Well…today was rough to say the least. As if the whopping 1700 service hours we have to complete for Americorps is not enough, the program requires eighty additional Independent Service Project hours upon graduation. Initially this number may not sound too high, I scoffed at it upon entry to the program, but factoring in transportation and coordination they frankly are not that easy to get. For me at least, and I think I can say the same for many other Corps Members, completing our ISP hours has been a constant itch in the back of our minds since our first informational meeting that told us to get them done and to do it FAST. Why am I filling you in on all of this? Because today I am proud to say my team completed a 15hour ISP day. 15 freaking hours!! We woke up at 330 Am, to none other than Adam Volk serenading on his trusty guitar, and didn’t arrive back home until about 7 Pm. So if I seem a tad out of it in this post, its largely because I am. While todays work consisted of an inhuman amount of driving from town to town, we finally were able to see the fruits of our labor this past week. For the better part of our time in Texas we’ve been running to and fro food banks with various churches and dropping off Thanksgiving-esque meals to random locations. Today we re-visited all of these areas and discovered that the food we (okay I) had felt we were meaninglessly carting around actually had a purpose. And what was that purpose other than Thanksgiving dinners to all of those in need! Despite having to wake up at an ungodly hour, being abused by a drunk volunteer (I wont go into more details than that-he was not Americorps to all wondering), and dealing with some very prominent sexism in Texas when it comes to lifting heavy things (especially certain Turkeys), seeing the faces of the families receiving their meals made the stress of the day all worth it. Lately I’ve been seeing a lot of “What I’m thankful for” Facebook posts, and to follow the trend I can tell you this troops: I’m thankful for a great team of people to work with everyday that sometimes, okay all of the time, isn’t afraid to yell at each other for being stupid yet still knows how to have fun. I’m thankful for a family that loves and supports me. I’m thankful for the fact that I grew up in a home constructed with more than twigs and some posterboard (yes there are houses in Texas made of those materials and worse). I’m thankful for great friends that I’ve made in the past month as well as the ones that I’ve had for a lifetime. Most of all though, I’m thankful that today I was able to make a small difference in the messiness that is our world. While I may not win a Nobel Peace Prize, today I feel content.
Also to make a certain guitar playing Peruvian feel important, I would like to let the world know that I did not in fact discover Bananagrams on my own but was introduced to it by the one and only Dan Farfan.
meghandoenges 