Hay friends! Sorry it has been so long since I have updated this, things have gotten insanely busy and I'm preparing for this whirlwind of an amazing adventure to unfortunately come to an end. I don't think I'm ready for all of that, and I have about 3 weeks to update you on, so I'll just worry about the past before thinking too hard about how soon I am leaving. So two weeks ago (July 6-12) we had a group of 79 which we all hosted together. They were all senior high (and some adults) from Grand Rapids Michigan, and they were PHENOMENAL!! I'm going to try to keep this brief because I have so much to say, so bear with me if the details are slim.
Sunday July 6:
We started off the week at Taste of India, and William and I rode in the mini bus together--our first time really working together. Things went especially well at dinner, and also during the prayer tour, which he navigated and I did the dialogue for. The kids and adults really seemed to enjoy it and to learn a lot about the city, which is certainly the goal for the tour. William and I also did lights out together, and since we're both such sticklers about the whole thing that went really well too.
Monday July 7:
Cade Vice is 8, and that makes me feel especially old:) But that's just a side note! We started off the morning making beds at Central Union Mission, a men's homeless shelter and rehab program that I've mentioned working at several times before. We also cleaned the kitchen from top to bottom, literally scrubbed everything, and packed food bags to give out to the people coming in to worship. After that we had a tour of the mission where we met the pastor who runs the whole show, which was an amazing thing to see. He had an awesome story and an awesome vision for the mission which he implemented, and told us the details to how that worked out. We continued the day by going to lunch at Anacostia Park to stage for VBS and take a little break before starting it. I went back to Stoddard for VBS (the site I was at last week) and was VERY excited to see my favorite little boy Tajuan from the week before!! My VBS is team is the red team (the giant group is split into 3 smaller ones: red, white, and blue for VBS) and Katie and I are hosting them together. We had our usual dinner at Wok and Roll Chinese, and headed to the National Cathedral to debrief and end out the night. I'm getting a little homesick so I talked to my Dad and I really think he is planning a visit for the weekend!! We will see!
Tuesday July 8 2008:
The morning began at Food and Friends and I did deliveries with some great kids and a chaperone named Gail. The deliveries went smoothly and Gail treated us all to some Dunkin Donuts afterwards! FANTASTIC! Also I got an incredible surprise which proved the Lord is sovereign when I got back to Food and Friends and there was a youth group from Athens, GA there! I caused quite a scene when I heard they were from Athens, but it was so great to see them! It was just the little taste of home that I so desperately needed. I got the youth leader's card so I am going to email them and hopefully visit their church when I get back to school this fall!! Praise the Lord for providing me with that tiny piece of home that I needed! We were back at Anacostia Park at lunch, which has become a favorite napping spot for me and the other hosts, so we slept there on the concrete until VBS time:) VBS was much smoother today and a lot more organized, which made me, Pastor Terry (the lady in charge of it all), and the kids a lot happier. We headed to Ben's Chili Bowl for dinner, and one of their awesome male leaders bought all of us hosts Ben's famous milkshakes! They're really going to spoil us this week, I think. We debriefed for a short period at Rock Creek Park, and I really think the red team is starting to see what this is really all about. I'm praying that their eyes will continue to be opened throughout the rest of the week, because most of the things they'll be seeing are things they've never experienced before. I talked to my dad and he and Aunt April are for sure coming (YAY!) so I won't be homesick at all after the weekend!
Wednesday July 9 2008:
Hump Day! This morning Noel, CSM's president, arrived to check out how things are going and to meet with all of us on staff. My group and I went to work at Vision DC and basically did a lot of small, busy jobs. We cut fabric for distribution and also organized boxes. During all of that Noel stopped in to meet with me, and was most concerned with my future plans rather than what is going on now...unfortunately I don't know much about what those future plans are. We had lunch and a nap at the park again, which I am beginning to fall in love with. I'll miss my cat naps when I have to go back to the real world! The group introduced face paints at VBS, but the kids somehow turned them into full body paints instead:) I had paint EVERYWHERE and I'll have pictures to show you all of this when I get home...I was quite a disaster! I also managed to get paint on my red pants:( but it was ok, because the kids were happy. I don't wear them all that much anyway. We had dinner at Union Station which was a great break mid-week. Then, we all went over to the Jefferson Memorial and had debriefing. The red team is really getting it!! We had 3 kids who cried and couldn't even finish the stories they were telling because they felt so impacted. These guys are wonderful, and more importantly God is wonderful for helping them to see, feel, and learn all that they are doing! On a lighter note, on the way home I participated in my first Chinese Fire Drill! Not very safe, I know, but we were just in a small van rather than a mini bus so that made it at least a little better, right? Regardless it was a blast, and I absolutely love this group!!
Thursday July 10 2008:
5:00 am I woke up!! AHHHH! I had to work the 6:30am breakfast shift at S.O.M.E. (So Others Might Eat) and I have to say it was quite an experience!! Since I had to step back and let the kids do the serving, I just worked on refilling cups and cleaning in the womens dining area. I met this lady who looked a bit more like something out of a movie than someone in real life, though she was really entertaining to talk to. She told me that people who rode bikes were going to get shot in the head by guns from the sky, and that America had been warned but had done nothing about it. She asked how I felt about Iraq, Israel, and Afghanistan, but immediately turned to night club talk when I started talking. She asked where I went to church and when I told her I had visited a number of places since I'd been here she told me to tell whoever was trying to church me that it wasn't who I am. I told her that it was, and she got mad, said "whatever" and left. She was intriguing, but quite unsettling I thought. After leaving SOME we went to Downtown Cluster (an geriatric daycare facility for those living with alzheimers) and worked with some of the programs going on there. The kids in our group sang songs, played piano, and led games with the adults in the program. It was wonderful! They did such a good job! While that was happening I went for a meeting with Jason which was pretty uneventful, and then to Starbucks with Kristyn, one of the other hosts who was there with me. We had our usual lunch at Anacostia Park then, and of course, another nap:) At VBS there was more body painting, and though it isn't the most fun I've had in awhile, it was pretty enjoyable to see their faces light up. We had dinner at Mid-Atlantic Seafood, then a debrief at the Lincoln where we all shared experiences in which we had seen Christ's love today. It was awesome. Also, Dad and Aunt April are on their way!! I can't even believe it!
Friday July 11 2008:
Today is perhaps the most special day of my 2008, even more so than my 21st birthday...today is the day that I have been free from Chris's hold for one whole year! I have come so far and feel so blessed, I can hardly believe the point that I was at just one short year ago today. What a great God we serve who was able to pull me from the darkest points imaginable to the place that I am today! How can I not praise Him for all that He has done since? And even for the lessons He taught me during the year that I was with Chris. PRAISE THE LORD!!:) That's another story for another day, though, so I'll continue with my daily events. I did a Food and Friends delivery route with another of the amazing leaders from the group, Linda, whom I've gotten close to as the week has progressed. She took me out to lunch at Rex's sub shop across the street, and also to 7-11 because they give out free slurpees on July 11th! We took pictures to document this as my first experience there. I love Linda:) Today has already started out great, and I feel sure that it will only get better. We had lunch at Anacostia Park, and Dad and Aunt April met us there!! It was SO GOOD to see them!!! We hung out and talked until it was time for us to go to VBS and I can't wait to hang out with them again!! I can't believe they're here with me! VBS was a sort of field day where we just played games, and then gave the kids popsicles for snack. They loved it of course! I also spent a great deal of time with Mary, one of the volunteers with Kids Konnection (they run the VBS each week) and I'm glad that she has finally opened up enough to talk to Katie and I. I hope she continues to do so, because I feel like sometimes all she needs is a little coaxing and she'll come outside of her shell and be an awesome person to get to know. We had dinner at Pollo Granjero, and then headed to the Basilica for our final debrief. I love my red team!! We all talked about the week, had several criers, and I must admit I was one myself. How could I not cry on a wonderful day like today though? I love these kids and I am really going to miss them. They gave us cards and Maggie Moos giftcards at the end of the debrief too, to show their appreciation for all of our help. I was so touched! They really are going to spoil us though:) As the other groups were heading back to their buses the red team (myself included) snuck from above and bombed them with water balloons too! It was so much fun!! I love being included in the groups and doing fun things like that!! On the way home I led a dance party on our minibus because they were playing Hannah Montana music so I just had to:) We also did a giant Chinese Fire Drill and managed to successfully get 23 people out of a bus and back on it with time to spare! The red team=rock stars! I love these guys!! When we got back to Star my INCREDIBLE fellow hosts gave me sunflowers to commemorate the occasion of being without Chris for a whole year! That meant so much, they'll never even realize!! It's so nice to have friends like these who are so supportive and so loving regardless of the situation and those that I know, regardless of how far apart we may be, will ALWAYS be there for me. So if you guys read this (which I don't know if you will or not) I LOVE YOU SO MUCH and couldn't feel more blessed at this moment (even as I'm writing this 2 weeks later) On a much sadder note, however, I also received a call saying that Nanny had been admitted to hospital with a blood clot in her lung. She is ok now, but at the time I was very frantic, and again thankful for my supportive new friends. Please keep her in your prayers! We got our evaluations from the group as well, and they were all good, especially the one that said "give Hannah a raise!":) Overall it was a great day, and at the end of it I feel hardly anything but blessed. How great is our God!
Saturday July 12 2008:
I said goodbye to my group (SO SAD!) early and headed off with Dad and Aunt April. We went to Ben's for breakfast and it was SO good! I had only had their lunch/supper meals so I was glad for the change and to see that breakfast is so great. We walked around some of the monuments for awhile afterwards, and I was glad that I could be with Dad and Aunt April on their first trip here. I also got to show off some of my knowledge of the city, and that was pretty fun too. We went shopping at H&M and bought some teacher clothes, and I took them to Potbelly, a sandwich place similar to Quiznos. We wanted to do some more shopping afterwards so we took the Metro (basically a subway) to Georgetown to shop. By the end of all that though we were exhausted, so we weren't there very long before hailing a cab (also a fun, new experience) back to our car, and then going back to the hotel for a much needed nap. We got ready and dressed up for a nice dinner in Maryland, then headed to Target, and back to the hotel for bed. It was nice to spread out on a nice comfy bed and take a shower with no shoes, but I have to say I'd prefer Star to that hotel any day. It's crazy when you realize that sharing a small area in a church with 7 other people has become home:) Dad and Aunt April could hardly believe the area that I was living in and the conditions of Star, but they still seemed to understand why I felt so happy and at home here. I talked to Granny and PawPaw too, Granny of course thought I should just come on home (because the Lord would understand, she said), but I can't just walk away from this...not yet. Home is comfortable, but comfortable isn't always good, and I can't bear to leave here yet. Talking to them is always entertaining though, of course, so I enjoyed it even though I want to stay. It was another fantastic day, but I definitely passed out when my head hit the pillow. I think I could stay in DC as long as I could get visitors from home!:)
So that's it for the week! More to come later, but this typing is kind of exhausting too, and I really just want to go to bed:) I love you guys, and hope that I'll hear from you soon! Keep me and my Nanny in your prayers, and know that I'll be praying for you too!
XOXO,
Hannah
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Sunday, July 6, 2008
A Week Alone with some Middle Schoolers!
Hay yall! This was my first group alone, and I spent it with 13 middle schoolers, 2 leaders, and one student leader who was 16. It was a good week, though somewhat stressful, so here come the details of the week!
Sunday: I didn't go to church, bad, I know, so I rested until ten. I took a walk around the block with Sarah, Katie, and Sarah's roommate from school Rebekah. I read the rest of the afternoon which was glorious, and then got ready for the staff meeting. Since this is my first group alone I freaked out and cried for about 20 minutes panicking about the week, and a combination of other things. My group arrived and we had supper at a Salvadoran restaurant called Pollo Granjero, and then did the prayer tour, which was considerably easier because the main leader and driver of the bus has been on 6 CSM trips here before.
Monday: We started with City Survey=2 hours of free time for me, with which I talked to my mom and read! We had lunch at Anacostia Park with the other groups, and then went to Kids Konnection for VBS orientation. Our VBS site was at Stoddard Park, where we had around 40-50 kids. It went well and the group was well prepared=minimal work for me. :) Supper was at Taste of India, then we had Baskin Robbins for dessert. We debriefed at Rock Creek Park, which went well but they had a hard time focusing and not giggling. Such is junior high school though, I guess. It cracks me up how similar they are to the way we were in junior high...not much has changed, they even still listen to Sadie Hawkins Dance by Relient K like we did! Also this girl just said the phrase "way back when there was a drink called Surge, I think it was a cross between soda and an energy drink." Wow I'm old, I remember Surge well, and I liked it. Makes me think of Haley Booth putting skittles in it at the studio...anyway. We got home around 8:30 and I got to talk to my Zeeland group--one of the first groups I had this summer! They were having a DC reunion so they called Sarah and I--it was fantastic! I went to bed around 9:30 (also fantastic) after talking to my parents.
Tuesday: We started off at a project called Unique Development, which is a gardening project started by Reverend Hackney in Anacostia. We weeded for a good 3 hours, then I took the students for lunch at Anacostia Park and I met with Jason. Back to VBS for the afternoon where I met a precious 9 year old named Taywan (spelling?). He was wearing the same clothes he had worn the day before, and was dirty from head to toe. The other guys were picking on him and trying to fight him, and I thought I was going to fight them because they wouldn't stay off of him. The other boys were 10-12 years old, I'd guess. When they wouldn't go away, he looked up at me with big tears in his eyes and said he wouldn't fight them because there were more important things in life. He and I then went to color a game board for crafts. He talked about being stupid because he wasn't very good at his multiplication tables. I told him that I'll be a senior in college but I wasn't very good at my multiplication tables either, but that made neither of us dumb or stupid, it just gave us a reason to work harder. He acted like that made him feel better, and I certainly hope it did. He said he had no friends and his face lit up when I said I wanted to be his friend. I told him about Jesus and that Jesus would always be his friend. We talked a long time and my heart is broken for this little guy. We ate at Old City and then debriefed at Meridian Park. There are feces smashed all over the downstairs bathroom and we suspect its the fault of my group because a few of them refer to themselves as "the Deuce Brothers" OH MY! This week is going to be interesting at best.
Wednesday: We started the day at St. Thomas More, a nursing home facility, where the students did room visits and I talked to Gabriel, whom you'd just have to meet, he's an interesting character. The first thing he said to me when he turned the corner and saw me sitting there was "Hannah, baby, I've been longing to see you!" Oh my...After that we headed to lunch at the Aquatic Gardens which consisted of a lot of reading on my part--I finished the last book in my series! We went back to VBS, another successful day, and then supper at Wok and Roll. We debriefed at the National Cathedral, where the group did a circle of affirmation and encouraged each other for a minute straight. They started with me, and they were so nice!! It definitely did what it was supposed to and made me feel better about the remainder of the week.
Thursday: We started with a delivery at Food and Friends, which was pretty long and went pretty well. We had some extra time so the youth leader bought the 4 of us in the car cokes and we went to a park and drank them and talked about my book. He lent me another book, The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical by Shane Claiborne, which started out great. We went to the Basilica for lunch and the group did a tour while the youth leader and I talked about random stuff. It was kind of nice. After the tour we went outside and talked about Catholicism and how it differs from our views as Protestants. We went back to VBS and then had supper at Ben's, which was a good time as usual. We debriefed at Haines Point (a park, sort of, down past the monuments which juts out into the Potomac) and afterward all of the students jumped in the river. It was a lot of fun, and they were all super pumped. On the way home we had a dance party in the van with a lot of awkward middle school esque dancing. It was great, I must admit:) We got in bed late because they all had to shower before bed, but it was still fun.
Friday: Happy 4th! We started off at Food and Friends doing a delivery, and then headed back to Star for lunch. The group was supposed to have a free day because of the 4th, but they didn't want to, so we did an urban plunge. It was a different plunge than usual though, because I didn't get off for it like we normally do, I rode down to Dupont Circle with the youth leader. The kids walked down instead of taking the bus, so we basically stalked them all down the street until we got to the circle. I talked to Tiffany for awhile (which was great, because I miss her a ton) and then Chris, the youth leader, and I had Five Guys while waiting on the kids to finish. They didn't want to go down to the mall for the 4th celebration, so we rode around for awhile and ended up in Virginia to watch them from the other side of the river. It rained on us and was a big mess, but we ended up watching a few minutes of fireworks on a bridge. We missed a lot though, because the smoke from the fireworks blocked a lot from our view. On the way home the students seemed to be having some conflict and the older guys in the group wanted to settle them, so we pulled over in a church and us leaders went off to a 7-11 for cokes and snacks while they finished up their conversation. We brought back 12 packs of cokes and some bags of chips and when we got back they were all in tears. Things seemed to be resolved though, and us leaders had a really good time hanging out that night anyway. We got home and did evaluations (which were especially good) and then headed to bed.
Saturday: The group got up really early to clean up Star because they wanted to serve us as well, and then left out around 10:30. We then headed to Tasty Diner and Borders (a usual Saturday around here now) before coming back to Star to chill out. My chilling was interrupted though by my friends wanting me to ride a bicycle. We headed over to Rock Creek Park in one sexy looking bike helmet and I attempted to ride. I did ok, I rode alone for about 10 feet, but the seat caused me a fair amount of pain...I don't know how that happened and I really hope I was just doing something wrong. It was fun until I got really frustrated, so we went in. I took my second shower of the day, and then we all (minus Katie and Sarah) went to Jason (our boss)'s house for an Independence Day cookout. It was fun and the food was great, but it gave me a large amount of heart burn so I had to hurry up and go to bed when I got back. We also watched JCTV (Jesus Christ Television), and saw a Christian rapper named Tracy Edmond who said "People need Jesus like phrases need commas!" We thought it was hilarious, so I thought it was quotable here on my blog:) It was a good night overall, but I did go to bed asap!
Sunday: Cassie and I woke up early and went to National Community Church, which was a great service. They played Hosanna by Hillsong United, and since it's one of my favorites it kind of made my day. We talked about Christians being Doers of the Word instead of just hearers, and it was definitely a good lesson to hear. We came back and napped and then got up for the staff meeting that we just finished. I'm praying for a good group and good day:)
So that's it for this week, my favorite week since I've been here, though I am glad it's over with. Despite feeling slightly shafted from missing the fireworks on the mall, I had a great time. Also, the leader gave me the book he'd originally lent me, which I'm still reading and its awesome. I miss everyone a lot and it'd be great to hear from you! I love you guys!
XOXO,
Hannah
Sunday: I didn't go to church, bad, I know, so I rested until ten. I took a walk around the block with Sarah, Katie, and Sarah's roommate from school Rebekah. I read the rest of the afternoon which was glorious, and then got ready for the staff meeting. Since this is my first group alone I freaked out and cried for about 20 minutes panicking about the week, and a combination of other things. My group arrived and we had supper at a Salvadoran restaurant called Pollo Granjero, and then did the prayer tour, which was considerably easier because the main leader and driver of the bus has been on 6 CSM trips here before.
Monday: We started with City Survey=2 hours of free time for me, with which I talked to my mom and read! We had lunch at Anacostia Park with the other groups, and then went to Kids Konnection for VBS orientation. Our VBS site was at Stoddard Park, where we had around 40-50 kids. It went well and the group was well prepared=minimal work for me. :) Supper was at Taste of India, then we had Baskin Robbins for dessert. We debriefed at Rock Creek Park, which went well but they had a hard time focusing and not giggling. Such is junior high school though, I guess. It cracks me up how similar they are to the way we were in junior high...not much has changed, they even still listen to Sadie Hawkins Dance by Relient K like we did! Also this girl just said the phrase "way back when there was a drink called Surge, I think it was a cross between soda and an energy drink." Wow I'm old, I remember Surge well, and I liked it. Makes me think of Haley Booth putting skittles in it at the studio...anyway. We got home around 8:30 and I got to talk to my Zeeland group--one of the first groups I had this summer! They were having a DC reunion so they called Sarah and I--it was fantastic! I went to bed around 9:30 (also fantastic) after talking to my parents.
Tuesday: We started off at a project called Unique Development, which is a gardening project started by Reverend Hackney in Anacostia. We weeded for a good 3 hours, then I took the students for lunch at Anacostia Park and I met with Jason. Back to VBS for the afternoon where I met a precious 9 year old named Taywan (spelling?). He was wearing the same clothes he had worn the day before, and was dirty from head to toe. The other guys were picking on him and trying to fight him, and I thought I was going to fight them because they wouldn't stay off of him. The other boys were 10-12 years old, I'd guess. When they wouldn't go away, he looked up at me with big tears in his eyes and said he wouldn't fight them because there were more important things in life. He and I then went to color a game board for crafts. He talked about being stupid because he wasn't very good at his multiplication tables. I told him that I'll be a senior in college but I wasn't very good at my multiplication tables either, but that made neither of us dumb or stupid, it just gave us a reason to work harder. He acted like that made him feel better, and I certainly hope it did. He said he had no friends and his face lit up when I said I wanted to be his friend. I told him about Jesus and that Jesus would always be his friend. We talked a long time and my heart is broken for this little guy. We ate at Old City and then debriefed at Meridian Park. There are feces smashed all over the downstairs bathroom and we suspect its the fault of my group because a few of them refer to themselves as "the Deuce Brothers" OH MY! This week is going to be interesting at best.
Wednesday: We started the day at St. Thomas More, a nursing home facility, where the students did room visits and I talked to Gabriel, whom you'd just have to meet, he's an interesting character. The first thing he said to me when he turned the corner and saw me sitting there was "Hannah, baby, I've been longing to see you!" Oh my...After that we headed to lunch at the Aquatic Gardens which consisted of a lot of reading on my part--I finished the last book in my series! We went back to VBS, another successful day, and then supper at Wok and Roll. We debriefed at the National Cathedral, where the group did a circle of affirmation and encouraged each other for a minute straight. They started with me, and they were so nice!! It definitely did what it was supposed to and made me feel better about the remainder of the week.
Thursday: We started with a delivery at Food and Friends, which was pretty long and went pretty well. We had some extra time so the youth leader bought the 4 of us in the car cokes and we went to a park and drank them and talked about my book. He lent me another book, The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical by Shane Claiborne, which started out great. We went to the Basilica for lunch and the group did a tour while the youth leader and I talked about random stuff. It was kind of nice. After the tour we went outside and talked about Catholicism and how it differs from our views as Protestants. We went back to VBS and then had supper at Ben's, which was a good time as usual. We debriefed at Haines Point (a park, sort of, down past the monuments which juts out into the Potomac) and afterward all of the students jumped in the river. It was a lot of fun, and they were all super pumped. On the way home we had a dance party in the van with a lot of awkward middle school esque dancing. It was great, I must admit:) We got in bed late because they all had to shower before bed, but it was still fun.
Friday: Happy 4th! We started off at Food and Friends doing a delivery, and then headed back to Star for lunch. The group was supposed to have a free day because of the 4th, but they didn't want to, so we did an urban plunge. It was a different plunge than usual though, because I didn't get off for it like we normally do, I rode down to Dupont Circle with the youth leader. The kids walked down instead of taking the bus, so we basically stalked them all down the street until we got to the circle. I talked to Tiffany for awhile (which was great, because I miss her a ton) and then Chris, the youth leader, and I had Five Guys while waiting on the kids to finish. They didn't want to go down to the mall for the 4th celebration, so we rode around for awhile and ended up in Virginia to watch them from the other side of the river. It rained on us and was a big mess, but we ended up watching a few minutes of fireworks on a bridge. We missed a lot though, because the smoke from the fireworks blocked a lot from our view. On the way home the students seemed to be having some conflict and the older guys in the group wanted to settle them, so we pulled over in a church and us leaders went off to a 7-11 for cokes and snacks while they finished up their conversation. We brought back 12 packs of cokes and some bags of chips and when we got back they were all in tears. Things seemed to be resolved though, and us leaders had a really good time hanging out that night anyway. We got home and did evaluations (which were especially good) and then headed to bed.
Saturday: The group got up really early to clean up Star because they wanted to serve us as well, and then left out around 10:30. We then headed to Tasty Diner and Borders (a usual Saturday around here now) before coming back to Star to chill out. My chilling was interrupted though by my friends wanting me to ride a bicycle. We headed over to Rock Creek Park in one sexy looking bike helmet and I attempted to ride. I did ok, I rode alone for about 10 feet, but the seat caused me a fair amount of pain...I don't know how that happened and I really hope I was just doing something wrong. It was fun until I got really frustrated, so we went in. I took my second shower of the day, and then we all (minus Katie and Sarah) went to Jason (our boss)'s house for an Independence Day cookout. It was fun and the food was great, but it gave me a large amount of heart burn so I had to hurry up and go to bed when I got back. We also watched JCTV (Jesus Christ Television), and saw a Christian rapper named Tracy Edmond who said "People need Jesus like phrases need commas!" We thought it was hilarious, so I thought it was quotable here on my blog:) It was a good night overall, but I did go to bed asap!
Sunday: Cassie and I woke up early and went to National Community Church, which was a great service. They played Hosanna by Hillsong United, and since it's one of my favorites it kind of made my day. We talked about Christians being Doers of the Word instead of just hearers, and it was definitely a good lesson to hear. We came back and napped and then got up for the staff meeting that we just finished. I'm praying for a good group and good day:)
So that's it for this week, my favorite week since I've been here, though I am glad it's over with. Despite feeling slightly shafted from missing the fireworks on the mall, I had a great time. Also, the leader gave me the book he'd originally lent me, which I'm still reading and its awesome. I miss everyone a lot and it'd be great to hear from you! I love you guys!
XOXO,
Hannah
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Another week in the life....
Hay friends, I just wanted to write again and update you on yet another week here in D.C. Last week was not necessarily as good as weeks past, so please forgive me for the bitter undertone that may or may not appear in the following:)
Sunday: I started out the day at Capitol Hill Baptist Church w/ Kristyn, Arthur, and Greg (the aforementioned VP of CSM). It was a great service, very similar to Spring Place, and our message was the first in a 4 part on Job. It was phenomenal! Afterwards we went to Bread and Chocolate for lunch and it was amazing not only because of the food, but also because it was free!:) We had a staff meeting at 2:30 and I was especially excited because my group was coming from Atlanta--the Atlanta Chinese Christian Church. I also hosted with Cassie, which was better than great. I love her! Our group was late because they hit traffic, so while we were waiting Cassie and I met with Greg. We talked to him about the possibility of starting CSM Atlanta, because Cassie is going to Emory in the fall, so he got our emails in case that ever happens. He also remembered Alan Ridley, Bryan's dad who took us on our CSM trip to Philly in 2004. I thought that was pretty cool. I read a lot after that, and our group arrived around 8. 10 high schoolers and 2 leaders plus Cassie and I went to Old City to eat, and then to Northwest Community Church, our alternate/overflow housing site. That's surely the worst part of my week. At Northwest we slept on airbeds and in a room with a half door, which was directly connected to the girls' room. Fortunately the bathrooms are one-seaters so that's all private, plus we have central heating and air there.
Monday: We started the day off at Matha's Table, a soup kitchen of sorts, where we sorted groceries and made sack lunches. It was pretty good, and while I was there I got mail--a card from my Aunt Sue:) That definitely made my day and reading it was also a nice break from the kitchen. We had lunch at Anacostia Park and our students played with some of the kids who were hanging out at the park. After lunch we headed over to Children of Mine, an after school program, and helped the owner Ms. Hannah Hawkins, clean the center, cook for the kids, and help them on school practice work. We had supper at Ben's Chili Bowl and I had my first ever veggie burger and liked it so much that I think I could be a vegetarian. Afterwards we did the prayer tour, since we couldn't the night before, and I think it was quite a success. It ended with a cold rain shower at the National Cathedral and after dropping students off at NWCC, Cassie and I went to Star for food. We went to bed fairly early, but were unfortunately kept awake by screaming students and the air mattresses made it even worse. I might've slept 2 hours.
Tuesday: I feel terrible, like I've never been so tired in all my life. Sleeping was rough and the noise issues made it even worse. We went to Vision DC with Ms. Azi, and organized vests and boxes. Luckily Jason picked me up for our meeting and I got coffee to revitalize me a bit...not very successful. We had lunch at the Basilica where Cassie and I had some awesome conversation about our families and our futures and such. She may be the most encouraging person I have ever met and I consider myself endlessly blessed to have met her. We then went back to Children of Mine and had dinner at Tropicana Jamaican. We debriefed at a park, and attempted (unsuccessfully) to get in bed early.
Wednesday: No rest for the weary, more noise and a bad mattress made for another sleepless night. We went to Food and Friends and I did a ton of deliveries, I'd say twice as many as usual, and when we got back we marinated fish in the kitchen until time to go. We headed back to Northwest for lunch because the group wanted a free afternoon (thank you Lord!) Cassie and I took naps, then we had dinner at the Tasty Diner w/ Kristyn and Arthur since their group had urban plunge. Cassie and I went to Borders afterward to get the 2nd book in the series I'm reading. I feel bad because I'm extremely irritable due to lack of sleep and I think I'm nearly impossible to be around. I'm trying to be positive thought and Christ-like, but its really hard. We got back to Star and started some laundry and our new books. Mine took a sad turn and left me in tears though, so I had to stop for a bit. My dad called then and it turns out he's coming to visit me on the 5th-next weekend!! I'm pretty excited, because I'm a tad homesick (more for Star than my actual home in GA) but it'll be good to see him. We went back to Northwest with our group around 9 and read til 11 or so. I talked to my parents and Drew and attempted to sleep for the night.
Thursday: Capitol Area Food Bank=gross and I'm still exhausted from little sleep. We sorted through cages of "pantry goods"--cake mix, olive oil, popcorn, bacon bits, etc. and put them into boxes for people to pick up or deliver. most of the stuff was covered in rodent poop, but fortunately we didn't run into the actual rodents. We did do a lot of gagging though. For lunch we went to the FDR Memorial and I enjoyed the best rest of my week under a tree by the Potomac River. It was phenomenal!! After lunch we went back to Children of Mine to play with kids, tutor them and prepare dinner. We had dinner at Mid-Atlantic Seafood where I had black-eyed peas (a new favorite), mac and cheese and potato salad with a Dr. Pepper (yay for that!) We're debriefing at Rock Creek Park and hoping, again, for an early night. Also, Cassie just informed me that I'm going to learn to ride a bike on Saturday, too...scary.
Friday: Morning at Food and Friends again where we packed bags, sorted old food, and colored cards and happy birthday bags. We left early and headed to the monuments for lunch. Cassie and I read for 2 hours under another tree at the FDR while the group looked around and such. We were back at Children of Mine playing with kids and planning tonight's final debrief. We're heading to Taste of India for supper then hopefully debriefing at the Lincoln/WWI. We'll be back at the church to do t-shirts and evaluations, and then hopefully have an early night. They're supposed to leave at 8am, which really means 8:30 to them.
Saturday: The group left at 8:45ish and by 9 we were back at home--yay! I finished my book and everybody minus William had breakfast at Tasty Diner (its turning into a tradition) and then Cassie, Arthur, and I went to Borders and American Apparel. We hung out at Star for awhile after that and watched Across the Universe (the Beatles musical), then went to Giant, Target, and Barnes and Noble to get dinner and the last book in the series I'm reading (at least til August, when the newest one comes back). That night we cooked spaghetti and had a dance party, then Cassie, Kristyn, and I spent some time on the roof talking, which was great. I've missed some good girl talk! We headed to bed around 1!
That's it for this week. I'll be working on the next asap, and I'm sorry that it goes back and forth between past and present tense, I've been keeping a journal and I'm just copying it on here. I miss you guys, and would love to hear from you!!
XOXO,
Hannah
Wednesday: No rest for the weary, more noise and a bad mattress made for another sleepless night. We went to Food and Friends and I did a ton of deliveries, I'd say twice as many as usual, and when we got back we marinated fish in the kitchen until time to go. We headed back to Northwest for lunch because the group wanted a free afternoon (thank you Lord!) Cassie and I took naps, then we had dinner at the Tasty Diner w/ Kristyn and Arthur since their group had urban plunge. Cassie and I went to Borders afterward to get the 2nd book in the series I'm reading. I feel bad because I'm extremely irritable due to lack of sleep and I think I'm nearly impossible to be around. I'm trying to be positive thought and Christ-like, but its really hard. We got back to Star and started some laundry and our new books. Mine took a sad turn and left me in tears though, so I had to stop for a bit. My dad called then and it turns out he's coming to visit me on the 5th-next weekend!! I'm pretty excited, because I'm a tad homesick (more for Star than my actual home in GA) but it'll be good to see him. We went back to Northwest with our group around 9 and read til 11 or so. I talked to my parents and Drew and attempted to sleep for the night.
Thursday: Capitol Area Food Bank=gross and I'm still exhausted from little sleep. We sorted through cages of "pantry goods"--cake mix, olive oil, popcorn, bacon bits, etc. and put them into boxes for people to pick up or deliver. most of the stuff was covered in rodent poop, but fortunately we didn't run into the actual rodents. We did do a lot of gagging though. For lunch we went to the FDR Memorial and I enjoyed the best rest of my week under a tree by the Potomac River. It was phenomenal!! After lunch we went back to Children of Mine to play with kids, tutor them and prepare dinner. We had dinner at Mid-Atlantic Seafood where I had black-eyed peas (a new favorite), mac and cheese and potato salad with a Dr. Pepper (yay for that!) We're debriefing at Rock Creek Park and hoping, again, for an early night. Also, Cassie just informed me that I'm going to learn to ride a bike on Saturday, too...scary.
Friday: Morning at Food and Friends again where we packed bags, sorted old food, and colored cards and happy birthday bags. We left early and headed to the monuments for lunch. Cassie and I read for 2 hours under another tree at the FDR while the group looked around and such. We were back at Children of Mine playing with kids and planning tonight's final debrief. We're heading to Taste of India for supper then hopefully debriefing at the Lincoln/WWI. We'll be back at the church to do t-shirts and evaluations, and then hopefully have an early night. They're supposed to leave at 8am, which really means 8:30 to them.
Saturday: The group left at 8:45ish and by 9 we were back at home--yay! I finished my book and everybody minus William had breakfast at Tasty Diner (its turning into a tradition) and then Cassie, Arthur, and I went to Borders and American Apparel. We hung out at Star for awhile after that and watched Across the Universe (the Beatles musical), then went to Giant, Target, and Barnes and Noble to get dinner and the last book in the series I'm reading (at least til August, when the newest one comes back). That night we cooked spaghetti and had a dance party, then Cassie, Kristyn, and I spent some time on the roof talking, which was great. I've missed some good girl talk! We headed to bed around 1!
That's it for this week. I'll be working on the next asap, and I'm sorry that it goes back and forth between past and present tense, I've been keeping a journal and I'm just copying it on here. I miss you guys, and would love to hear from you!!
XOXO,
Hannah
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