basketball court, which I hope to frequent often. We met a couple of the priests and ended up spending the rest of the evening with one of them. His name is Father Marcelo and he is from Indonesia. The other priest we met is from Zambia. I am really looking forward to visiting them more often. We ended the night at a birthday party for a colleague. The food was amazing! The people were amazing! We left with cake that we plan on having for breakfast with our coffee!

Having such a great experience and it is hard to put into words sometimes so if you have any questions, comments, etc. please feel free to leave them for me address!!!!

Adeus Trainee, Ola Volunteer!

Hello all! Hope all is well wherever you are. I haven't updated in awhile and I apologize! I am officially a Peace Corps Volunteer! Woohoo! All 51 of us were sworn in at the ambassador's house in Maputo on December 3! On the Nov. 30th, we celebrated with our families! I gave a thank you speech. I was shaking the whole time, but everyone enjoyed it. I will try and post the video. Videos are hard to post when the internet connection isn't very strong. It was sad saying goodbye to my family in Namaacha, but I am excited for the opportunities that Liupo will have. Ok, back to swearing in...We stayed in really fancy hotel in Maputo. It was called Hotel Arabias or Vilas Arabias...I felt like I was in the movie, Aladdin. After having our swearing in celebration, we took to the streets of Maputo to find some good food. After eating dinner we all met up to hang out one last time and say goodbye to each other. It was an emotional night. On December 4, the northern people, myself included, were to fly out of Maputo. We barely made our flight. The staff underestimated our baggage and didn't send a big enough vehicle for everything. After arriving in Nampula, we went to our hotel which was also fancy. There I had to argue with the front desk because the paper they had said I was a male...and I am obviously not...The positive side of the argument was that I got a room to myself! We also had a conference at the hotel where we got to meet our supervisors or colleagues of the schools we would be working in. Our pedagogico director is really nice. A pedagogico director is the person that oversees programming and is in charge of the professors. On Dec. 6th, a majority of the Nampula volunteers left for site. Again, it was sad saying goodbye to our friends. The road from Nampula city to Liupo is very bumpy and rough. It is a dirt road the whole way. Half way there we got a call saying that they packed the wrong luggage and that my stuff was still in Nampula city. I was lucky enough to have some things with me, though. Once we arrived in Liupo we were put into a temporary house because our house isn't quite ready. It is right next to the governor's house and it is fancy! We met other supervisors and important people with the school and community. Language is definitely difficult but we are getting bye. The local language here is Macua (sp?). We want to learn a little of that too. Today, we walked around a lot. We did get to see our house. It is tiny! lol...We went to the school, the market, and introduced ourselves to neighbors. We are exhausted so decided to rest all afternoon and continue walking around tomorrow...I know I am forgetting a lot so I apologize for the random thoughts, events, etc.

Check out the pics!

Ever Been In Two Places At Once?

Hello everyone! Hope all is well wherever you are!

Ok....so I made the commitment to wake up at 2:30am this morning and go on a hike at 3am with some friends. We were headed to the mountains to check out the Swazi/Moz/South Africa border. Did I mention we left at 3am?!?! I went with 4 other people. It was dark and dreary. On our way out of town we picked up a dog that followed us the whole way. We decided he was going to be our protector and keep the snakes away...and the bandidos (bandits) away...Oh yeah, we left at 3AM!!!!!! It was super dark and scary, actually but exciting too. I had one of those surreal moments once I got to my stopping point. I sat my butt on a rock and just took it all in. I was sitting on a mountain in Mozambique, Africa. I also made a point to stick my hand through the fence into Swaziland to say I was in two places at once. Beat that Mandy Moore (movie reference to A Walk to Remember)! We actually made it up without falling, which was a feat because it was crazy terrain and dark. On the way down I went to walk through a rocky area with water and wiped out and had to walk home with a wet butt. The group I was with was super funny. We laugh a lot together and can be inappropriately comfortable together. Once we got back on the main road we were amazed at what we were seeing around us because, like I said, on the way up it was dark. We saw this cool grove of trees off the road so we went to check those out. They were great climbing trees! It was a really great experience and glad I woke up early to do it.

This weekend we also worked on a mural. It is at our training office and is sooooooooooo cool! Check out the pics! We only have a little over a week left of training. I can't wait. Next Saturday, I will be giving a speech in Portuguese in front of everyone (Peace Corps staff, family, colleagues, etc.). I am super nervous! I was also elected to be the north representative for the volunteer advisory committee (VAC). I will be working with the country director in making sure the sites in the north are running well. We shall see how that goes. I am looking forward to the opportunity.

Check out the pics!

Under Arrest...House Arrest That Is...

Hey everyone! Hope you are all doing well. Shout out to my home state Illinois! I hope those affected by the tornadoes are doing well and have began the healing and recovery process.

Today we are under house arrest and on standby until Sunday for possibility of evacuation. Today the Mozambican municipal elections are being held so there is some tension amongst the country. We are pretty safe in Namaacha but you never know. The world is a crazy place. I am not a fan of wikipedia but here is some info on the political parties (you can do further research if interested :)). I finally received my package my parents sent me about 5-6 weeks ago. It had oreos, which ended up being perfect timing since I am stuck at home today. I took more capulanas to the modista yesterday! I am getting a tunic and dress done. I can't wait to see how they turn out.

We are being sworn in as volunteers in 13 days!!!!! Time is flying. We all are packing our things up to be shipped out this weekend. It is going to be bittersweet. I love my family here and am going to miss them a lot. I am also having some anxiety about being apart from everyone but also about starting my actual service. We are having a big celebration next weekend with our families!

We started teaching this week. I taught my first chemistry on Monday. I was super nervous but ended up having fun. I introduced the kids to acids and we ended up juggling acidic fruit and doing an acid crossword puzzle I had made. I teach again on Friday and then again next Tuesday.

Check out my other pages and also this neat page!

Liupo, Nampula here I come!

I had a big week last week! First off, I had a great experience visiting an orphanage! It was heartbreaking and uplifting all at once. A majority of the kids have no parents or family members and others were just abandoned. They all have a great spirit though and were so much fun. We played games, sang and danced. It really was a good time despite the circumstances. On Thursday we found out where we will all be living at for the next two years...it was the longest day of my life. I will be living in Liupo, Nampula with one other volunteer. It is northern Mozambique about 45-60 minutes from the beach. We are actually opening up a site which is pretty cool. The community leader is a woman which is also really cool because gender roles here are much different than in the states. Members of the community actually built the house we will be living in. I have a feeling it is going to be a really special experience. My Portuguese is coming along. I will be teaching 3 chemistry lessons in the coming two weeks which I am super nervous about. I am working through an ear ache at the moment. Only 2 more weeks of training...I uploaded new pics! Check them out!

Site Visits and More!!!

Ola as pessoas festas! Not sure if that translates right but what I want to say is, "Hello party people!" I am finishing up my 6th week of training...4 more to go! Time is flying by now. I haven't been up to too much. Still working on my Portuguese and lesson planning. Last Saturday I had a cooking day with my mae. It was great! She makes some really good dishes! Cooking takes all day...literally. We started to make lunch around 10am and finished it at about 12:30pm. Then we did dishes and chatted for a bit then started on dinner around 3pm. We finally sat down to eat around 7:30pm. It was exhausting. The women here are super hard workers. They go nonstop all day long. It is exhausting to watch. During our relaxing time after lunch we sat out on the veranda with my mae's brother, Castro. He is my English buddy and I really enjoy hanging out with him. We were watching kids play and called some of them over. They were pulling each other on a water jug. I wanted to give it a whirl, thinking there was no way they were going to be strong enough to drag me. Boy was I wrong! We got pics and videos so I will upload them when I can. I did laundry last weekend too. One of my least favorite activities. It is a workout!

Sunday we all left for site visits. I went to Inharrime, Inhambane with a colleague. We had met the volunteer there 2 weeks ago when she came to help out with training. I had a blast getting to see what a site is like. We interacted with the locals, helped proctor exams at the secondary school, played pool with some locals, ate some delicious food, cooked breakfast for dinner, ate mangoes right from the tree, almost got eaten by a spider, etc. etc. etc. It was a great time and it got me excited. The trip also made me realize how much I have to learn in Portuguese, but my hopes are high for being pretty fluent by the end of my two years.

Other than that, not much is going on. Check out my other pages for updates. I usually update them a little more frequently than my actual posts. Thanks for all your support!

Chega!

Ok so chega means...Enough! I say it a lot! It is one of my favorite words, along with chiki (sp?), which means fancy! I am making more progress on my language and getting along well with my new family. I have learned how to prepare coconut from scratch and will be cooking with my mae (mom) this weekend. It has been super rainy here and I am not a fan. It gets so muddy but I did buy some chiki rain boots so those help. I have made a great Mozambican friend who speaks English really well. He took me to my first wedding last weekend which was cool to experience...lots of singing and dancing, which is one of my favorite parts about the culture. We also had a dance party of our own at my house after dinner. I needed that so bad. I have been frustrated with my language progress and it was nice to unwind and forget that my speaking is total crap. I am learning a lot every day and processing everything like crazy. A fellow trainee, also my neighbor, taught some of the kids the game Hot Hands, so I am swarmed by kids after training on my way home who want to play.

Lets see what else...Went to shopright last weekend. It is a huge market that is held on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Had fresh chicken with xima (think mash taters but thicker, not a fan!) and a salad. It was probably the best meal I have had so far. I bought some tomatoes for my mae. The food, though, has been great so far. It is a lot of rice, chicken, veggies and fish. My mae makes this amazing potato soup. I think I could do a blog post on just food alone which I will probably do once I get to site. We are half way through training already. We are being sworn in on December 3rd. I am looking forward to having my independence again. I got my skirt from the modista (seamstress) on Monday. It is great...very chiki! Heading to Inharrime, Inhambane next week to visit a current volunteer...stay tuned for a post on that adventure!

Check out my pics and other pages for more fun stuff!

You will see pics of Ngoma time. Once a week all 51 of us are together for training sessions on health and safety. At the end of the day we have what is called Ngoma time. Ngoma is a drum played here in Moz. It is a time where we share American culture with the Mozambicans and vice versa. It was one of my favorite parts of the week. We have done songs, dances, games, etc. and have learned about different Mozambican activities as well. We usually start off by singing the Mozambican national anthem and then the American national anthem. I always get a little choked up. It is a really proud moment for me, personally, to be apart of two great countries.

Thank you all for the support!

Bem Vindo Mocambique!

Ok...this is going to be a long post so bear with me. Check out my photo and video page for uploaded photos. The last 3 weeks have just flown by. This has already been a life changing experience and I haven't even started my actual service yet. I couldn't be more happy with the people I will be serving with. We all get along and enjoy hanging out together. The flight to get here was long and exhausting. I managed to watch about 7 movies. The country director and a current volunteer met us in the airport in Maputo to pick up and take us to the Hotel Cardosa, beautiful place with a great view. We enjoyed the food and running water while we had it. The chapa ride from Maputo to Namaacha was entertaining. It is just a completely different world here and really hard to describe when I am constantly trying to process it all. I think by the time I am done I will be able to better describe my experiences but for now they may seem lacking in some respect and I apologize. Once we arrived in Namaacha, the families we were going to be living with met us. My family's empregada (housekeeper) picked me up and took me home. I was actually surprised with my accommodations. The house was nice and the bathroom was inside! Granted the toilet didn't flush and I still had to take a bucket bath in the shower but I was expecting a lot worse. My family consisted of a mother, father, niece and granddaughter. Super nice people and very patient. It is hard going into a situation where you are not able to communicate well. We managed though. The first three weeks have consisted of intense language learning and mini seminars on teaching, skills, safety, health, etc. My house was right next to a bar...Hallelujah! A fellow PC trainee lived next door so it was nice to have someone in the same boat so close. The first weekend his brother and his brother's friends took us and another trainee to the Cascatas (waterfalls). They made it seem like it wasn't far. Well it was far...for me. I think it took about an hour or so to get there. It was cool but I was exhausted! I was recently moved to a different house because the health of my mother was not good. It was a scary and upsetting experience for me. I was finally connecting and getting used to my family. My new family is great though too. I live with a mom, son and grandmother and frequent family visitors. I am learning a lot more. I do have to take a bath and do my business outside but I am getting used it. The bugs and frogs taking a bath with me...not getting so used to but o well, welcome to Mozambique, right?!

I think I am going to end it here for now...Like I said I am still processing a lot and it really is hard to describe what I am feeling because it is a lot. I feel like I go through every emotion multiple times a day. I want to leave, I want to stay, I want some oreos, I am sick of eating rice, I am sick of peeing in a hole in the ground, I love the people, I love the other volunteers I am with, I wish I packed more clothes, I wish it would stop raining, I hate being woke up by roosters and turkeys every morning, I love eating the fruit here and I love me some Maria cookies. These are just a few things I deal with daily.

Check back for more photos, insights, inspiration, etc...Thank you for all your support as well!

You are brave...crazy but brave!

I can't believe how fast this summer went! I also can't believe that I am leaving next week. "So much to do so little time," says the procrastinator in me. I told myself two months ago that I was going to start practicing my packing techniques so that I wouldn't feel stressed about it now...guess what...THAT NEVER HAPPENED! It is a rough week saying my goodbyes to the first world and preparing for the third world. I spent last weekend in the Smoky Mountains and was able to clear my mind a bit as I sat out on the porch looking at the gorgeous view.

I have never doubted my decision to pursue this adventure. I feel like it is an adventure that was made for me. Yes, I am scared and nervous. I am sad to say goodbye to everyone. "You are brave...crazy but brave," says my big sister. I am worried that no one will like me and that all these ideas I have floating in my head won't work. What do I want to do when my service is up? Where do I want to end up? I am hoping that I can get these questions answered during my adventure.

After working at the Boys & Girls Club, my mind has been on overdrive on all the things that I learned and want to tryout with the community I will be working in. I have the best support system with BGCA and so happy our paths crossed. I look forward to working together again in the future.

My family has been super great through everything. They love talking to their friends about it and always ask questions. I am told I need to bring lions and giraffes home for my nieces and nephews. I will do my best on that one!

I hope you all will view my journey with an open heart and mind, and really reflect on what is important in life. Love each other, respect each other, and help each other, no matter what the color of your skin is, what religion you practice or what your sexuality is...There is not one thing that makes us more or less than one another. I have found that negativity takes more effort than positivity and you never know what kind of impact your positivity can have on someone else or even the world. 

I leave you with this quote that my sister-in-law sent me:

“Don’t aim for success if you want it; just do what you love and believe in, and it will come naturally.”

The Moment Has Arrived!

Ok so I told myself after posting the previous entry that I wouldn't post the next one until I got the invitation. So guess what????

MOZAMBIQUE, AFRICA HERE I COME!!!!!

Rewind.....this past month has been a roller coaster for me. I received my invitation May 3rd while celebrating food from around the world with my Culture Matters group at the Boys & Girls Club. I think they were just as excited as I was! A week later I graduated from Arizona State University, a feat that has taken me 8 years to do but I did it! Thank you all that supported and encouraged me to never give up! That same day I had to say goodbye to the kids at the Club. It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. These kids have forever changed my life and I am grateful that they all allowed me to be a part of theirs! 3 days after that I hopped on a plane and said goodbye to Arizona, my home off and on for the past 8 years. Oh I forgot to mention that my 26th birthday was the day after graduation too. I was a busy girl that weekend! 

So that brings me to now. Let me tell you what I do know...

1. I will leaving for my service September 24, 2013 and will be returning December 4-5, 2015.

2. I will be doing my pre-service training and living with a host family around the capital of Mozambique called Maputo and then I will be placed in a different community to do my actual service for 24 months.

3. I will be teaching secondary education, specifically science.

4. I will be learning Portuguese and that is Portugal Portuguese not Brazilian Portuguese!

                                            

Teaching will be my primary objective during my term of service but I will also be trying to accomplish a secondary objective...a satellite Boys & Girls Club! It is a project that will help support my primary objective but will also support the community as a whole. I have seen first hand what the Boys & Girls Club can offer youth and their families and it is an amazing organization! There are going to be a lot of differences but I am hoping to create it so that it operates under the same values and beliefs as the Boys & Girls Clubs of America but also operate under the culture and beliefs of the Mozambique community I will be serving in. The ultimate goal is to have a sustainable club that relies on its own community to fulfill the mission of "enabling all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens." I am lucky enough to have the support of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the East Valley, the Boys & Girls Club of South Africa, as well as some amazing individuals who work at the corporate level with Boys & Girls Club of America. 

The next two years are going to be an amazing adventure and I look forward to all the experiences and opportunities that will come my way. 

"All the knowledge I possess everyone else can acquire, but my heart is all my own." Goethe 

  

Patience is....Still a Virtue I Don't Have!

But I am working on it! I found out through a conversation on twitter that there was a Future Peace Corps Volunteers group on Facebook...SIGN ME UP!!!! I signed up...and got depressed. Everyone was getting invitations for JUNE!!! Wait a minute...I am supposed to leave in JUNE!!!!! I found out yesterday that JUNE placements are full....bummer! My placement officer has been great though. I email her a lot with secondary project ideas. I also contacted the nurse that will be completing my health review in the next three weeks. She seems really great too! So it looks like possibly a JULY/AUGUST departure, which my parents are happy with because they get to keep me longer. There is my Peace Corps update...

Now...life update...I graduate in 52ish days. I am beyond excited. I started on my undergrad journey in 2005 so it has been a long time coming. I am soooooooooo glad I stuck with it. It has been a difficult but awesome journey so far. I don't think I have told you all how in love I am with Boys & Girls Club of America and specifically Boys & Girls Club of the East Valley. The kids are amazing, especially my North Tempe kids, and the staff is beyond awesome, especially my co-workers at North Tempe Branch. I urge you all the support an amazing organization. Here is what has been up at the club...

• Power Hour/Discovery Zone Theme Days-Not only do I do countries of the week but I also put a theme to every day (ex. Crazy Sock Day, Twin Day, Oreo Day, etc). Mondays are focused on reading/writing, Tuesdays focus on Social Sciences/Humanities, Wednesdays focus on Math/Science and Thursdays are catch up days. 
• I started a Book Club with 8-10 year olds. We are reading Holes right now. I make a study guide for each writing assignment to help facilitate discussion. It has been going really well. We chat, eat snacks, chat and eat some more.
• Drama-Boys & Girls Club Got Talent t.v. show...ENOUGH SAID!!!
• Culture Matters-Kids participate in a variety of activities that teach them about diversity and different cultures. 
• Passport to Pedal Power-10-15 kids have a chance to set a goal and then achieve in 6 weeks to receive a bike, bike lock and helmet. This is one of my favorite programs. I believe setting goals is sooooo important and the Pedal Power Foundation believes it too! 
• Triple Play Mondays-The gym staff puts some kids through some fun and exciting physical challenges.
• Soccer Fridays-The gym staff creates a soccer tournament that all kids can participate in. Kids get to create their own team names or use professional ones.
• Game Room Tournaments-The game room staff holds a variety of tournaments (ex. pool, air hockey, fooseball, bumper pool, mancala, etc.)
• Sports-Just finished our basketball season and ready to kick off our soccer season. 

If you are looking for something for your kids to do this summer, sign them up for a Boys & Girls Club Summer Camp. They are so much fun! We go on a variety of field trips and have a lot of fun at the club. 

LIVE.LAUGH.LOVE.

Time Flies When You Are Having Fun

Wow...I haven't posted anything in a super long time. I haven't been slacking, I promise! I have actually been super busy. School, work, nap...repeat. I feel like that is my life at the moment. I do occasionally throw some food into the mix just to keep me on my toes.

School...for most it's a dreaded word and sometimes for me it is too. I just love learning though so a lot of the time it is happy word for me, especially when I graduate in approximately 116 days. The journey in school has been a long one and for awhile one that I thought I wouldn't continue. I started off with this goal of going to Arizona State University. It was the only school I applied to in high school. That is how much I wanted to go to that school. School is expensive...especially if you are an out of state student. When money got tight, I found myself heading back to Illinois. It was hard. I felt defeated but at least I tried, right? I lost a close friend while I was home during that time and at first things just didn't work for me. I didn't handle it well. I didn't understand why this person was taken away. I had a conversation with my friend's mother. This conversation changed my life. The mother had told me how much her daughter looked up to me and admired me. I had inspired my friend to want more from life, to have goals and pursue those goals. I didn't realize I had that much of an impact on her. Something switched in my head and I felt like I had a purpose: inspiring and helping others. I was getting ready to embark on a new adventure. While I was home I started to think about what I could do for others, and in particular, kids. I became a Big Sister! I knew I could be a positive and encouraging person in my Little's life. I had the best time with my Little. She is a very sweet and funny girl and I hope she realizes the potential she has! During my time with my Little, I decided I needed to complete my first goal...graduate from ASU. With the help of my family and friends, I reapplied and got in and will be graduating in May. I am going to have to say that this past year and a half has probably been the best year and a half of my life.

Work...I cannot say enough good things about the Boys and Girls Club and what they offer their members. I have met so many brilliant people, kids and co-workers, alike. They make my job fun and it's something I look forward to every day. My time at the club, though, is coming to an end. It is something that breaks my heart every time I think about it. Saying goodbye is never easy and this time will be no different. I have enjoyed being a part of their lives and I hope that I can still be apart of their lives after I leave. Which leads me into my next spiel...Peace Corps!

So any day now, I could be receiving my invitation to serve in an African community. Having a hard time saying goodbye to the kids motivated me to create a potential project that will allow me to take the Boys and Girls Club with me to my potential community and also bring the new culture to the Boys and Girls Club. I am working with a variety of different people in hopes to making this happen. I have sent rough drafts to a variety of family members, co-workers, as well as my Peace Corps recruiter and Placement Officer. Fingers are crossed, toes are crossed, eyes are crossed...everything is crossed. I have never felt so strongly about something in my life. I KNOW I CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN SOME ONE'S LIFE. I have so many ideas and projects that I can bring with me to my prospective community and I can't wait to do it.

"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." Nelson Mandela