Another Great Weekend

I am in the middle of another week of subbing (7th grade math today, 8th grade English yesterday), and it already seems like the weekend was so long ago.  As cheesy as it sounds, I definitely had some amazing life experiences that happened this weekend.  I know that I'm about to embark on something that will prove to be 100x more awesome, but this was pretty cool too!

On Friday night, I went with a few of my friends that I went to Cape Town with to see Desmond Tutu speak in Hartford. (please don't ask me who that is, just wikipedia it if you don't know).  Anyway, this was his last speech in the United States, and it was a powerful moment for all of us.

Tutu's message was one of inspiration, telling us about the power of youth to affect change in the world.  Obviously, I was the nerdy one taking notes during the speech (in my new awesome notebook--thanks Stacy!).  Here are some highlights, I did my best to write down some quotes.

• He thanked the citizens of the United States for their role in helping to end apartheid in South Africa-- "Nelson Mandela was able to walk out of prison because of you."
• He talked about ubuntu, describing it as "a person who does all they can to enhance your personhood because they know that it enhances their own."
• He talked about the power that the youth holds
• "You dream, you're idealistic, you believe that this world can be a better place."
• "Young people say, 'That's not the world we want to inherit.  We want to make poverty history.'"
• "God sees the young people...who say that it's only one race, the human race, we belong in one family...A smile breaks out over God's face as God sees all these incredible young people...and God says, 'Yes, that is why I created them.'"

This message was especially powerful for me, as someone who is about to go to Honduras to work with the youth there.  Tutu's message only made me more excited to inspire youth to do good in the world.

...and the weekend only got better from there.

After the speech in Hartford, we went out for a drink, and then I headed home.  The next morning, I met my friend Renee at the Peace Walk in West Hartford.  Desmond Tutu was doing a blessing before the walk began.  Renee and I skillfully made our way into the front of the crowd and were literally 10 feet away from Desmond Tutu as he did his blessing of the Peace Walk.  His speech on Saturday morning was much more informal and fun than the one on Saturday night (he walked out blowing a vuvuzela and pretended to have a heart attack when a balloon popped in the middle of his speech).  I couldn't help but tear up when he had us all hold hands and talked about how it is our job to spread peace around the world.  To be so close to such a prominent, dedicated man made that moment what I think will be a defining moment in my life (as corny as that sounds).  Renee and I both agreed that we probably will not understand how powerful that moment was until years from now.

Took this with my cell phone--so you can see how close we were.  What an amazing man and a profound moment!

After the speech, we did the Peace Walk, which was about 2.5 miles.  The weather was cloudy, but very warm.  The rain held off until later in the afternoon.  From there, I drove up to Sharon to compete in "Iron Chef Silver Lake."  Lesley and I faced off in "Battle Cheese."  I made a Mexican dish, Lesley made a salad and a cheesecake, and Stephanie made lobster mac and cheese.  The food was great and the company was even better (as always).

I'm glad I've been able to spend so much time with my good friends the past few weekends, and I know it will continue until I leave on July 6th!  Next step for me is to move out of my house near UConn and head back home with my parents at the end of the week.

P.S. Did I mention that Renee and I were on the news for walking in the Peace Walk?  Check it out!  We walked right past the camera and I'm wearing my blue Simply Smiles trip t-shirt!  Renee took a video of his entire speech on Saturday morning, and I'm planning on posting it as soon as she sends it to me!

Tutu speaks at West Hartford peace walk: wtnh.com

The Long-Awaited News!

After about a year-long application process, I finally found out where I'll be going.  I'll be leaving for Honduras on July 7th!  On the 6th, I have to go to "staging," which is one day long, and then on the 7th, I'll be leaving.  This is exciting news, but there's so much to do between now and then!  I have paperwork to fill out, student loans to square away, teaching certification to apply for, and of course...have to spend as much time with my friends and family as possible.

I just got back from a great weekend antiquing in Brimfield, Massachusetts.  Next weekend I am seeing Desmond Tutu speak in Hartford and going to Iron Chef in Sharon, and hopefully I'll find something fun to do for Memorial Day weekend.  I'm also working Monday through Friday subbing in Hartford, which is extremely exhausting and much more difficult than I had anticipated.  I just keep telling myself "what doesn't kill me will only make me stronger."  And I know that my work in the Peace Corps will present me with even more challenges that I'll have to work to overcome.

Miller, Katherine, Matt, Morgan, Me, Chelsea, Stacy, Rachel, and Josh at Brimfield (Lesley and Alan were there too, they just weren't around for the picture; and Jillian came later in the weekend, too!)

I keep being asked about a million questions about where I'm going and what I'm doing...

• Do you know where you'll be in Honduras?  Nope!  Won't find out until I'm there and have completed 3 months of training.
• What will you be doing?  I am going to be a "youth development volunteer."  The information that I've been given basically has given me a very broad description.  I will be working with families, youth, and schools.  Things I could be doing include training teachers, running programs for youth, and organizing parenting workshops.
• How long will you be gone?  I'll be getting back at the end of September 2013.  I have 3 months of training followed by 2 years of work.
• Will you have internet access/how will you stay in touch with people?  This is also iffy, because I don't know exactly where I'll be working.  From what it sounds like, I will have access to the internet, but probably not on a daily basis.  I am also not sure if I'll be bringing my laptop.  I can also receive and send snail mail :-)  I know a lot of people who have tried blogging, so I figured I'd give it a shot, but I'm not sure how often I'll be able to update when I'm there or whether I'll be able to update at all.

So, I'll have to see how this blogging thing goes.  If it's anything like my effort to write in a journal everyday when I was in South Africa, it won't last more than a few weeks.  But I'll do my best!