First Steps

I've made it through the first two weeks of the internship and arrived at my very first free time. Saturdays we have off, and today has been a wonderful chance to rest. Averaging five-six hours of sleep a night and running all day has been draining, but I've had extra energy that I know isn't coming from me. Today we left our host family for the past week, who I'll blog about later, after Rachel made us fresh fruit smoothies (yum!). I've gotten to spend time with a close friend today and enjoy the warm weather and the quirky Loop shops. I got to have some quiet time to myself. I feel refreshed.

There's so much to share from the last two weeks that I'm not sure where to start. I guess I'll begin with team training/tutoring prep to provide a glimpse into the majority of my time here so far. My first week here was focused on getting the know the team, growing to love this city, and exploring topics of social justice around the world. We did fun things like go to Shakespeare in the Park, see a play about Afghani refugees, eat local food, visit a circus, watch a documentary about the American Civil Rights movement, watch a film about life for women under the Taliban, and have a 'Retreat of Silence' (aka extended individual prayer/Bible study time) in a beautiful garden in the middle of an inner-city neighborhood. Many of those things will hopefully be the topics of individual posts. For now, we had lot of information smack us all at once. Some of it was enjoyable. Some of it was painful. All of it was informative. 

The time we weren't doing those things was filled with culture-training of sorts, including discussion of cultural lenses and how to lovingly interact with people who see things differently than we do, as well as get-to-know-you time with the intern team. I feel blessed to be getting to know the other people here. They are all fun and unique and God is really creating a safe and open community in our midst. I've already talked with two other women who are planning to move to St. Louis permanently after this summer, and one is looking for roommates! :)

Anyway, the first week was a total whirlwind of information and emotions and learning about God's heart for the poor and oppressed. I feel so at home here that I can ask hard questions and wrestle with things we discuss without any fear of judgment. In fact, lots of people have had the same questions I have. We are searching for answers together. 

**Hi, Barb!**