Topic #1: I have a new job: personal assistant to Naval aviator (also known as my husband)...
I don't know what it is about most men but boy, are they simple (minded) :-). Christian injured his ankle back in April and finally went to the doctor for it yesterday. I was unable to go to the appointment with him since I was down in Philly volunteering all afternoon. So, he was left to fend for himself. Mind you, I briefed him on the necessary pieces of info he needed to be aware of and told him to ask questions if he was confused (am I already a parent???). Oh, I also told him to take his previous x-rays that were done on the day of the injury by the doc on base. Did he order them, yes. Did he get them and take them to the appointment, no. So, the doctor did another set of x-rays (thank you tax dollars) and said nothing seemed to be broken but he would need an MRI to see more. So, at the end of the appointment, Christian was given a blue piece of paper and sent on his way. No questions asked. He came home questioning the point of this appointment. So, then I tried to explain how the medical field works and how referrals are required and all that jazz. In the end, I just told him I would call the doctor's office to see what the next steps in his treatment plan were supposed to be. This morning, I called the office, left a message and had a nurse call me back. I asked the nurse what the next steps were and he was just as confused as Christian was. That little blue sheet that I mentioned earlier... it was an order for an MRI with a phone number to the diagnostic center Christian was supposed to call to schedule the MRI. Ay yi yi. Granted, I'm pretty sure the office dropped the ball and didn't explain things very well but the fact that Christian didn't ask questions just makes me laugh. God, I love him. haha So, I called to schedule the MRI and he's set to get scanned next Wednesday. Hopefully nothing too horrible is wrong!
This is just one of many daily tasks as the personal assistant to a Naval aviator. :)
Topic #2: Holding back tears...
Yesterday, I drove into the city to volunteer at YouthBuild Charter School of Philly (www.youthbuildphilly.com). This was one of the most amazing volunteer experiences I have ever had. YouthBuild is an inner-city charter school for 18-21 year olds who have formally dropped out of high school. These young adults will receive a high school diploma (not just a GED), 635 hours of community service and money towards a college education should they choose to go that route. The school teaches your core academics as well as vocational skills such as building, technology and business. It's pretty impressive. As a volunteer, I sat on a panel of about four people and got to ask students about their experience at YouthBuild, what their future goals are (work, post-secondary education, etc) and the things they've learned since starting YouthBuild. This interview was graded by us and will be placed in their file. These interviews help them prepare for the real world.... job interviews, college interviews, etc. We had three students come through our room. I wanted to just hug every one of them so hard. The first guy was about 20 and he wants to be a lawyer. He was just adorable. Very well spoken and talked a little about the struggles he has had throughout his life. These kids are on the streets in north Philly (somewhere none of you want to spend leisurely time checking out the sites), come from broken homes, and the majority have a criminal record. But, these kids have chosen to change their own lives. The kids themselves have to come to the school and fill out an application and then go through interviews and testing when accepted. The school also has social workers to help them deal with issues outside of school (such as finding resources for childcare, residences when they are homeless, and some counseling). If any of you have seen the movie "Precious", this is what this place reminds me of. I can only imagine what feelings of purpose the employees here have. It's amazing. The second person we interviewed was Latoya. She had such amazing energy and just took over the room. I can see her being a talk-show host. She loves to cook and wants to go to restaurant school and own a lunch truck in Philadelphia. Amazing how different perspectives on life can be, huh? She made me tear up a couple times. Neither of her parents are around and she dropped out of school when she was 15. She turns 21 today (I told her not to party too hard). Latoya was so well-spoken and had such a mature grasp on life and adversity. She was amazing. Next, we had Rochelle. Rochelle was a pretty girl who was painfully shy. She was extremely nervous and you could tell. We tried to make her as comfortable as possible but I could just feel her nerves! Rochelle wants to go to Pharmacy school. She's worked at RiteAid for a couple years now and it really interesting in pharmacy. She's registered for classes at the Community College of Philadelphia and wants to go to Penn State after that. I think she has a little girl too. I told her she was beautiful and to keep her head held high.
Like I said, amazing experience for me. And what a way to put life into perspective. Anytime I complain about something, Mom always tells me "It could always be worse" and boy, is that ever true. All of us are so blessed in our lives.
When I got home yesterday, I emailed the volunteer coordinator at YouthBuild to let her know I'm interested in being one of their weekly volunteers. Basically, I would go in and kind of tutor the kids on certain topics such as core academics or business skills (writing resumes and letters). She's out of town until next week but I can't wait!
Topic #3: Religion
As you all know, I am in the process of reading the book "Eat, Pray, Love" in preparation for the movie's release on August 13. And as you all know, I think this book is beyond amazing. Not only for the fact that she got to travel to world to "find herself" but more so for the things she found along the way. Initially, I thought this book was about a pitiful woman's journey after a horrible divorce and I had no interest in reading about divorce (I just got married!!). But, I was wrong. Dead wrong. Is it about divorce? A little bit. But it's so much more than that. It's a spiritual journey. There are three parts to this book that tie into the title: Eat (based in Italy), Pray (based at an Ashram in India) and Love (based in Indonesia). Well, as of today, I have completed the Eat and Pray. Eat was amazing. It was about Italy and the Italian way of life and of course, eating.great.food. Here's a part at the end of Eat: "In a world full of disorder and disaster and fraud, sometimes only beauty can be trusted. Only artistic excellence is incorruptible. Pleasure cannot be bargained down. And sometimes the meal is the only currency that is real".
But Pray.... oh Pray. This has potentially changed me and my view on religion. Some of you know and some of you don't know that I have a love-hate relationship with religion. The majority (again, this does not mean all so please don't take it that way) of religion that I've known in my life is judgmental and scary. I don't like to be judged or told that having a cocktail with girlfriends or slipping a curse word (b/c God know this happens too often) a condemning sin and I remember vaguely a verse from the bible that states that only God can judge. So, why are we all trying to be Judge Judy up on our bench with gavels in hand all the time? I don't get it and I never have gotten it. Could it be that it's Christianity b/c that's all I've ever known? Here's an interesting part of Pray that I highlighted:
Different schools of thought over the centuries have found different explanations for man's apparently inherently flawed state. Taoists call it imbalance, Buddism calls it ignorance, Islam blames our misery on rebellion agains God (yikes), and Judeo-Christian tradition attributes all our suffering to original sin (automatic guilt for historic sins? That stinks). Freudians say that unhappiness is the inevitable result of the clash between our natural drives and civilization's needs (this, I can believe). The Yogis, however, say that human discontentment is a simple case of mistaken identity. We're miserable because we think that we are mere individuals, alone with our fears and flaws and resentment and mortality. We wrongly believe that our limited little egos constitute our whole entire nature (so true for so many people- not excluding myself). We have failed to recognize our deeper divine character. We don't realize that, somewhere within us all, there does exist a supreme Self who is eternally at peace.
Frankly, I'm not thoroughly convinced on anything yet. I know, this may come at the dismay of some of you... sorry, I really am. But, I'm just too curious to just follow something because a lot of other people do. I truly admire people who really believe in something and have a passion for it. I can't even get passionate enough to sustain a freakin' hobby for more than two weeks! I need to KNOW and BELIEVE. I'm getting there. :)
In the book, Gilbert calls the search for God "a reversal of the normal, mundane worldly order". And says that in the search for God, you revert from what attracts you and swim toward that which is difficult. One will abandon comforting and familiar habits with the hope (the mere hope!) that something greater will be offered in return. This is precisely where I am. For some reason, I'm fine with talking about it one here (probably because I don't have to see the reaction on your faces when you read this) but I have trouble talking to people about it face to face. I think I'm afraid of anyone trying to sway my vote. The only problem I have is deciding where to even start. I guess the obvious place would be to start by chatting with God to give me guidance. So, let me just take that and run with it for a while. I'll try to keep up with posting about my
Well, I hope everyone has enjoyed my multitude of topics today! Christian left this morning to go to Maryland for the weekend for his dad's 60th b-day. I decided to stay home and he was fine with it so I get a nice weekend to myself (perfect timing for that aforementioned chat, I presume). I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
Love,
Chrissi
No comments:
Post a Comment