Sunday, March 24, 2013
ASB so far….
We set out on Saturday morning (slightly later than expected.. whoops!), bound for Nashville. Split between two cars we spent the 6 hours jamming out to our mixed CDs and chatting, with a few naps thrown in. After arriving at Paige’s home in Nashville, we unloaded all our things and had a delicious pizza dinner. Our first night together included some celebration for Kelly’s birthday and crazy fun bonding time.
Saturday we were up bright and early to head toward Gulfport, finally. Through most of the day it was overcast, but once we hit Mississippi the weather was beautiful and sunny. It turned out to be a good omen because once we arrived at our station in Gulfport we found out that we had been upgraded to executive suites that were right across the street from the beach. We could hardly wait to unload the vehicles and frolic. As the sun was going down, we played football and ran in the water which felt amazing after being in the car for so many hours.
Tomorrow we are going to be up ridiculously early with a busy day of learning and serving ahead of us. Oh, and probably more beach. Keep it real, ya’ll.
Monday, March 25, 2013
This morning we started our day bright and early at 6:45 a.m. to begin the day with a nice breakfast filled with delicious food and the company of some Chicago high school students who are down here in Gulfport, MS doing service just like us. While eating we met a student who is planning to attend Mizzou in the fall. He talked with several of our volunteers who made him feel even more welcome and excited to attend school at Mizzou.
After breakfast, we met back in our common living room to listen and learn more about what Habitat for Humanity really is and who it helps. Teetra, an AmeriCorp member, provided us with some very valuable information to prepare us for our tasks on site this week, as well as inspired us to be just as enthusiastic about our work this week as she is.
After talking with Teetra, we traveled to our Habitat site and was introduced to the most genuine, helpful site leaders we could have asked for: Mr. Ken, Ms. Nancy, Matt and Eric. We worked diligently throughout the day painting ceilings and walls, “cutting in” rooms, and working with various power tools (in a very safe manner). One of the first things Mr. Ken told us when we arrived on site was this: “I want you all to learn something this week that you can take with you for the rest of your life.” Mr. Ken is probably one of the most selfless people any of us has ever met; we are all very much looking forward to getting to know the rest of our amazing site leaders throughout the week.
After our volunteering on site was done for the day, we headed back to our rooms in the Habitat village. Once playing basketball, sitting on the beach, and eating dinner was done, we met back up as a group for some reflection on the day’s activities and lessons. We began by discussing highs and lows for the day; there was not much to mention in the “lows” category as our day was filled with eye-opening experiences and positive life lessons.
It is amazing to see how even the smallest of gestures can influence someone’s day in the most positive and inspiring ways. Most of our reflection time was spent talking about how we all experienced little gestures of kindness throughout the day that made us realize how such a small thing can make someone’s day that much better. We are sure our trip can only get better from here; we look forward to the lessons we will learn, the great experiences we will encounter, and the amazing people we will meet.
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