What A Week!

          I want to start this post by apologizing for my lack of updates recently; the internet is still quite finicky here on campus. Although I still can't see my actual blog, I can post, so I would like to take the time I have now to let you know what's been going on here in Denver:

Tuesday
          Today was one of my favorite days of training so far, and definitely one of the most eye-opening. Our teams participated in an all day Diversity Training class where we learned about how to accept and understand others and, most importantly, about the personal experiences that shaped our fellow team members into who they are today. As I sat listening to my friends and teammates talk about their experience living in homeless shelters, walking to school in constant fear of being shot, or battling with a drug addiction their mothers had passed to them while still in the womb, I realized how profoundly blessed my life has been. Yes, I have always been grateful for the life I live, but now I truly understand the phrase "You don't really know what you get till it's gone". I realize it is not just about being grateful for money or family, but the fact that that money kept your stomach full each night and that family wants you home for Christmas each year. As I wandered to my room at the end of the day, another thought struck me; many of the friends and classmates I grew up with will never truly appreciate their lives as I have learned to today. Most have gone off to college with many other kids from backgrounds just like them, and when they go into the work force, they will have jobs with people who went to nice colleges like them and grew up in towns just like them, and then they will start families of their own in towns just like they grew up in, and they will never fully understand the lives they live. I hope to be able to break this chain. When I return home, I would like to encourage as many as I can to go out and explore the world and its people. Take the time to not just learn but live the life of those you may have never been able to understand.

Thursday
          One of my favorite things about living in AmeriCorps is that they encourage us to teach one another whenever possible. Corps members are encourage to create and host evening classes in anything they feel skilled in, so tonight I took two dance classes, one in West African Dance, and one in Krumping. Both my instructors took time to teach us not only the dance, but the history and feelings behind the dance as well. It’s these moments I love, when everyone is laughing and learning together, one feels fulfilled.

Friday
          One of the main components of our teams is our team roles, which we received today. I will be in charge of our team’s part of the Corps yearbook, which means I will be photographing our experiences and writing small blurbs about our team and projects. I also received two smaller roles as Food POC (point of contact) and PT (physical training) Coordinator. I’m not too incredibly certain on what each job will require, but I figure I will be gaining skills with every job and that’s what’s most important.

          Tonight my friends and I participated in a popular Denver activity called the Santa Fe Art Walk. From 5pm to 10pm, all the art galleries on the street opened there doors as well as artists who took over restaurants and other stores. We spent almost four hours just wandering through the widest array of artwork I have ever seen in one place. As I drifted through the artwork, I finally understood why some people are such avid art collectors. Many times a painting, a photograph, a sculpture would catch my eye and capture me and I would wish I could show the whole word the feeling and the beauty of the piece. I guess this is just another reason to set myself on a good path in order to make money to provide for my interests.

          Aaaa, ok, I’ve been procrastinating all day by writing this blog. Tonight we have a Corps-wide event called the Black and White Ball where everyone must come in evening attire…made entirely out of black and white trash bags! So you would think with my interest in fashion, I would be loving this opportunity, and I did, for about 5 seconds, until I realized how hard it is to make anything out of trash bags. Of course, I would love for my dress to be perfect and totally unique, but my frustration has gotten the better of me and now I have half an hour to wrap myself in a trash bag and call it an outfit :-/. Well, I’ll post pictures later, but I gotta go get to work!

Sunday, Monday, and today (Tuesday) will come in tomorrows blog!