Back in Charleston

Last night, my team and I got back into the lovely city of Charleston, SC after a nine hour drive from Mt. Juliet, TN. I have to say that it was a little weird pulling back onto base. It almost felt like the 6 weeks spent in TN was a dream.
As wonderful as it is to be back on base and know that the end is so close, it's also very sad to be faced with saying goodbye to my teammates and fellow corps members that I spent the last 10 months of my life with. A very bittersweet ending awaits me on June 27, the day of graduation. On a positive note, my amazing mother and fantastic brother are journeying out to be here for graduation. I'm glad that they will be able to see Charleston and what life is like on base. In some respects, you really have to see if for yourself to understand what it's like.

Our project at the Easter Seals Camp finished well. I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to work there. Having never really worked with that population before made every moment an opportunity to learn and I left with such an incredible amount of respect for each individual I worked with and every camper that I spent time with. After working with people who have no control of their bodies, or can't verbalize their thoughts and feeling, I have such an appreciation for the body that God gave me. I know that I will never be the same because of my time spent at Easter Seals Camp. That is probably true of my entire AmeriCrops experience, but it really rings true for this last project because the challenges were so much harder and the rewards were so much greater. When I see you in the future, ask me about my time at Easter Seals...I probably won't be able to shut up about it for awhile, so make sure you have time to sit and talk. I wish that I could have posted more stories during my time there, but we were working about 90 hours a week. Any down time we had was spent sleeping, showering or spending time with one another. :)

A fun thing that happened was that I was able to speak to the Tennessee commission for National Service about NCCC and our work at Easter Seals. It was awesome and afterwards one gentleman approached me and told me that I was dynamic. You don't hear that everyday! It was a pleasure to speak about our time at Easter Seals and to share with the group what we do and why they should continue to support NCCC.

I will try to post some pictures from my time in TN soon....10 days until I'm back in California! YEA!
Grace and Peace. And Happy Father's Day Daddy and Grandpa!!!