15 Hour Days, a Friday Experience, and a Wedding!

I mentioned in my previous post that last week was busy.  I was not over exaggerating in the slightest when I said that.
I'm going to warn you now, before you start reading, settle in!  It's going to be a long one.  Haha.  :)

Last week our theme of the week was "Time Machine".  It was SO fun!  My team's creativity and innovation never ceases to amaze me.
Monday:  Dinosaur Age
Tuesday:  The Future
Wednesday:  The Renaissance (we even taught some of the 2nd graders how to spell the word..  Pretty impressive if I do say so myself....  :)  )
Thursday:  The 1920's

The way that PT works is that we choose a theme for the week (usually every Thursday or so) and plan all of our activities based on what each day is.  It makes it exciting, and plus, most of the time I get to dress up!  Which I love to do.  Haha.

Monday flew by quickly.  A little prehistory, snap your fingers and then you're done.

On Tuesday I got to go mountain biking!!!
Well, almost....
Tuesday morning arrived with big, thunderous rain clouds, which meant the mountain bikers had to move on to plan b.  Every week they come to our site and take a third of the youth out to go mountain biking.  I'm so glad that they get to have that experience, and I was so excited to get to tag along.  :)
Plan B meant that we came back to SMU and got to spend the day playing sports with the youth.  We played volleyball, basketball, and kickball, and it was so fun to get to be away from site with a smaller group.  They had a great time, but keep your fingers crossed that this Tuesday dawns with blue skies!

After site on Wednesday we had the opportunity to go on our first home visit.  From here on out, every Wednesday we will get to go to the home of one of the kids or youth in the program.  I love it.  I can't emphasize enough.  It gives us the opportunity to see our kids in a different context.  Not only do they get to show us their rooms and introduce us to their families, but we can give them a little bit of individualized attention, which is HARD when there are 60 other kids who need attending to as well.

This week we went to the home of a brother and a sister in our program.  The brother is in youth, and the sister is in elementary.  We also got to have two of our other youth girls over to hang out with us because they live right next door, which was an extra special treat!  We hung out in their rooms, laughed, talked, and saw some very creepy "bearded dragon" type animals that I was not a fan of at all.  It actually gives me the heeby jeebies recalling that experience now.  Afterwards we all crammed onto two couches (please keep in mind that there were 3 youth and 7 interns out in the living room) and played Mario Kart until we had to go.  I can't wait for the next home visit that we get to go on.  I love getting to see the kids in their home environments and getting to know them on a more personal level.  I love getting to be a part of their lives.

After the home visit was over, we headed over to my site coordinator Katie's apartment for a little team bonding.  It was nice for our team to get a chance to relax around each other.  We get along great, but most of the time we spend together is centered on meetings and component sheets, clean up and issues with the kids.  It's nice to spend a few hours together just being us.  Just being college students who like food and laying down to watch a movie.  We ate some delicious tacos, complete with pico de gallo and guacamole, and watched Tangled.  We didn't get home until pretty late, meaning I went to bed pretty late, which, for anyone who really knows me, is a RARE occurrence!  AND I didn't even fall asleep during the movie.  It was really pretty impressive.  :)

Thursday during the day went off without a hitch.  A little 1920's, a little murder mystery, it was fun.  However, the real fun began after the summer program was over.  After cleaning up the fellowship hall, where we eat lunch and snack, we began to set up for Family Fun Night, which was to begin at 6.

I know the word "set up" sounds calm and easy, but let me tell you that it was anything but.  I've never sprinted back and forth around a church so much in my life.
But let me start from the beginning...
Courtney and I decided to take on the Dinosaur Area of Family Fun Night.  We decided that dinosaur meant expedition.  Clearly, the people visiting our area needed to have some sort of an adventure...
What to do?  What to do?..  We pondered in the days of planning.
We eventually decided that we would have a dinosaur egg hunt.

Sounds pretty tame, right?
Not in our jungle!
Courtney and I transformed the youth hallway into jurassic park.  We took every single plant we could find in the church, strategically placed vines, spiders, snakes, and other animals in our jungle, and shut of the lights.
The kids and their families had to scavenge in the dark.  :)

My fellow dinosaur hunter, Courtney!  

It ended up being a big hit!  I was so sad that I didn't get to see the fruits of my other teammates' labor, which included a real life battleship game for the future, a cake walk for the 1920's, and a catapult for the Renaissance, but the overall review from our kids and from the other interns who came to help us was that it was awesome!

RJ's time machine trip landed him in the Renaissance.

Kristen, Kendra, Andrew

Miss Bailey, straight out of the '20s!

Bailey and Michael

After our work is over, time for us to play!

Team CHILL.  :)

Our amazing PT Intern volunteers who came to help us!

Apparently for most family fun nights there are a lot of people who want to be involved and help, oftentimes throwing a family fun night of their own.  We were left pretty much up to our own devices to plan an event that would be enjoyable for our kids, their parents, and their siblings.  I'm SO proud of the way it turned out.  Our team was confident in our abilities and I think that was the difference between a good family fun night and a great one.  We committed to our activities and made sure that we gave it our all.

We were tired afterwards.  Without a doubt.  We had been sprinting around and exploring the dinosaur jungle for about 5 hours (including set up) by the end of the night.
But it was so worth it.

Afterwards I went back to SMU and went straight to bed.  In the morning I had to wake up early for Friday experience!

My Friday Experience this week was with North Dallas Shared Ministries.  I'm really interested to learn the make up of different non-profit organizations, so I signed up for pretty much all community based initiatives.

North Dallas Shared Ministries is a collaboration of 50 different churches.  They seek to provide assistance to people in the Dallas area who need a little help with food, clothing, rental assistance, utility bills, or maybe even English as a Second Language!

We arrived at the site, all geared up for a tour, only to be greeted by a look of confusion...

"Who are ya'll and where are you from?", at least 3 different people questioned us.

Uhh....

Eventually we were paired up with the right person, named Judy, and she gave us a 5 or so minute presentation about North Dallas Shared Ministries, where I learned that it is run by over 500 volunteers.  There is only ONE paid person on the entire staff.
Crazy.

While she was giving her presentation, knocks would come on the door every 2 minutes or so.  People were waiting!  She answered a few questions then looked at the group of 20 or so of us and asked us where we wanted to help that day, the food pantry, the clothes room, or sitting in on interviews?

Uhh....

If you haven't caught the gist of it by now, NOTHING went according to plan at my Friday Experience.  And it was AMAZING!

I decided that I wanted to try to sit in on interviews, as did about 7 other people, so instead of heading back towards the food pantry, we went up to the front office.
There were no interviews right at that moment because the people had just gotten in...

And before I knew it, I was at the front window of the office.
Don't ask me how it happened.

I always have been, and I likely always will be, the type of person who just jumps right in.  I don't hesitate when facing a new experience.  I don't doubt myself.
But even I was not expecting to be up on the front lines, serving the visitors to North Dallas Shared Ministries.

Before I knew it I was dusting off my rusty Spanish skills, answering the phone and responding to questions about rental assistance and TANF, and handing forms and numbers out to people.  The group I was with ended up being somewhat divided after that, some people mingling in the hallway, others pulled over to help over at the window where medical assistance was provided.

I don't know why it was me who stepped right up, but I'm so glad that I did.
I feel like I learned so much about the ministry from serving with them for a few hours.  I got to chat with the people who sought assistance, got to see the strengths and flaws of the ministry.

I'm not going to lie, the social worker in me came right out.
I have no doubt that I was born to be a person who helps the underprivileged of society.
I have no uncertainty regarding the fact that God has created in me a heart that breaks for others.

And I wouldn't choose anything else.

Despite the miscommunications and confusions of the morning, I had a great time!  I caught on right away and felt like I had been working there forever.  When I left, the people in the office asked me when I was coming back, and that made me feel SO good inside.
I love when beauty comes out of mishap.

For the rest of the day on Friday I relaxed with Kellie.
It rejuvenated my soul and gave me the rest that I needed after such an eventful week.

Then on Saturday, I had the opportunity to attend the wedding of my former roommate Kristen's sister.
When I was at Baylor, I didn't have the chance to go home very often, due to the high cost of flying and what-not, and my roommate's family, The Dunham's, sort of adopted me.  I spent a few holidays with them, went on a quite a few long road trips, and got to have the feeling of a family even though I was so far from home!

They are one of the most loving, welcoming families I have ever gotten to spend time with, and it was SO nice to get to see them all again at the wedding.  It's nice to get the chance to be a part of things like that now that I'm back in Texas for the summer.  It's so nice to know that despite the time and the distance, the relationships I have made still survive.

I think we've reached the end of this blog post together, if you've made it with me this far, congratulations!  Haha.


"Since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another"

You are the God who sees them.

I have a lot on my mind.

Last week was an extremely busy and hectic week, and I'll write about that later, but this is what's on my heart right at this moment.

My favorite story from the Bible is the one about the woman who has been bleeding for 12 years that is in Mark 5 (just in case you want to read it for yourself, which I highly recommend!!).  My version of the story goes like this:
So there's this woman who has been bleeding and bleeding and bleeding.  Twelve years worth!  People around her know her as "the bleeding woman".  She's been bleeding for so long that no one takes the time to listen to her complain about it.  No one wants to hear about her misfortunes any more.  I mean, really, 12 years?  Everyone is probably sick of hearing her moans and groans about the blood that troubles her so.  She doesn't know what to do.

And then she hears that this guy named Jesus has been healing people.  He's been restoring sight, making the lame walk, and performing miracles.  "Oh, if I could only touch the edge of his cloak", she thinks to herself.  So she goes to the place where He is.  But when she gets there He is surrounded by people.  She is jostled about, bumped and bruised, all in hopes of getting close enough to Jesus.  Not so close that He can see her or even talk to her.  Not so close that she is up in His face stating her worries.

Just close enough.
Close enough to lightly brush her fingers across the edge of His cloak.
Close enough to let the tips of her hands gently grasp the dirty fabric just slightly.

And instantly she was healed.  Her dreams had come true and she was no longer slave to the infirmity which troubled her so.

Jesus felt her touch His cloak.  Here was a man who was bumped and jostled just as she was.  Hands grabbed at Him, voices called out His name, yet He knew.  He knew someone had touched His cloak.  He questioned His disciples as to who brushed His garment with their hand, but they looked at Him as if He were crazy.  "How in the world could He tell someone touched His cloak?" they whispered to each other.

But Jesus knew.
He searched for the woman, and amidst her fear and trembling, and SHAME, she stood before Him.  This was not a woman who wanted to be a bother to anyone anymore.  This was not a woman who proudly cried out to Jesus along with the others.  She was hurting, she was embarrassed, and she had enough faith that she believed that a mere brush of her skin against Jesus' cloak would be enough to heal her.  She didn't need Him to speak the words.  She didn't need Him to even touch her skin directly.  She trusted.

And Jesus took the time to hear her story.  Among the bustling crowds and cries of the people He had come to save, Jesus knew that she had touched Him, and He cared enough to take the time to hear what she had to say.  This was a woman who had likely been outcast by her peers.  This is a woman whose groans were likely an annoyance to those around her.  But Jesus listened.  He heard her, He cared about her, and He loved her enough to drop everything that He was doing to notice that she needed Him.

This is my favorite story in the Bible because it says so much about the character of Jesus.  
He is not a God who is too busy or too rushed to take the time to listen.


He is not a God who doesn't notice our fears, our pains, and our shame.


He listens.


The knowledge that there is a God who listens to the cries and pains of my youth even when I am unable to hear them gives me comfort.


Knowing that He notices each and every one of them even if they're barely brushing their fingers against His cloak gives me peace.

Life At PT

Just a few pictures I had lying around...  

Angela, me, Krista!  (Yes, we share the same name..)

We get pretty sleepy after site..

Those kids just wear us out!

Michael the model.

Nic & Bailey

Celtic day!

Enjoying our Saturday off...  SMU has an amazing pool!

One night we drove around and took in the Dallas cityscape.

Kelbel!

Bailey, me, Josh, and Nic

Bailey & I!  She's on my team.  :)

A typical Saturday night at PT

Gabe and Angela...  They just knocked over the life size Jenga game!  (Note all the pieces on the floor)

And afterwards she definitely wanted to retailiate.  Haha.  We love to play around with each other!

Not Because of What I've Done...

But Because of Who You Are.

On Friday I had the opportunity to spend my morning touring and learning about a community here in Dallas called Jubilee.  Jubilee is unlike anything I have ever seen or experienced before.  It is a neighborhood where community members and state officials alike work together to ensure the prosperity of the community.  They have a head start program for preschoolers, an after-school program for older kids and youth, a community center complete with Zumba (which some of the interns participated in while we were waiting for our tour to start..  so fun!  Haha.  :)  )  and other engaging programs for adults, and a senior citizen program in which the seniors get to go on trips around Dallas and have speakers come to speak to them about senior issues.  The speaker of our tour joked that Jubilee sticks with its residents from the cradle to the grave.  :)

A few of the wonderful people we had the opportunity to meet!

Jubilee has a few staff, but most of its programs are run by volunteers.  It is able to thrive the way that it does because of the commitment of the people in the community to its success.  They want their community to be a place where kids can feel safe crossing the street and get the chance to eat a healthy meal every day.  They want their lives to be enriched by the opportunities of Jubilee.  The community seeks comprehensive success. Not only do they focus on education through programs like head start, but they also seek out healthy living by way of a community garden and nutritious meals for kids after school.  They aim for security by forming a partnership between the residents of the community, the police force who patrols the area, and the county prosecutor who punishes the rule breakers.  They focus on the aesthetic appeal of the neighborhood by allowing architecture students to come in and design new houses for some of the residents.  

Jubilee works because the people involved in the community want it to work.

Outside of the community center.

Community Garden

Resource Center where the police are stationed.

Davids' Place, where the preschool head start program is held.

Congo Street

I want to be part of such a community change.

It's kind of interesting...  Ever since I've begun my schooling as a future social worker, I have felt entirely certain that I would like to do direct practice.

Direct practice means working with families and children, whether it be through counseling, welfare, or etc.

I think this has changed now.  Not merely because of my experience on Friday, but I just think I have a heart for communities and widespread action plans to facilitate comprehensive change.  I want residents to be responsible for the crime decrease and test score increases in their own neighborhoods.  I want to teach people how to best serve their families and communities so that they and their neighbors both feel loved and inspired by the neighborhood in which they live.

Like Jesus himself said, "Love your neighbor as yourself"...

I want this to happen.  

My ideals are changing and my heart is inspired to go in a new direction.  Like I say pretty much every post (or so it feels that way) I don't know what this means for my life.  I can only pray and seek out God's will in my life and my future.  

The funny thing about my experience at Jubilee is that my favorite part was not the wonderful people who welcomed us into the community.
It was not getting sweaty while laughing and doing zumba with the women of the neighborhood.
It was not my changed perspective, or even the delicious mexican food and homemade guacamole that they served us for lunch.

My favorite aspect of Jubilee Park was the houses.

"The houses?  Of everything you got to see, you liked the houses the best?", you may ask...
Well let me explain.

I suppose it wasn't exactly the houses themselves that I loved so much, but more so the image that they represented (at least in my mind..).

Beautiful, architecturally sound houses made of new wood sat next to houses with crumbling paint and litter in the yard.

New next to old.

The neighborhood was not complete.

Even after all the work the residents had put into restoring their area and creating safe places, there were still houses that weren't perfect.

The neighborhood wasn't flawless.  The residents could not brush off their hands and congratulate each other on a great finished product.

There was still work to be done.

To me this is a BEAUTIFUL image that God is still working in Jubilee Park.  Even after all of the amazing things that have been done there, the work is not complete.
God has not brushed His hands off and congratulated Himself on a job well done.
He is still working and He still has people in mind to come to Jubilee and do His work.
I love that even when we see so much good that God has even bigger and better things in mind for us.

This is not only true of Jubilee Park.

God is still at work.
He is still at work in the cities and communities across the world, and He is still at work within us.

What a wonderful God.