I've been doing some reading...

With my new work life (compared to school life), I've had time to read books I want to read, but never had time to because of school related reading requirements.  It's been SO GREAT!  I love reading and think it is a wonderful way to learn more about the world around you without ever leaving your bed or your comfy couch.  (Not to say that you shouldn't ever leave those places, because you should definitely experience life for yourself!)

Here are five very brief reviews, in no particular order, of a few books I recommend you take time to read:

1. Packing Light   By Allison Vesterfelt     
The author goes through her journey of leaving everything, literally everything, to follow her heart and travel the country.  She talks about her many layers of baggage and what incidents made her realize  she even had any.  I love her honesty with her feelings and thoughts along the way.  Vesterfelt has a beautiful way of analyzing those thoughts from a post-journey view point and through that, raises questions we all face.  How do I deal with my baggage?  What baggage do I even have??  What areas/aspects of my life am I absolutely unwilling to let go of?  I have many take-aways after having read this, but one of the biggest is that vision changes everything.  My outlook on life, the people in it and the moments I happen upon, is completely affected by the perspective I put on it.  It is not always possible to be happy about the way life turns out, but you can remain positive in that it won't stay that way forever.  This one is HIGHLY recommended.... by me.  :)


2. The Circle Maker   By Mark Batterson       

If you're looking for a spiritually challenging book, this is a good one!  It opens with a story about an African man who is bold and faithful in his prayers.  From there, Batterson pairs personal stories of failures and successes to share how he learned to pray big prayers, much like the African man.  Though you don't have to take everything he says as truth (as is true for any book), I was encouraged by his trust and boldness in the way he approaches prayer.  Dream big. Pray hard. Think long.

3.  The Alchemist   By Paulo Coelho        

A shepherd boy named Santiago herds his flock around the country side to earn a living, until he meets an old king.  This happenstance reshapes Santiago's direction and leads him on his way to find his "Personal Legend."  I enjoyed this one because it has Biblical references, but is written as a fable.  It took me a little bit to really get into this one, but I ended up enjoying it.  The moral is an uplifting one about following your dreams, even through major, life-altering obstacles.  

4.  Divergent   By Veronica Roth        

Set in Chicago, this dystopian novel follows a young girl trying to figure out who she is.  The society she lives in is broken into five different sections: Abnegation-the selfless, Candor-the honest, Dauntless-the brave, Amity-the peaceful, and Erudite-the intelligent.  Find out which virtue best suites you, as you learn more about Beatrice, the heroine, and how she handles the truth.  Filled with so much detail, it was easy for me to get caught up in another world.  It doesn't mean a lot when I say this is a great book, because I love science fiction and I love reading. BUT when my roommate says this is a great book and is caught reading the first two books in the trilogy during every spare moment and then proceeds to buy the last when her coworker keeps forgetting to bring it in to work for two whole weeks, that means a little more.  Christine classifies herself as a slower reader who really only likes non fiction, so the Divergent series has to be good, right??  RIGHT.  Set aside a weekend for this one. 

5.  101 Secrets for Your Twenties   By Paul Angone        

While some of these secrets aren't really secrets, I liked the reminder to live life to its fullest and experience moments while I'm not "tied" to any particular way of living.  The author puts a secret up and then elaborates on why it is important to know or do in your 20s.  This one is a light read that you might not need to purchase, but I did enjoy the laughs and advice tid-bits I picked up.  

Brought to you with love on this fine Sunday and now I will return to my Christmas movie-thon..  Holiday Inn down, White Christmas is up next and then The Holiday..  Who doesn't love old movies, dancing, and Jude Law?!?        

Life After Graduation as of Oct. 2013

Now that I have been a part of the "real world" for about 2 months, I can share what it has been like and what kind of transitions I've been through in all aspects of my life.



Business Life:  Rough, tough stuff- at first.  The past two months have had many ups and many downs with learning the ropes and figuring out priorities and what, exactly, is expected of me.  Yet, I feel like I've made a few mini-accomplishments.  One, I have successfully interviewed, "hired", and trained 4 new interns for Mary's Place.  I have also revised/written handbooks for volunteers and interns, designed a new brochure, enlisted my friend to redesign the logo, brought in several new college groups, found a couple people to help teach ESL classes, and am in the beginning stages of starting a citizenship class for adult refugees.  There is still soooo much I don't know about the refugees that I would love to know, but I know it will take time to build trust with them.  Thus far, I have learned two main lessons:  A. Stand up for yourself; Don't be taken advantage of by people who don't have authority over you, or even by people who do.  B. If you're butting heads with a co-worker, talk it out with someone you trust to come up with another strategy of communication.  Figure out what the issue really is and how best to address it.

Daniel.  He is such a character...  Super smart kid and very talented in soccer too. 

Learning a lot in English class!

Esperance, Jackie, and Celestin.  Esperance is very sweet and loving; she loves to give hugs!  Jackie is the sassy kindergartener...  love her, even if she is a sass.  Celestin loves being responsible for things and helping out.  He has been doing really well in school so far this year :)

Three of the older girls that come to Mary's Place: Salome, Nadine, and Awal.  I love getting to know these girls more and more as I spend time with them!  

Art day with Liz, Christina, and Bri :)

Social Life:  I am very fortunate to live so close (5 min drive, 10 min bike ride) to friends still in college!  On the other hand, it is mad difficult to live "far" away from best friends.  Bethy, my college next door neighbor and NY sister, now lives in Syracuse with her hubby.  Kels, my old roomie, lives 45 min away; Meghan lives over an hour away; and Liz just moved to Cincinnati....  There's my main cohort of friends and none of them are in close proximity, except for Christina, who's about 10 min away (which I love!).  It helps that one of my current roommates went through the same social crisis last year and the other is going through it now with me.  I have still managed to have fun doing weird things like square dancing with old folks, having a dance party for 3 hours in our kitchen, several game nights, many sleep overs, and much more!


Spiritual Life:  This has been a bit rough, not gonna lie.  For a while, I did a lot of sulking, reminiscing college and Uganda...  Then I got back into being a youth leader and I recently joined a life group through church with other young adults.  Both of these things have been vital to giving me the motivation to be active in my spiritual life again versus going through motions.  I'm still working on perfecting my routine of making sure I set aside time to spend with Christ, but it's definitely much better.  Again, my roommates have been super encouraging and we've had a few great conversations about sermons and an ABC (our names are Amanda, Bethany, and Christine, so everything has become ABC [fill in the blank: laundromat, cafe, motel, etc.]) prayer circle.  They are awesome!  Something Christine brought up one night that rang true to me is now that we aren't always surrounded by friends, we have to run to God with our life instead of relying on our friends to help us work things out.  So true, but hard.

What I do with the leftover time in my life:  Well, I've been doing a number of things when I'm not with other people or doing work related tasks.  A large portion of time has been spent watching White Collar on Netflix.  I have almost finished season 3 and don't know what I'll do afterward because none of the other seasons are up yet.  I have also succumbed to the hot trend of Candy Crush and now waste time playing that game before I fall asleep.   Bethany and I have cooking dates on Sundays, which are beautiful!!  One of the highlights of my week is deciding what to make and spending a large portion of our afternoon making delicious food.  So far, we've made baked ziti, fajitas, clam chowder, pork chops, and chili; everything is made from scratch!  Look out world- I can cook!!  I've been able to read a lot more and make it through books at a normal speed since I don't have boat loads of reading for 8 different classes.  I'm even auditing ceramics at college so that I have access to studio space and can keep up with my art-making.  I would like to start volunteering at least once a week somewhere local in the mornings because I don't go into work until 12pm.  Where I'd like to donate my time?  No idea right now..  maybe a nursing home or other non-profit, maybe I could find a gallery that needs extra help or see if the church office could use an extra hand.

Baked Ziti!

Fajitas with alll the toppings! :)

Clam chowder!

There is so much left to be learned, luckily I have many years to learn it...

Mary's Place and My New Home

My first week of "serving" (since I'm a glorified volunteer) is almost over!  I really like what is happening at my site, Mary's Place.  (Check out their website when you get a chance: http://www.marysplaceoutreach.org/mpo/ )  They help refugees that have been placed in the area by offering free ESL classes, food and clothing donations, and after-school tutoring, among other things.  Kathy first started the non-profit organization in 2009 and it has been growing ever since.  People are coming and going as they have received the knowledge they need to make a living in the US and more people are being relocated to the area all the time.

God really had my back on this one I think!  After applying to Rochester Youth Year, the program I am under within AmeriCorps, I was wait-listed. Crushed, I started to look for other similar opportunities in the Rochester area, one in particular was working at Nativity Prep School in the city.  Two days before I was going to leave for Uganda, I received a call from the Roberts Dean of Student Life, Brenda.  She said there was a very important email I needed to check before I left for my trip......

I was accepted!  I was so excited, but I was quickly hit with all the emotions and wonderful people of Uganda.  All through the rest of summer, training, up until I actually got to Mary's Place, I periodically felt like I had made the wrong choice because this had almost nothing to do with anything God has placed on my heart. SURPRISEEEE!

My dream to open and run my own arts community center had been my main motivation to gain experience in the non-profit world (I also wasn't quite ready for my own classroom yet).  But beyond gaining knowledge about non-profits, I have also put to use things I learned from my trip to Uganda.  Mary's Place serves many different types of people including Burmese, Nepali, and Africans from Congo, Zambia, and South Sudan.  I have been able to share my love for chapatti and samosa (pastry type things with vegetables inside) with them.  We talked about different languages and all kinds of things.  Its a slightly Americanized version of Africa in the US.  WHile the circumstances that brought these people to the US aren't any where near the best, I love it!

I am stoked to learn more about the Burmese and Nepali, too!  I am already planning awareness nights and food sharing events in my head, as well as marketing tools and ways to improve the programs already in place.

On a different note, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the house I moved into with fellow Roberts grads!  My housemates are Christine and Bethany, both are nurses and have a great love for the outdoors.  Mom and Corey came up for my day off this week to help me get organized and bring some odds and ends up.  I now have a dresser and mattress! (I'd been sleeping on the floor until Wednesday)  My mother has OCD and felt the need to clean every square inch of the 1.5 bathrooms in the house... Thanks, Mom! :)

Another Adventure Begins

Today, I left VA after being home for a measly 5 weeks of working non-stop.  I arrived in Philadelphia, PA only 2 hours early....

Why Philly??  Well, I officially start my year of service in the AmeriCorps program today.  I will be serving refugees in Rochester through Rochester Youth Year.  There are TONS of other Vistas (our title within AmeriCorps) here from all over.  My roommate for the next few days just got in from CA and a couple other people I met are from NYC serving in the Bronx.

Now, to kill 2 1/2 hours...

Kivulu Has My Heart

The slums of Kivulu

Kivulu was by far my favorite place we went while in Uganda.  There is something about the atmosphere and people and love there that makes you feel like family after 5 minutes.  Uncle Abdul is one of the leaders, along with Uncle Robert.  They got permission from a church in the slums to use the facility as a home base for their ministry.  Everyday a bunch of homeless boys gather to learn from the Uncles and every other day, they get to eat together.  Most of the Uncles grew up on the streets so they know what it is like to live day to day.  They are bending over backwards to
                                                                                    provide for these boys in any way they can.

Robert and Richard

Since the boys are SO into soccer, we played a few games with them in a huge open field in the middle of the city.  Isaiah was all over the place!  Where ever the ball was, Isaiah was in close proximity.  During one game, he tried to stay back on defense and couldn't handle it!  He had to be where the ball was.  The boys have made a team and they compete in games in Uganda.  They won a championship shortly before we got to UG!

A bunch of the boys liked messing around- poking, fake fighting, tickling.  Don was surprise attacked numerous times. :)  And to show off how strong they are, some of the boys decided to pick up Don and Josh to race them.  HILARIOUS!  Josh is a bit taller than Don, so it was funny watching each boy pick him up and start to face-plant into the ground because he was top heavy.

Linda and Ronny

Suzie, Dorothea, Lulu, Sherrif, and Edward

Kaylee with some fond admirers of her long hair :)

After playing a bunch of games with the boys, holding a clinic and helping prepare food for their dinner, we left to get our own food.

Chicken President and his friend

Abdul and Steve

Off to Robert's home we went to eat the famous Chicken President's food!!  Robert is not the only one who lives in his home.. there are about 15 boys permanently living there with two other Uncles, Ronnie and Alex.  Together they provide for the boys to eat, go to school, and pay rent.  Each boy was hand picked after much relationship building.  Robert takes time to get to know the boys on the street and works with them until he feels they are ready to live in a real home.  Abdul also has a home for boys.  I'm telling you these guys are amazing and filled with God's love!  I am so glad I was able to meet them and get to know even just a little bit about them!

The meal the Chicken President prepared was AMAZING!  That was another favorite meal.  Chicken and cabbage and other veggies in some kind of flavoring that was so delicious and filling.

This little guy was an expert pick-pocketer...

Rakai, Day 2

Our second day in Rakai was another busy one.  We had three site visits; the first being the school where Pastor George's wife, Beatrice, went.  (Side note: Pastor George is the leader of the Ugandan staff.  Dorothy is the administrative secretary and also Pastor George's adopted daughter.  They are both super awesome people!)  Kakoma Primary school has 7 yrs, much like our elementary school.  This was the first school we've visited that has all the subjects AND resource subjects (P.E., art, and music).  The students were all very smart, well behaved and listened to their teachers and headmaster, so I know it is a well run school.

I was able to teach some of the girls and younger boys how to play 4 square.  This was good for them because girls were not allowed to play soccer at this school and the younger boys had a hard time playing.  At first, I couldn't tell if they liked it or not, but a teacher talked with some of them and they said it was very fun!  Sweet deal!  :)

Our second destination of the day was St. Luke Butabago church and nursery.  Except, that they taught much more than nursery school.  Upon gathering information from the church staff and school teachers, we discovered that the children would drink all the water from the tank installed at the church 200 yards away every day.  Pastor George and Richard decided to make the school a priority for getting one of the next tanks so that they would have their own water supply.

Side note:  Some of us noticed a cement water tank, and found out that the school could no longer use it because it grew algae and was clogged.  Since there was no way to get inside to clean it, the tank could not be repaired.  This is one of the examples of an organization trying to do good in a community, but with no follow ups or contact afterward, the money spent went to waste.  No worries though- UWP to the rescue!!  :D  When I first met James, the leader of the American staff, I was skeptical about whether they were providing a sustainable resource for the people in Uganda.  After talking with him a bit, scouring through their website, and finding out about the Ugandan staff that works with the Ugandans, I became more confident that they were doing something awesome and lasting.  After seeing how it works, I can say that UWP is working hard to stay in touch with the places where tanks have already been installed and meeting the communities of new locations.  Each school or church has to go through an application process and talk with Pastor George before they will be considered to receive a water tank.  Then the process goes on from there.  It is supremely awesome and I am soo unbelievably glad that I am able to be a part of it!!!

Baby corn and banana trees

Our last stop was Kamengo Technical Institute.  What a cool place!  It allowed students who finished primary (7 yrs) and secondary school (6 yrs) to come and learn a trade in 3 years.  Afterward, they could go on to university, where they would study for a year or 2.  The trades taught were plumbing, carpentry, tailoring, electricity, masonry, and auto mechanics.  One of the unusual things about this tech school is that girls were allowed to come too!  It was interesting to compare my life to these students since we were about the same age.  They had to work first to make all the money for school because there was no where around to work.  I talked to a couple guys in the program for a while about how things worked at the school and how they had come to be there.

On the way back to Wingate, we got goat on a stick!!  It was sooo good! We also had chipati, of course. :)   Fun fact #2:  Some soda companies are the same in Africa, like Coca cola, Pepsi, Fanta, but some are different.  My favorite is Novida Pineapple or Mirinda Orange.

Hanging out in a cool tree :)

Off to Rakai, Day 1

Monday, May 27 was a huge, jam-packed day.  We got up pretty early to pack up the coaster (bus) and travel to Rakai for an overnight.  It took a LONG time to get there...  as in we left at 8 am and didn't get there until 3 pm.  Needless to say, there was a lot of traffic.  But we did get stop for a stretch/toilet break at the EQUATOR!  It's a legit pit stop, a bit touristy, and there is a guy who shows an experiment to anyone who asks.  Here's it is:  on either side of the equator and on the equator was a funnel.  The man poured a bucket in and then set a flower on top of the water to show which way the water was spinning.  On one side of the equator, the water went clockwise, on the other it went counter-clockwise, and on the equator the water sucked the flower down without spinning.  It was SO COOL!

The water experiment

Smack-dab on the equator!!!

Our first stop was our hotel, where we "ate" lunch (it was the only meal that many of us only ate the chipati, a tortilla like bread that's got a bit more substance, and rice because everything else was a bit questionable).  Richard assured us we would find a different place for dinner (thank goodness!!).

After our short meal, we headed to an orphanage/school on a plateau called Goodwill Primary School.  It became an orphanage because so many children were dropped off there and since their numbers are always increasing, they have had a difficult time supporting all the kids.  Right now, they have about 85 students.  It was impressive to see how they made everything work with so few resources.  We were visiting to check on the second rain water tank that had been installed. This tank had been sponsored by Roberts Wesleyan my alma mater!  They had 4 buildings on the property, 2 larger and 2 smaller.  In one of the larger buildings was a home for all the girls, 4 teachers, and the family of a teacher.  The room below sleeps 27 older girls (about 10-14 yrs old).  The 30 boys had to sleep on hay in one of the larger school rooms.

 A bunch of the kids singing a greeting to us!

We got a tour from the headmaster, and then we got out all our games: balloons for little kids, footballs for the boys, and a toss game that teaches how germs are spread.  They were all a huge hit!  Lulu got out her guitar, Gail got a tambourine,  and Isaiah played the cajon (box drum) and they sang their hearts out for a while. :)   It was a very special thing to see many of the children, parents, and other community members joining in and dancing as they played.

The students performed a program for us just after our arrival.  It was so special to hear their joyful voices!

Playing the "Germ game" with the older girls

None of us wanted to leave when it was time to go back to the hotel.  The kids were so much fun and the location was perfect!  We even postponed our second site visit for that day because Richard realized the importance and value of our time here.

Josh enjoyed taking pictures of the kids and then showing them the picture :)

Steve and some cuties!

Dinner was DEE-licious!!  We had a whole buffet of jackfruit (look it up, so good!), chipati, chicken, rice, beans, and a bunch of other stuff with fresh fruit for dessert.  As we walked back to our hotel after dinner, we passed several vendors, many of which were selling grasshoppers.  At first none of us knew what they were because they covered entire tables and had been de-legged and de-winged.  Richard insisted on buying some and "forced" us to eat at least one.....  Kaylee was the first to try one I think, then pretty much everyone followed eventually, EVEN Linda!  It was pretty entertaining watching her psych herself up to actually eat it.  They didn't taste soo bad- kind of like a salty peanut.  The only one who was very adamant in his refusal to eat the roasted, salted grasshopper was Don.  Let me tell you, he is STILL getting teased about it...

Grasshopper vendor