"Miss Eugenia"- First 2 weeks of work!

As I prepare my class room (yupp I have my OWN classroom!!) and try to organize books by reading level, divide games into education and non-educational, and decide which tubes of paint I can pour water into and ‘uncrust ‘ and which ones I just have to let go of…it has been a great first two weeks.

The first week I was here Aug. 3-7 the teacher whose position I am taking, was still around so we jointly took the kids on several fun trips! One of these adventures was to the beach where we spent the entire afternoon chasing the waves back and forth trying to catch sand crabs. My favorite part of the trip was how the kids were terribly concerned about feeding their crabs and keeping them alive.To top it off, as we were packing up to leave, they made a joint decision to all release their crabs so that they wouldn’t take them from their home and separate families…tell me that doesn’t make you smile a little :-) Another cool excursion we took them on was to Griffith Park. We hiked most of the way to the big Hollywood sign then turned around and made it just in time for the daily opening of the observatory. The kids were fascinated with the changing of ocean tides and how the moon affects the ocean- how you weigh different on different planets- how earthquakes are made- the changing of seasons and how that affects sunlight hours. Their favorite attraction was the earthquake maker where we all jumped up and down on a platform to create our own ‘earth vibrations.’ I was so inspired by their inquisitiveness and how eager they were in their question asking. I even had one kid ask me “what is humidity,” a question that literally made me laugh…oh the beauty of never having experienced humidity…another awesome component of California.

Week two I was on my own and because of the number of kids we have in the area and the absence of volunteers I wasn’t able to do too much except for a pool and movie day at my apartment one afternoon. Last week and this week are “get your curriculum and classrooms organized” weeks. For those of you who might be unclear as to my position out here—I am a 3^rd-5^th grade youth coordinator/ after school teacher/ social worker, for Central City Community Outreach. I am hired by Tech Mission (which is a sub program of AmeriCorps). Tech Mission focuses on inner city, Christian based work that promoted the importance of education as a tool for youth advancement. Aside from homework time every day, the kids have volunteer mentors that come in and do programs, they eat snack and dinner with us every school day and we do a daily activity (ex. Monday-Library/ Tuesday- Inner City Arts Council/ Wednesday- Lisa Peacock who does animal therapy and counseling with the kids, etc.)

Something I really appreciate about the program design is that the kids must earn everything they receive in terms of toys or trips- this is not a free handouts program. They must earn trips to the park or a new book bag , even an outing to the movies through good grades, good behavior, and attendance of our program. The children may not attend our after school program if they did not go to school that day…a fact we quickly find out from the other kids. They are very protective of their program and everyone getting treated fairly!

The Lord has been doing amazing things down here in the city, there is a mission on every corner, free clinics and dozens of case works and social workers trying to rectify the situations many Skid Row residents have found themselves in. While there is still an immeasurable amount of pain, there are a lot of people trying to bring about change too. Please keep Skid Row, and the work being done here in your prayers.

God Bless you all!!

PS. I got to watch The Soloist play yesterday. For those of you who have seen the Motion Picture “The Soloist,” it is the story of a Julliard student Nathanial whose late onset schizophrenia lead him to dropping out of school and eventually ending up homeless in downtown LA. LA Times write Steve Lopez took an interest in Nathanial’s story and has made it public to the world. I highly recommend reading The Soloist or watching the movie. He’s for real!

From North Carolina to California

Hello everyone! I am officially in Los Angeles, CA and have completed my first of work. My next blog will be about my first week but I'd like to use this entry to update you all on Doug and my cross country road/moving trip

Packing my life into the trunk of my car was pretty difficult but also very humbling and freeing. No furniture, just clothes adn pictures- two tens, two sleeping bags, a coupe bags of food...and off we went! Poor Doug had to handle me crying half of the first day because I was so sad to leave my family, but he handled it beautifully and gave me my space to heal :-) The first stop was Linville Caverns and Falls (see above pic) which was absolutely fascinating. Mineral deposit structures calcified in a centuries old cave...very cool! We camped the first night at Linville, had a very fun time learning hot and what to cook/ not cook over an open fire and were up early the next morning to drive through Tennessee and camp in Arkansas.

We arrived at Mt. Nebo in Arkansas pretty late but we set up our two tents like pros and mad a huge fire. The critters were definatly a foot but the camping savvy Doug always made sure we kept the food in the car so no danger came of our inhabiting their home. A word of warning to anyone wanting to camp in AK...the mosquitos bite like sharks...wear your bug repellant!

The next stop was New Mexico! This branch of the trip proved to be as enjoyable as it was beautiful as we ventured from mountainous terrain to the flat terrains of Oklahoma and Texas--hitting3 state signs in on day--score! NM was incredible :-) We arrived at Conchas Lake State Park as a desert storm was rolling in but we tried to high tail it and get dinner coocked before the clouds let loose on us. As we put the burgers on the grill the lightening was striking 360 degrees around us (still far enough away to feel safe outside) and the winds were slowly picking up. AS we were getting ready to pull the burgers off the grill, lightening struck a telephone pole nearby which slightly zapped Doug...and we sprinted to the car! We sat in the car watching the majesty of God unfold- the sky turning red then dark blue, the wind shaking the car, the rain falling so big that the drops rivaled baseballs and the lightening flashing across teh sky radiating the glory of the storm. AMAZING!

The next morning we took our time enjoying the lake and the beautiful post storm weather and then we hit the road for White Horse Lake National Park in Arizona. Driving through AZ was breathtaking, especially when we caught the sunset as we rolled down I-40 at the end of our drive. After pulling several "you hold the wheel so I can take a picture" moments, Doug captured several spectacular sunset pictures! (see above pic)WE arrived pretty late but we had some fun times with our very helpful neighbors and the "comfort houses"/ elegantly named bathrooms.

The next stop was the infamous GRAND CANYON (see 2 pictures above)! If you have not been...holy moly...talk about WOW GOD! We hiked down the main path then ventured off the marked route to hike a very cool side trail and get some much needed individual quite time with God. We also got to witness a father and son pair complete their hike to the bottom of the canyon and back up (3am-4pm). It was seriously one of the most heartwarming spectacles I have ever witnessed. They definatly didn't know Doug or myself but they high-fived us, told us all about their trek, and had us take a picture of them- beautiful!

That night we crossed into CA and camped at Joshua Tree (see 'floating rock' picture). This particular national park was very interesting because it was constructed to protect a 800,000 acre terrain inside which three of California's ecosystems are located. It is characterized by oddly shaped joshua trees, cholla cactus and the unique rock formations randomly dispersed throughout the park. Doug and I found a really cool campsite surrounded by boulders and battling bong drum players so the atmosphere, as well as the scenery, was extremely relaxing and FUN!

On August 2nd we packed up and headed north to Los Angeles to move me in and set me up to start this new page of my life! First week of work update is soon to come...I love it so far!!


God Bless you all and thank you for all you support!