The Last Week....Wait, What!?

The Last Week...Wait, What?!

      

     I only have one week and two days left in Washington D.C. I am stressed and bogged down with tons of classwork. I am sad to leave my internship. I am excited about applying for jobs in the D.C. Metropolitan area. I am eager to come back and live here for a while so I can do everything on my to-do list! I am mostly in shock that this semester has gone by so quickly. I have never experienced a semester in which I was not a little (or a lot) homesick nor where I just wanted the semester to continue. But in D.C., I do want my semester-long internship to last forever!!

     I promise to post reflections and much more information once I arrive home to Ohio in two weeks. I had a very nice Thanksgiving break in Ohio and was able to relax and not do any schoolwork :) Now, onto interning, doing homework, soaking up the holiday season in D.C., and enjoying every last second of #LifeAsAnIntern in D.C.!

My awesome group for my Nonprofit Leadership and Management course. We work with a hypothetical nonprofit organization called the Springbrook Art Museum. We create everything that a nonprofit needs, but for our nonprofit!

Telemundo's Health Fair with Nueva Vida

One of my coworkers made gallo pinto just for me. I am really going to miss my job.

"Kiss Me, Kate" at The Shakespeare Theater

Meridian Hill Park

Worksgiving!

Maria's mom visited from Puerto Rico and made DELICIOUS soup and coquito...the Puerto Rican eggnog.

Maria and Me

My favorite place to eat lunch during lunch breaks is a tiny little place that has the most AMAZING crab cakes and all organic and local salads.

Latin Thanksgiving is the best Thanksgiving ever...complete with pupsas! I joined our survivor's support group from Nueva Vida for their Thanksgiving feast.

A chicken in my cousin's front yard. I loved meeting all of my O'Bannon family members during my trip to Culpeper.

Grandmother Helen and Grandfather Dick O'Bannon

Cousin Dot...the funniest lady on the face of this earth.

The view from a cousin's house.

Culpeper from the train station.

Alexandria's Harbor

Selfie with Dante

Loving the movie theater seats

Greene with Momma

I helped Mom teach Sunday School

No trip home is complete without....Santa?

Thanksgiving Selfie

Always make room for your best friend.

To the Woman Who Bought My Chai Latte:

To the Woman Who Bought My Chai Latte:

Thank you.

I do not generally stop by Ebenezer’s (a cute, local coffee shop) because I do not drink coffee or many hot drinks. Today, I stopped by on my way home from a day well-spent at museums. I wanted a chai to warm me up and prepare me for an evening of writing a grant proposal and working on homework. I walked in and felt a little dreary and tired from walking all day. But, you quickly turned my evening around!

At first, you thought you had gotten in front of me in line. Once I assured you that everything was fine, you listened to what I ordered, watched me dig my wallet out of my backpack, and then told the cashier that you would be paying for my chai. I was in too much shock to disagree with you. Then, you asked if I wanted food to go along with my drink. I politely turned you down, while saying “thank you” for what seemed like one hundred times.

Thank you for reminding me how important it is to be kind. Thank you for being, not only generous, but the friendliest person I encountered all day. Thank you for reminding the cashier and me that it was not a “pay it forward” action, but an “every once in a while, it is nice to be nice” action because everyone should be nice every once in a while (as you said your dad tells you). Thank you for making my day.

As I sipped on my chai during my walk home, I could not help but to think of you for the entirety of my stroll. Why was I so surprised that you had been kind? Why was I in shock that a person would generously purchase a young woman’s unnecessary chai latte? Why did you choose to “be nice” to me, as you phrased your action?

You reminded me that we are all in need of love, kindness, friendship, and generosity. As I pondered about your generosity and friendliness, I thought about what it means to be in relationships with people; what it means to love your community; what it means to be thoughtful; what it means to go out of your way to make someone’s day a little better; and what it means to just be nice.

What a better place the world would be if everyone had traits similar to yours! My chai latte certainly did not change my life. But, your kindness and generosity did. Often times, I only think about “helping” those who are visibly or physically in need (such as the homeless community, immigrants who need translation services, or people with disabilities, etc). Maybe, if more folks like me acted, toward everyone in the world, the way you acted today, there would be less violence, hatred, greediness, and unkindness in the world…maybe, just maybe!

So, thank you to the kind woman at Ebenezer’s. Your action prompted me to think deeply. Generosity and friendliness radiated off of you. Now, I am going into the world, thinking about you and the relationships and actions I make each day.

With Peace,

Caitlin

To my followers:

I had already drafted a blog post about all of my favorite places in D.C. But, after this occurred today, I could not help but to reflect on it immediately. Favorite D.C. places soon to come….

XOXO,

Caitlin

View of the Capitol from the Newseum

Laughing, as usual, with my favorite Nueva Vida volunteer, Liliana from Colombia.

Nighttime in D.C. with my roommate and some of the boys from Mexico

This is the Indian Taco from the Native American Museum's cafe.

Hanging out at the White House...thanks to the Newseum :)

Photo op with John Boehner

My most favorite place...Union Market in NoMa

D.C. trip to the National Zoo!

Nighttime in D.C. with some friends!

Halloween well spent in Baltimore as a pirate :)

The art of Baltimore

Inner Harbor, Baltimore, MD

Indian food from the cutest Indian restaurant across the street from my apartment

2015 High Heel Drag Race with a friend from Puerto Rico

Week 7

       One of my good friends just reminded me that we are in Week 7 out of our 13 weeks in D.C. I am so sad! Time passes very quickly here in D.C. As I have mentioned before, there is always somewhere to go, something to do, and someone to see. The past two weeks have been filled with visitors and reminiscing on old times with old friends while learning about my new friends.

       My birthday was October 8 and I had a hard time understanding that as I grow up, not every birthday will be as crazy or spectacular as the last. But, life is not always thrilling and exciting (I am just lucky enough that my life generally is). However, birthdays always have been and always will be special days. I woke up to a video from my sister and her roommates who video recorded themselves singing me "Happy Birthday." I received many voicemails from singing loved ones and a super special video was left for me on Facebook. I received birthday cards, birthday hugs, and many birthday calls. My mom even brought me homemade pumpkin bread and gifts along with homemade cookies from Janie the day after my birthday! My coworkers took me out to lunch. We ate El Salvadorian food (one of my new favorite types of food) and they all made me feel very special...a birthday would not be complete without "Happy Birthday" in English and then 3-4 versions in Spanish (thank you to my coworkers and the Bolivars for that!). I had night class and a midterm on my birthday and ended the night with one of my best friends from Queens, friends from TWC, and my group members from a class project. My birthday was different, it was not overwhelmingly exciting, but I felt special. I think I learned that growing up is not always exciting, but there is always someone or something there to remind you how you are loved, whether it is your oldest friends, family members, or new friends from group projects!!

      My birthday celebrations ended with a birthday lunch that included my mom, sister, and five friends. We went to a Mexican restaurant (I cannot stray away from Mexican food on my birthday, although I really miss La Fiesta!) and then enjoyed walking around Georgetown in the afternoon. My mom and Rachel spent the weekend in D.C. with me. We did lots of tourist activities and went into Old Town, Alexandria for brunch on Saturday. My sister was able to go on two college visits and we were all able to spend lots of time together (including all sleeping in the same little room!). I loved being the tour guide and spending time with them in a new place.

     The week after my birthday was my first long week of work, meaning that I was busy, busy, busy and felt stressed for the first time since being at my internship. I had a really weird experience because I was stressed and exhausted, but I was gaining tons of valuable experience at the same time, which led me to be super excited!

     I was able to continue being a tour guide when my best friend from Troy came to D.C. for her fall break. We enjoyed all of the tourist activities together and it was so fun to be reunited in D.C., of all places! We went to the MLK Jr. Memorial for both of our first times. I think it is a beautiful memorial with a very good idea behind it, but I wish that it was more on the main line of memorials instead of off of the Mall. But, either way, it was neat to see a new memorial and of such an important and influential man. I was also able to take my friend to one of my seminars for TWC. We went to the Human Rights Campaign building and learned all about their programs and how their large non-profit is run...it was a very cool experience to share!

   My last two weeks in D.C. have been different and exciting. I loved having my family and then my best friend here. I feel like it is my job to make everyone love D.C. as much as I do. I ended my crazy two weeks by reading my dad's blogs of his last month of sermons. Now, every time I am using the map app or taking a selfie, I am thinking about his sermons and the context and connections those provided for me! Needless to say, I do miss FPC Troy, but connecting through the blogs was a nice way to end my Sunday night.
    
    The next couple of weeks promise to be thrilling, as I like them to be. Tomorrow, I will attend the finale of Hispanic Heritage Month with some of my coworkers. This Friday, I will have a photo-op with Speaker Boehner. This Saturday is Nueva Vida's Annual Zumbathon, which I have been helping to plan and prepare for so I am excited to see how everything turns out. On Sunday, my friends and I have plans to carve pumpkins and drink apple cider. Next week, I will focus on learning new tasks at work and maybe dive into some grant-writing.

      Thank you to everyone for your continued support and for reading my (sometimes silly) blog posts. I love catching everyone up on life in D.C. and maybe you will fall in love with D.C. through my writing and decide you need to move here, too :) 

D.C. with my BFF

Birthday Lunch

Typical tourist photo with the fam

Reppin' Nueva Vida's new shirts at work

Lincoln Memorial, Snapchat Selfie

#LifeOfAnIntern in Photos

#LifeOfAnIntern in Photos

      

      I know it has been a while since I have posted, so for now, here are some photos and descriptions to depict what I have been doing for the past few weeks. I have always led a busy life, but in D.C., I never take a break and I LOVE it.

      I have been volunteering as much as I am able and have also had many different informational interviews. I have had the exciting opportunity to run with homeless people at 5:45am on Friday mornings with a nonprofit organization called Back On My Feet. One of my friends meets me at my building at 5:30am and we journey to the "starting line" for morning stretches and the Serenity Prayer before we embark on our 2-3 mile walk/run. I truly believe that Back On My Feet is a start to resolving the issue of homelessness. Please look them up if you are interested in knowing more about them! Another exciting opportunity I have had is to volunteer with KEEN (Kids Enjoy Exercise Now). KEEN is a nonprofit organization that promotes sports and activities with kids with all types of disabilities. I spent 4 hours volunteering with them today and was reminded of my passion of working with children with disabilities. I am looking forward to doing a project on their organization and to volunteering with them as much as I can before the semester is over. In between interning and volunteering, of course, I have managed to have lots of fun...

Jumping into the river in Baltimore

My friend and I spent 6 hours at The Baltimore Book Festival....books, education resources, art, music, vendors, writing workshops, and so much more....we had a perfect day.

Baltimore, MD

Birthday Dinner in Georgetown for a friend's birthday

Lunch at a Pupuseria....El Salvadorian food....with my coworker who is from El Salvador...I was the only gringa in the restaurant and made everyone in there proud by devouring every last bit of my pupusas, tamales, and fried yuca!

The back of the Capitol

Reconnecting with Kevin, the leader from the USA (when I was a Junior Counselor at the Village in Brazil)...not to mention, eating a delicious brunch (D.C. is Brunch City!)

This painting was in the auction for Nueva Vida's fundraising art exhibition....it has become somewhat of an inspiration to me as I work each day. This child's mom died over the summer. I love my internship more and more each day.

My first outreach event was with a community of women from Mexico who live in a trailer park community. The women had their graduation from community strengthening/building classes through a local nonprofit organization. My coworker and I recorded intake assessments in-person (so we could navigate them to appointments for mammograms and pap smears as soon as possible) and then we engaged in an amazing feast of homemade Mexican food! The women welcomed me with open arms and this was the day that confirmed to me that I am meant to work in the Human Services field and that I love community outreach.

As I work engaging in community outreach, recording intake assessments, and talking with Latina women on the phone (I had one of the most incredible phone conversations last week with a woman who spoke enough English to help me understand her address and tell me she wanted to meet me), I am also helping to organize our Zumbathon! I began with the task of simply getting raffle items donated. Now, I am helping to find big sponsors, get food donated, and draft different letters and email. I even created the slogan we are using, "Jump, Jive, and Join Nueva Vida..."

So, jump, jive, and join with me on my #LifeOfAnIntern journey. I promise to try to update my blog more often. I am literally having the time of my life. Thanks to everyone for their love, support, and prayers.