Hey Friends,
For some reason my computer is not allowing me to log on to any websites that require a username and password. Therefore I am required to use my dear friend Steph's computer if I want to do anything like Facebook, email, or update this blog. Because of this I am going to put a pause to my blog until I get back home. We are in our 2nd to last week of programming and are finishing strong. I will be flying home August 9th... so look for an update sometime within that week.
Thanks for following my summers adventures. Sorry for cutting it short.
PEACE!
Monday, July 25, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
British Accents and Blessings
I love Saturdays for many reasons. I get to sleep in, talk to people from home that I miss very much, make non-YouthWorks food (banana bread - YUMM), take a long shower, and update you on my week.
This is a longer update than normal. Sorry!
I have to tell you, I was NOT looking forward to this past week starting - at all. Monday was the 4th of July and it was a headache to work out the logistics for the day. Not only was most everything closed, but I am kinda living in the nations capitol. No big deal. There was just a lot of prep work needed to make the day go smoothly. Yuck. This far into the summer my team and I are getting good at the normal week to week schedule, so having to adjust for the holiday craziness was simply undesired.
As apprehensive as I was going into the 4th it went surprisingly smoothly. All of the prep work paid off and the youth and adult leaders were flexible with our modified schedule. Because we switched around the order of evening events we were able to go to a park after dinner to watch fireworks. It was rather anticlimactic considering I had a tree blocking my view of the show, but no participants or limbs were lost... So I call the whole day a success!
For as tired as I entered (and exit) this week, it has been the best week for me so far this summer. This week was so good because of two wonderful women God introduced me to, Juliet and Wanda. Meeting them was exactly what God knew I needed to propel me through the remaining 4 weeks of programming.
Juliet was one of the adult leaders this week. This lady is a woman after my own heart! While driving to the Wednesday night evening activity I was riding shotgun in her car. As we passed the British Embassy we started speaking to each other in British accents. We even sang "I'm so pretty" from West Side Story. It was FANTASTIC! That was a catalysis for the rest of the week! I have never laughed so hard or been so encouraged by an adult leader in my summer and a half I have worked for YouthWorks. There are really no words that can describe her and how much she has touched my life, especially via blog post. I pray to keep in contact with her throughout the rest of the summer and beyond.
I met Wanda, the 2nd God-sent women, on Tuesday when I had the opportunity to go to United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) in the afternoon with some of the participants. UCP is a place for people with CP and other developmental disabilities to go to during the day. UCP provides social activities and various therapies for the individuals they serve to help them live as full, independent, and meaningful lives as possible. Because Tuesday was the 1st day this group of YW participants had been to UCP we got the grand tour from a woman named Wanda. Wanda has CP, is confined to a motorized wheelchair, has delayed speech, and minimal fine motor skills. Despite her physical limitations she had nothing different about her. She has a degree in social work and volunteers at UCP Monday through Friday. While watching some of the YW participants and UCP clients play Wii bowling Wanda and I had an opportunity to have the most blessed conversation I have been able to be a part of this summer. Wanda was sharing her heart with me as to why she volunteers at UCP and why she likes it when the YW youth come. She spoke with such grace about how much she wants for people to see the clients at UCP as people themselves and not their disability. She spoke from the depths of her heart when she said, "They are my friends." She also spoke of how blessed she was to have the abilities she has. Her perspective on her blessings is what is continually running through my head. I have the ability to run freely, speak quickly, eat with ease, type this blog post, and SO much more. How often do I reflect on the true multitude of blessings I have? Answer: Rarely!
My reflection on God's blessings in my life was reinforces again this afternoon while I was listening to a John Piper sermon. He quoted Psalm 40:5. It reads:
"You have multiplied, O LORD my God,
your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
none can compare with you!
I will proclaim and tell of them,
yet they are more than can be told."
AH, God is so cool! I can write until my fingers are numb and speak until my face is blue about what God is doing in my life and how He has blessed me and all those around me... and YET there is still more to be told. My God is SO BIG! I love it!
God is revealing so much of Himself to me. I am only beginning to process what His is doing. Thank you for your patience as a ramble and attempt to start the processing process of my summer through this blog.
Shampoo Update: I caved. I used shampoo on Friday. It feels so good to have hair without grease and baking soda build up in it. I am considering trying it again for another 2 weeks... but I haven't decided yet. Once again, just be glad you are 950+ miles away as I play hippie for the summer.
Prayer request: Steph has poison ivy. She got it while helping Noah and I fill up water balloons for a game we played with the youth on the 4th. Pray that it wouldn't spread anymore and fast healing. Thanks!
Peace and Love
This is a longer update than normal. Sorry!
I have to tell you, I was NOT looking forward to this past week starting - at all. Monday was the 4th of July and it was a headache to work out the logistics for the day. Not only was most everything closed, but I am kinda living in the nations capitol. No big deal. There was just a lot of prep work needed to make the day go smoothly. Yuck. This far into the summer my team and I are getting good at the normal week to week schedule, so having to adjust for the holiday craziness was simply undesired.
As apprehensive as I was going into the 4th it went surprisingly smoothly. All of the prep work paid off and the youth and adult leaders were flexible with our modified schedule. Because we switched around the order of evening events we were able to go to a park after dinner to watch fireworks. It was rather anticlimactic considering I had a tree blocking my view of the show, but no participants or limbs were lost... So I call the whole day a success!
For as tired as I entered (and exit) this week, it has been the best week for me so far this summer. This week was so good because of two wonderful women God introduced me to, Juliet and Wanda. Meeting them was exactly what God knew I needed to propel me through the remaining 4 weeks of programming.
Juliet was one of the adult leaders this week. This lady is a woman after my own heart! While driving to the Wednesday night evening activity I was riding shotgun in her car. As we passed the British Embassy we started speaking to each other in British accents. We even sang "I'm so pretty" from West Side Story. It was FANTASTIC! That was a catalysis for the rest of the week! I have never laughed so hard or been so encouraged by an adult leader in my summer and a half I have worked for YouthWorks. There are really no words that can describe her and how much she has touched my life, especially via blog post. I pray to keep in contact with her throughout the rest of the summer and beyond.
I met Wanda, the 2nd God-sent women, on Tuesday when I had the opportunity to go to United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) in the afternoon with some of the participants. UCP is a place for people with CP and other developmental disabilities to go to during the day. UCP provides social activities and various therapies for the individuals they serve to help them live as full, independent, and meaningful lives as possible. Because Tuesday was the 1st day this group of YW participants had been to UCP we got the grand tour from a woman named Wanda. Wanda has CP, is confined to a motorized wheelchair, has delayed speech, and minimal fine motor skills. Despite her physical limitations she had nothing different about her. She has a degree in social work and volunteers at UCP Monday through Friday. While watching some of the YW participants and UCP clients play Wii bowling Wanda and I had an opportunity to have the most blessed conversation I have been able to be a part of this summer. Wanda was sharing her heart with me as to why she volunteers at UCP and why she likes it when the YW youth come. She spoke with such grace about how much she wants for people to see the clients at UCP as people themselves and not their disability. She spoke from the depths of her heart when she said, "They are my friends." She also spoke of how blessed she was to have the abilities she has. Her perspective on her blessings is what is continually running through my head. I have the ability to run freely, speak quickly, eat with ease, type this blog post, and SO much more. How often do I reflect on the true multitude of blessings I have? Answer: Rarely!
My reflection on God's blessings in my life was reinforces again this afternoon while I was listening to a John Piper sermon. He quoted Psalm 40:5. It reads:
"You have multiplied, O LORD my God,
your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
none can compare with you!
I will proclaim and tell of them,
yet they are more than can be told."
AH, God is so cool! I can write until my fingers are numb and speak until my face is blue about what God is doing in my life and how He has blessed me and all those around me... and YET there is still more to be told. My God is SO BIG! I love it!
God is revealing so much of Himself to me. I am only beginning to process what His is doing. Thank you for your patience as a ramble and attempt to start the processing process of my summer through this blog.
Shampoo Update: I caved. I used shampoo on Friday. It feels so good to have hair without grease and baking soda build up in it. I am considering trying it again for another 2 weeks... but I haven't decided yet. Once again, just be glad you are 950+ miles away as I play hippie for the summer.
Prayer request: Steph has poison ivy. She got it while helping Noah and I fill up water balloons for a game we played with the youth on the 4th. Pray that it wouldn't spread anymore and fast healing. Thanks!
Peace and Love
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Uneventful Update
I can't believe it. We have completed 4 weeks of programming... and we only have 5 more left. WEIRD! This summer is going so fast!
Last week was a pretty typical week. We had one group from Wisconsin (almost as good as Minnesota) and another from North Carolina. The youth minister from WI and his wife knew 2 of my residents from last year and a fellow RA. Small world!
I am not in a very creative mood, so I am just gonna highlight some random things that are going through my head.
- Hair update: It's nasty. It is super weird. The first 1/2 of the week it just felt funny... then it got dry... and now it looks greasy but feels dry. I am very confused. I am going to give it another week and then reevaluate this experiment. I will keep you posted.
- Highlight of the week: On Thursday I went to the Salvation Army ministry site. They do a park outreach program where they have a cookout, cloths, crafts for kids, and a prayer table all set out in a park. I got the opportunity to play with a little 7 year old girl. I just pushed her on the swing for the longest time. It was so fun to forget about the to-do's of the day and just play! The joy of children is so beautiful!
- Last Saturday Steph, Noah and I went to the Navy Yard for a free community BBQ. We live in the community... and like free food... so we went! I'd never been to the Navy Yard before and really liked it. If you are ever in D.C. on a nice day please bring a blanket and a book and go there. you will not regret it!
- I have a combination of Bruno Mars' "Lazy Song" and Lincoln Brewster's "Amazed" my head. Weird combo... but I'm a weird person... so it makes since.
Here is Amazed. It's my favorite worship song of the weekend.
OK... sorry for the whawhaaa update. Steph and I are going to go on a target run for britta water filters. Oh the life of a D.C. YouthWorks employee.
More later. PEACE!
Last week was a pretty typical week. We had one group from Wisconsin (almost as good as Minnesota) and another from North Carolina. The youth minister from WI and his wife knew 2 of my residents from last year and a fellow RA. Small world!
I am not in a very creative mood, so I am just gonna highlight some random things that are going through my head.
- Hair update: It's nasty. It is super weird. The first 1/2 of the week it just felt funny... then it got dry... and now it looks greasy but feels dry. I am very confused. I am going to give it another week and then reevaluate this experiment. I will keep you posted.
- Highlight of the week: On Thursday I went to the Salvation Army ministry site. They do a park outreach program where they have a cookout, cloths, crafts for kids, and a prayer table all set out in a park. I got the opportunity to play with a little 7 year old girl. I just pushed her on the swing for the longest time. It was so fun to forget about the to-do's of the day and just play! The joy of children is so beautiful!
- Last Saturday Steph, Noah and I went to the Navy Yard for a free community BBQ. We live in the community... and like free food... so we went! I'd never been to the Navy Yard before and really liked it. If you are ever in D.C. on a nice day please bring a blanket and a book and go there. you will not regret it!
- I have a combination of Bruno Mars' "Lazy Song" and Lincoln Brewster's "Amazed" my head. Weird combo... but I'm a weird person... so it makes since.
Here is Amazed. It's my favorite worship song of the weekend.
OK... sorry for the whawhaaa update. Steph and I are going to go on a target run for britta water filters. Oh the life of a D.C. YouthWorks employee.
More later. PEACE!
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Staff, Shampoo, and Singing
There have been a few changes in my life in the past week. Sorry once again for the delayed update, but life has been too crazy to think about blogging. BUT... I am here now.
One huge change since my last update is my staff. My site director, Rosie, had to leave last Friday. As a result, Steph is the new D.C. site director. This is a very weird coincidence considering Steph is a good friend of mine from Eau Claire. When she applied for YW I never in a million years thought she would ever be placed at the same site as me. Although my worlds of "normal life" and YouthWorks have collided (Seinfeld reference... be proud)I am excited about what is ahead. I am nothing but optimistic for the rest of what this summer has in store for us as a new staff team.
The new D.C. staff:
Another thing that is new (as of today) is my choice to join the no-poo revolution. After months of blog reading and contemplation I have finally decided to go shampoo-less. This morning was my last official shampoo shower. I figured that a YW summer would be the best time to do this considering the fact that there is a good two weeks that my hair will be greasy until it returns to its natural pH and not dependent on the oil-stripping chemicals that are in shampoo. This may sound gross and I probably will look gross (thank goodness I am 950+ miles away from anyone that reads this) but hey... what's the worst that can happen... I go back to being a normal shampoo-using person in 3 weeks. For more info on going poo-less check out this blog: http://crunchybetty.com/no-poo-to-you-too
Fun story of the week:
This past Wednesday I had a pleasure of going to Clusters Downtown Geriatric for the morning. Clusters is one of my favorite ministry sites. It is a daycare for elderly who have Alzheimer's and dementia. My favorite part of going to Clusters is the first 2 hours when we get to simply go and talk to some of the Clusters participants during their tea and coffee time. This week was a little different than normal. We just did the usual tea/coffee time for a hour then the YouthWorks youth chose to sing for the Clusters participants. From talking to the workers at Clusters and some friends who have grandparents with Alzheimer's it has been made known to me that music is one of the last things to go for people with this disease. It was fantastic to see the whole mood of the room brighten up with the songs. Every one was clapping and singing. People who were not having the best of days had an instant and positive shift in behavior. Mr. Lemon even got up out of his chair and started to dance. It was so fun! I was laughing so hard and smiling so big. Best.Day.Ever!
As previously stated, this past week has been crazy, but my time at Clusters and the pure joy in the participants faces reminded me that the joy of the Lord is my strength (Nehemiah 8:10b). No memory loss, staff-team changes, or greasy hair can get me down. I have Jesus. Fact!
Peace and Love from D.C.
One huge change since my last update is my staff. My site director, Rosie, had to leave last Friday. As a result, Steph is the new D.C. site director. This is a very weird coincidence considering Steph is a good friend of mine from Eau Claire. When she applied for YW I never in a million years thought she would ever be placed at the same site as me. Although my worlds of "normal life" and YouthWorks have collided (Seinfeld reference... be proud)I am excited about what is ahead. I am nothing but optimistic for the rest of what this summer has in store for us as a new staff team.
The new D.C. staff:
Another thing that is new (as of today) is my choice to join the no-poo revolution. After months of blog reading and contemplation I have finally decided to go shampoo-less. This morning was my last official shampoo shower. I figured that a YW summer would be the best time to do this considering the fact that there is a good two weeks that my hair will be greasy until it returns to its natural pH and not dependent on the oil-stripping chemicals that are in shampoo. This may sound gross and I probably will look gross (thank goodness I am 950+ miles away from anyone that reads this) but hey... what's the worst that can happen... I go back to being a normal shampoo-using person in 3 weeks. For more info on going poo-less check out this blog: http://crunchybetty.com/no-poo-to-you-too
Fun story of the week:
This past Wednesday I had a pleasure of going to Clusters Downtown Geriatric for the morning. Clusters is one of my favorite ministry sites. It is a daycare for elderly who have Alzheimer's and dementia. My favorite part of going to Clusters is the first 2 hours when we get to simply go and talk to some of the Clusters participants during their tea and coffee time. This week was a little different than normal. We just did the usual tea/coffee time for a hour then the YouthWorks youth chose to sing for the Clusters participants. From talking to the workers at Clusters and some friends who have grandparents with Alzheimer's it has been made known to me that music is one of the last things to go for people with this disease. It was fantastic to see the whole mood of the room brighten up with the songs. Every one was clapping and singing. People who were not having the best of days had an instant and positive shift in behavior. Mr. Lemon even got up out of his chair and started to dance. It was so fun! I was laughing so hard and smiling so big. Best.Day.Ever!
As previously stated, this past week has been crazy, but my time at Clusters and the pure joy in the participants faces reminded me that the joy of the Lord is my strength (Nehemiah 8:10b). No memory loss, staff-team changes, or greasy hair can get me down. I have Jesus. Fact!
Peace and Love from D.C.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Daily Bread
Yesterday, after the kids were gone and the shopping was done I took a lovely 4 hour nap. AH, it was so nice. I work up, messed around on facebook, wrote a letter, and called John at midnight (he turns 22 today). Needless to say, after such a long nap so late in the day I wasn't tired enough to sleep when it came time for bed.
I have been reading through Proverbs and thought my awake-ness was a good reason to have an extended quiet time away from the chaos of the week. I read Proverbs 30. Verses 7-9 really stood out to me. Fun fact, this is the only section of all of proverbs that is a prayer.
"Two things I ask of you;
deny them not to me before I die:
Remove far from me falsehood and lying;
give me neither poverty nor riches;
feed me with the food that is needful for me,
lest I be full and deny you
and say, “Who is the Lord?”
or lest I be poor and steal
and profane the name of my God."
-Prov. 30:7-9 (ESV)
After reading this I remembered hearing pastor and author Francis Chan speak to these verses in a youtube clip. I was able to find it again. Here it is:
As I go to college in pursuit of a quality degree, work, save my money, and spend it by my choosing I find these verses really hard to pray. I want to save and not have to worry about paying bills and such, but just have the resources there waiting.
Then I look at how God is a God of provision. He will give us what we need. "Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?"(Matt 6:23). Jesus even teaches us to pray like this in Matthew 6:11, "Give us this day our daily bread." Not our yearly bread or lifetime supply of bread, but daily. Then I look at Deuteronomy 8:12-15 and 23:15 and how easily the Israelites forgot about God when there was an abundance.
Where is the balance between being smart with the blessings God has already provided and living in the true heat behind Proverbs 30? Honestly, I have no idea. But I know that I do desire God more than riches and that He will provide for all my needs. Where knowledge takes my life I guess we will wait and see what God has in store.
Please comment. I would like to hear other people's perspectives.
In His Grip,
Bridget
I have been reading through Proverbs and thought my awake-ness was a good reason to have an extended quiet time away from the chaos of the week. I read Proverbs 30. Verses 7-9 really stood out to me. Fun fact, this is the only section of all of proverbs that is a prayer.
"Two things I ask of you;
deny them not to me before I die:
Remove far from me falsehood and lying;
give me neither poverty nor riches;
feed me with the food that is needful for me,
lest I be full and deny you
and say, “Who is the Lord?”
or lest I be poor and steal
and profane the name of my God."
-Prov. 30:7-9 (ESV)
After reading this I remembered hearing pastor and author Francis Chan speak to these verses in a youtube clip. I was able to find it again. Here it is:
As I go to college in pursuit of a quality degree, work, save my money, and spend it by my choosing I find these verses really hard to pray. I want to save and not have to worry about paying bills and such, but just have the resources there waiting.
Then I look at how God is a God of provision. He will give us what we need. "Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?"(Matt 6:23). Jesus even teaches us to pray like this in Matthew 6:11, "Give us this day our daily bread." Not our yearly bread or lifetime supply of bread, but daily. Then I look at Deuteronomy 8:12-15 and 23:15 and how easily the Israelites forgot about God when there was an abundance.
Where is the balance between being smart with the blessings God has already provided and living in the true heat behind Proverbs 30? Honestly, I have no idea. But I know that I do desire God more than riches and that He will provide for all my needs. Where knowledge takes my life I guess we will wait and see what God has in store.
Please comment. I would like to hear other people's perspectives.
In His Grip,
Bridget
Friday, June 10, 2011
Life Back in D.C.
Sorry it has been so long. These past few weeks have been crazy busy.
On May 23rd I set off for Philly for a week of training. It was legit. It was a LOT less overwhelming than last year. It was definitely nice knowing that I am actually able to do a YouthWorks summer, instead of just thinking I will be able to. As tedious as it was to sit through some (most) of the training sessions, I remember the pressure I felt last year not knowing what I was getting myself into, so I had patience.
The following week we set off for Washington D.C, my 3rd home(1=Apple Valley, MN 2=Eau Claire, WI). AH, It was go good to be back. Brother Thompson met us at the church to show us around and give us the keys. We then got busy unpacking and inventorying all of the YouthWorks stuff. Prep week was spent getting the building ready and meeting with our service partners for the summer with Noah. Seeing the people I started building relationships with from last summer again has BY FAR been my favorite part of the summer. As much as I hate prepweek, I really enjoyed the simple fact of being able to be back into the same city working with the same people and organizations I have fallen in love with.
FINALLY, after 2 weeks of training and preparation we were ready for our 1st group to come. We had an easy week of 17 youth and adult leaders. It was so nice to actually get to know all of their names and spend full days serving along side then, instead of the typical running from service site to service site for a 1/2 at most with one group. I know I should not have favorite youth, but I do. Deal with it. This week I had the blessing of getting to know a girl named Lindsay. She and I learned the Parent Trap handshake and rocked it! It was so fun! It's weird to think we have already survived our 1st week of programing. Only 8 more to go.
Thanks for following my blog. I hope to update about once a week from here on out.
Oh yeah, here is a picture of my staff-team for ya. From the left we have me, Savi (the program staff) Noah (my other service coordinator) and Rosie (my site director). They are legit. I am looking forward to seeing how we continue to jell as a team throughout the rest of the summer. So far so good!
On May 23rd I set off for Philly for a week of training. It was legit. It was a LOT less overwhelming than last year. It was definitely nice knowing that I am actually able to do a YouthWorks summer, instead of just thinking I will be able to. As tedious as it was to sit through some (most) of the training sessions, I remember the pressure I felt last year not knowing what I was getting myself into, so I had patience.
The following week we set off for Washington D.C, my 3rd home(1=Apple Valley, MN 2=Eau Claire, WI). AH, It was go good to be back. Brother Thompson met us at the church to show us around and give us the keys. We then got busy unpacking and inventorying all of the YouthWorks stuff. Prep week was spent getting the building ready and meeting with our service partners for the summer with Noah. Seeing the people I started building relationships with from last summer again has BY FAR been my favorite part of the summer. As much as I hate prepweek, I really enjoyed the simple fact of being able to be back into the same city working with the same people and organizations I have fallen in love with.
FINALLY, after 2 weeks of training and preparation we were ready for our 1st group to come. We had an easy week of 17 youth and adult leaders. It was so nice to actually get to know all of their names and spend full days serving along side then, instead of the typical running from service site to service site for a 1/2 at most with one group. I know I should not have favorite youth, but I do. Deal with it. This week I had the blessing of getting to know a girl named Lindsay. She and I learned the Parent Trap handshake and rocked it! It was so fun! It's weird to think we have already survived our 1st week of programing. Only 8 more to go.
Thanks for following my blog. I hope to update about once a week from here on out.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Unpacking to Repack
Short update... not a whole lot is new.
Today is a very rainy Sunday. I am sitting in my living room in sweats and an old comfy sweatshirt. Remembering how incredibly hot D.C. was last summer I am soaking up these moments of being able to bundle up. Despite all of the stuff I need to get done, I think I am going to take a nap!
Finals week was last week. I left Eau Claire yesterday afternoon, got home, and have been unpacking, doing laundry, and repacking ever since. Packing for YouthWorks is so different than last year. I have such a better grasp on what I need and what I can live without. Needless to say, I am 99% sure I will still overpack. Oh well!
Tomorrow morning I leave for Philly for a week of training. I do not have internet access, so there won't be any updates for about a week. I am so excited to meet my staff and get pumped about this summer together!!!
More later!
PEACE!
Today is a very rainy Sunday. I am sitting in my living room in sweats and an old comfy sweatshirt. Remembering how incredibly hot D.C. was last summer I am soaking up these moments of being able to bundle up. Despite all of the stuff I need to get done, I think I am going to take a nap!
Finals week was last week. I left Eau Claire yesterday afternoon, got home, and have been unpacking, doing laundry, and repacking ever since. Packing for YouthWorks is so different than last year. I have such a better grasp on what I need and what I can live without. Needless to say, I am 99% sure I will still overpack. Oh well!
Tomorrow morning I leave for Philly for a week of training. I do not have internet access, so there won't be any updates for about a week. I am so excited to meet my staff and get pumped about this summer together!!!
More later!
PEACE!
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