Not too many revelations came off this second week of SPARK, I think I had a much better/more tolerable/less boy-crazy group of girls on my floor. They were great about including everyone in things they did, even the seemingly-annoying child. Having a large group helped I think. There was at least one that I had to remind myself was only 14 years old, not 21 like myself. The maturity manifests itself in different ways.
The class I helped with this past week was about bay education. This was also a great group of kids definitely, 11 total. Even though we consistently had to meet almost an hour before every other class--7:15am each morning to ride a bus to our class site, eat the same sack lunch (great cookie we bartered amongst the group), they didn't complain as much as last week's group that only had to meet 30 minutes earlier. This time we had 3 long days and 2 semi-long days (most classes only have 2 afternoon days)....so given the extensive class schedule, the kids were great.
The class was pretty cool, we got to go out on a small boat everyday. We took plankton samples and then one day took huge nets that caught large crabs (bigger than my head), sea stars, flounder, other critters so we called them. We got to go swimming most everyday and even snorkeling the last day.
I realized how squirmish I am about dirtiness and touching things like crabs or other fish or objects (and I guess, how seemingly irrational that is).
I've started thinking a little bit about Americorps (met one Americorps volunteer at church, another worked at this Save the Bay organization). The Vista program seems very flexible easy to choose your own location, only a year long. We'll see.
I convinced the kiddos to get me several huge cookies from the Meeting Street Cafe (for Providence locals this is the spot for huge cookies that spoil just about any meal). I've got some other food-requirements before I leave---a fast food dinner truck downtown, the Creperie, and eating a Falafel (sp?, still a little unsure what this is).
Although I was gone most of the week, I got to spend a little quality time with the other RAs, I had a great heart to heart with one RA who'd grown up around the camden-area of New Jersey. Its amazing to me how much, even though I've probably only been in that city a total of 12 days, how many times its provided in-roads for conversation. How much time have I spent in other places, think bangkok, for instance. But somehow my passion for that place has stuck. Hmmm. It was great to really connect with them and learn more about their life, I feel like I haven't really gotten to really-really know any other RAs, so that was a welcome change and experience to better share what we're each "really" about. It was one of my first strong conversations with someone outside of church circles since I've been here, I actually felt a little rusty trying to remember how to listen and just even show love.....weird, sometimes we need practice.
The kids left Saturday afternoon, we had a major food blow-out at Cheesecake Factory Saturday night, 3.5 hour wait and all! (we got a call and came later). We all joked about looking online at the menu all week long--I had decided monday what I wanted and stuck do it--fish tacos (fair, not doing it again) and oreo cheesecake (still good). Spent today recovering from food coma and transcribing my last tape.
Also went to church here for only the 3rd time, but its amazing how much I feel at home there now. I have 2-3 evening activiies planned this week off of relationships from church. They prayed for me to "send me out" after my month in Providence, really great people!
Looking forward to a week to close-up here in Providence. I'll also, at my fathers--and pracically, I understand--request, to check out some area graduate programs. Monday, Brown. Thursday, Yale. Friday, Harvard. I'm not feeling graduate school really at all at this point. But I think I also have a hard time imagining life beyond the span of 2-3 years out, so its good to look anyway.
My time in Providence is coming to a close. What have I learned? What has New England taught me?
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