So much for which to be thankful

Wow...what a crazy couple of weeks it's been. Where to start? Well, first, I graduated from college! Woo hoo!! I was pretty excited to finish up my undergraduate degree with a 4.0 semester, eating some good food with family and friends, and celebrating Christmas. I was extremely blessed this Christmas and loved the time spent with my family. All in all it was an incredibly successful Christmas season!

After Christmas, I headed down to one of my favorite places in the world, UTRI, to help out with the huge Navidad a Reynosa celebration. UTRI worked together with over 100 people from 7 states that came down to help the people of Reynosa have an incredible Christmas. It was an awesome day! We gave away 20 or 30 bikes and a car along with food and toys for all the people and children that came. It was cold, rainy and muddy, and I spent most of the day at the border helping Clay (one of the directors of UTRI) deal with some paperwork issues, but despite all of that, God showed up and the people in the dump of Reynosa were blessed. We were all blessed as well. I loved hearing the stories from everyone that participated in the event and how amazing things happened despite the rain, mud, language barriers, and cold weather. Over 100 people were saved, and over 1,000 people from the dump came to the event.

The highlight of the 4 days for me was a little girl named Gabriela. Gabriela is 11 years old and was born and raised in the dump in Reynosa. I met her the day before the event, and we talked about little things such as how many brothers and sisters she has, her favorite subjects in school, and what she wanted to be when she grew up. She had very little, and she lived in a little cinderblock house. On the day of the event, she wasn't even wearing a jacket. I arrived at the event late and had forgotten about talking to her the day before, but she found me and asked me to wait for her because she had something for me. She had been looking for me all day. I waited for a few minutes, and she returned with a stuffed animal and a drawing she had colored for me. On the drawing, she wrote in Spanish: To: Amalia, From: Gaby, Christ loves you. She looked up at me smiling, and I was truly touched. I spent very little time with her and yet, she wanted to bless me. Gabriela is a living example of Christ's love.

Spending time in the dump at Reynosa is one of the most humbling experiences I've ever been a part of. I love those people, and I love that country. The people there have so little in the way of material things, food and money but there is one thing they will never be short on: Love. I pray that I could love people the way Gabriela loved me with her beautiful drawing and gift.

What an awesome 4 days down at UTRI! I love that place, and I can't wait to go back!

So, it's the last day of 2009, and I'm doing my best to reflect on what's happened in my life over the past year, but it's kind of difficult. It's been a crazy year! So much has happened that I can't remember half of it. I know it's been a year of acknowledging change in my life. The changes haven't actually happened, yet, but I know that they're going to be happening very soon in 2010, so I spent the past 6 months coming to terms with that and trying to figure out how to adapt.

I'm looking forward to 2010. A new decade is beginning, and I'm going to embrace it with open arms. It's time to put the past in the past and leave it there. My goal for 2010 is to make it the best year in my life thus far. In January I'll be turning 23, and I have so much to look forward to in life. Of course, I have the normal New Year's Resolutions of losing weight/getting in shape and being less stressed, but I think my main resolution is just going to be: happiness. I want to be happy this next year no matter what changes happen or what life throws my way. I'm so thankful for such a blessed 2009, and I'm so thankful for the opportunity to experience 2010.

2010, you're going to be an awesome year... :-)

Lots of love to everyone and Happy New Year,

Amelia

Almost there...

So...it's approximately 17 days until graduation, and I am so ready to be finished with school this semester! I'm stressed to the max with presentations, papers, and all the other little odds and ends that need to get done before December 19th. I can't believe it's almost already here! It's December, folks! How did that happen?!

Anyway, I gave 2 presentations today, I have another one next Tuesday and I'm pretty sure I'm functioning on about 3 hours of sleep right now...oh well. I'll be sleeping tonight for sure. :-)

Part of me is starting to get excited about this whole graduation thing. I've got some family coming in to watch it and some of my friends are coming to support me as well. It's going to be a fun day. This is what I'm focusing on. Yes, I don't have a clear plan for my future, and yes, I'm terrified of the real world, but on December 19th, I'm just going to focus on the fact that I will have a college degree. I'm pretty proud of myself for making it all the way through. :-)

I've been accepted at Tech to do some graduate work in the spring, so I'll be taking 9 hours of graduate courses. I'm kind of looking at it as a trial run...will I like grad school or not? We shall see...I'm excited about the classes I'm taking, though. For the first time in a long time, I'm going to be taking classes because I want to, not because I have to. Wish me luck!

In other news, I'm leaving the country again!! Yay!! I'm going to be headed down to Alamo, TX/Reynosa, MX the day after Christmas to help with a huge Christmas event at the place where I interned this summer. I'm super excited! We're going to be holding Navidad (the word for Christmas in Spanish) at one of the dumps right across the border. I think they're expecting to feed 3,000 Mexicans! We're going to be giving toys to kids and some sewing machines to a few of the women. I can't wait to see how God moves during this event! I'm also super stoked to use my Spanish again with native speakers. I guess I'm just pumped in general. It's going to be amazing, and I was starting to get cabin fever...it's time for me to leave the country again, lol.

I hope everyone is doing well and had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Christmas is right around the corner, so I hope everyone is excited and ready for a wonderful holiday season. Remember what it's all about! :-)

Love, hope, peace,
Amelia

The tunes of decisions....

Yes, I know, it's been a while. I seem to have forgotten that I had a blog there for a bit. I remembered today, though, so I do believe I will post something.

Things have been going pretty well I suppose. I received my cap and gown the other day, for free amazingly enough, and I'm having mixed feelings. Part of me can't wait to be done and the other part can't believe that I'm almost a college graduate. The next part of my life is not planned out. For the first time in 22 years, there is no plan. In short, I'm freaking out. I don't feel like college has prepared me for the real world.

Certain phrases keep coming to mind like, "The world is your oyster," or "Grab the bull by the horns," but honestly, having the freedom to do whatever I want and go in whatever direction I want to go is a little daunting. If I had a definite direction, I would probably be a little less freaked out, but I don't. I have ideas, but how do I know which idea is the right one? How do I know when I make a right decision? Aren't these decisions that could affect the rest of my life?!

Anyway, I'm sure I'm being a little melodramatic about this whole thing, but it's just something that's weighing heavily on my mind. For right now, I've made the decision to stay in Cookeville for another semester and take a class that I would need for Grad school. Is this the right decision? I have no clue, but it's a decision, and at this point I'm glad I'm finally deciding about something. I don't remember ever being this indecisive, but maybe I always was...

In other news, I've played one gig this semester with two more coming up. Next Friday I'm going to be playing as part of a fundraiser for TOMS shoes. For every pair of shoes bought from it, TOMS gives a pair of shoes to a child in a third-world country. It's definitely a worthy cause, and I'm excited to be a part of it! My other gig is on November 14, and I'm pretty excited about that one, too.

Fall is definitely here in Tennessee and in honor of that, and Halloween, my roommates and I are throwing a Pumpkin Carving Extravaganza on Saturday night! We're all pretty excited, and I'm definitely looking forward to spending an evening with friends and just relaxing. I think my mind needs to get away...lol...as do I...maybe I should plan a trip or something. The traveling bug always seems to keep biting me. :-)

Hope everyone is doing well. I'll try to update again soon!

Lots of love,
Amelia

Creative Success? :-)

Whew...another Monday has arrived. I can't believe it's the fourth week of school already. The semester is just flying by! Before I know it, I'll be graduating...eek.

Things have been going pretty well. I had a pretty relaxing weekend. I saw Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs in 3-D...it was super cute! Saturday during the day I just chilled and then Saturday night I opened for my friend Brooks at Poet's. He was coming into town and he was like, hey, come open for me! It was a pretty successful evening. I was extremely excited because for the first time ever, someone I didn't know requested one of my songs and was singing along!!! It was so cool to see people singing my song! It pretty much made my weekend!

This week is going to be busy as usual. I've been doing quite a bit of writing lately for class, and all of it is going to be critiqued/graded this week...it's always a little nerve-wracking to put myself out there creatively, lol.

So, three weeks until my gig on Oct. 10th, four weeks until fall break, and five weeks until my roommates and I throw a huge Halloween party entitled, "The Pumpkin Carving Extravaganza"! It's going to be a great month... :-)

Hope everyone is doing well!

Lots o' love,

Amelia

One week down...

Whew, the first week of my last semester of college is over, and what a doozy it was. I've got a relatively easy schedule, but for some reason this week just seemed really long. It's kind of weird to walk around campus and not know anyone...guess that means I'm getting old, lol. I am excited about this semester, though. I think it's going to be really fun!

I'm taking News Reporting and Copy Editing, Introduction to Public Relations, Introduction to Creative Writing, and Senior Capstone in Spanish. I found out that because I'm in the News Reporting class, I'm automatically on the Newspaper staff at Tennessee Tech, so that's cool, lol! I'll be writing 5 stories or so about the happenings in the foreign language department, and there's a chance they'll end up in the newspaper! Pretty neat! I'm absolutely loving my Intro to PR class...I'm not really sure what that means, but maybe it's a direction I can kind of steer myself in... Creative Writing is cool, too, I guess, lol. It is awesome that I was able to choose these three classes to take just because I wanted to. I don't really need any of them to graduate so it's a little less pressure.

My Senior Capstone, however, is another story entirely. It's quite a daunting task. I'm required to give several oral presentations and short papers in addition to the 10-15 paper and 15-20 minute presentation I have to give in Spanish at the end of the semester. I know everything is going to be fine, and I'm sure I'll do well, but it's still a little scary. I am kind of excited about the topic I'm going to be researching, though. I don't have an exact title, yet, but it's something along the lines of "The Oppression of Women in the Mexican Press." Apparently Mexico doesn't have free press like we do, and the women definitely don't have the same rights women do in the United States in the media. I think it will be a pretty interesting topic for me especially since I'm leaning towards some kind of career in the communications field. I'm not 100% sure, yet, that that's where I'm headed, but it is really interesting to me, so I'm excited about doing the research.

In other news, I have a gig set for October 10th, and I'm going to start practicing with the band this week. It should be a pretty fun, laid-back gig, so I'm excited! It's at a Train Depot outside. Outside gigs are always fun. :-)

So, that's what's going on in my neck of the woods. I can feel fall just around the corner, and I'm loving it...pretty soon it'll be time for football games, sweaters, bonfires, jack-o-lanterns, deep-fried turkey, scarves, hot cider, christmas carols, and the holiday season!! One of my favorite times of the year! Hope everyone is doing well! I'll update again soon!

Con mucho amor,

Amelia

Pictures...back in TN

Well, I'm back in TN after an amazing week and a half of vacation. I can't believe the trip went by so fast...it was so incredible! Here's a link to the pics:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2077572&id=52702346&l=f523c6ed74

So...I guess school is next, lol. I start next Monday, my last semester! I can't believe I'm graduating. Hopefully it won't be too stressful. I don't really have any travel plans for a while...kind of sad. :-( Maybe I'll plan some spontaneous trip... I'll update again soon!

Love all you guys!

Amelia

Under the California Sun

We made it!! After 5 days of driving, Ellen and I finally made it to California! What an amazing trip! We went through Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Southern California. I knew that we could do it all along, but I think it's still a little unbelieveable that we just made such an awesome trip! We've seen every kind of beauty you could imagine...rolling green hills, the desert at sunset, mountains that seemed like they came out of nowhere, city lights at night, and the flowing waves of the ocean. Wow...we live in a beautiful place...I took tons of pictures, so I'll post the link for those once I post them on Facebook which probably won't be until this weekend since I have limited internet access, but stay tuned! :-)

So...we just finished the most incredible road trip, but we're still only halfway through the trip, lol! Last night we saw (500) Days of Summer at this really cool old restored theater that was built in 1938...I think it was called the Lido Theatre...great movie, too. We spent today lounging on the beach, getting completely sunburned. There's an amazing bike trail to get to the beach that takes about 20 minutes, so we've been utilizing that yesterday and today. We decided to just take it easy today after the past 5 days of driving. Tomorrow we're thinking about hitting up the San Diego Zoo...we've been told that it's one of the best zoos anywhere, and we're definitely animal lovers, so we're going to try to make that work. As for the rest of the week...nothing's concrete, but we're definitely going to be dorky tourists and check out Grauman's Theater, Rodeo Drive, and the Hollywood sign, lol. Maybe a Dodger's game, too, while we're at it. :-)

It's been a pretty awesome vacation, and I'm so glad Ellen asked me to do this with her. I think she's going to love it out here! California is pretty hard to resist... :-)

Hope everyone is doing well!

Lots of love,
Amelia

Ready for the Road!!!

In two days, I'll be on the road!! Yay! I'm super excited! The general plan is to head for St. Louis first and then drive through Missouri, Oklahoma, the panhandle of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and finally into California! Whew...it's going to be a lot of driving, but I'm totally pumped. The open road is calling my name. :-) Ellen and I have been doing lots of planning and talking about everything that we're going to do along the way, and it's going to be awesome. I don't think it's really sunk in, yet, that we're about to drive across the entire country, lol, but we're excited nonetheless. There's going to be plenty of photo and video ops, so I'll post the link to the pics!

Nothing else really going besides the trip right now. I'm still dealing with the fact that I'm about to start my last semester of college, and I don't really have a plan for after that...the world is my oyster right now (or something like that), and that's pretty terrifying, lol. It's weird to think that for the first time in my life, there's not a next step. For 22 years my life has been scheduled around school, and now it won't be. So weird... I'm not really worried, I know everything's going to end up totally fine, but still...it's just strange.

In other news, I found a new artist that I really like. Diane Birch--check her out, she's pretty chill!

Hope everyone is doing well. I'll update after my adventure in the west! :-)

Paz,

Amelia

Working and anticipating

Overall, things have been going pretty well since my last post. I've finally been able to do some working...I don't feel quite so lazy anymore, lol, and it's nice to have an income again! Yay! God provides! Currently I am doing said work...I'm basically just sitting in an office all day long, answering the phone. It's a job, though, so I'm not complaining. Every night this week I'm going to be doing some other work in the form of babysitting...it's going to be a long week, lol.

The visit with my cousin David was pretty fun! We've seen some movies, had some friends over, and tried not to get into too much trouble, lol. Hanging out with family is always fun. He heads back to Louisiana tomorrow.

Road trip planning is going well...I can't wait to be on the open road again, and I can't wait to see some California sunshine!! I'm super pumped about this last hoorah of Summer '09! If anybody has been on Route 66 before and has any suggestions of things we just have to stop and see, let me know!

Hope everyone is enjoying the summer!

Paz,

Amelia

Swinging back into things

That's pretty much how I've been feeling the past few weeks...instead of getting back into the swing of things, I've been on a wild swinging ride into and out of them. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be back, and I love spending time with the people I love, but it hasn't been an easy adjustment. I'm not sure what made it so different this time, I just know that reverse culture shock is not my friend, lol. I've been trying to keep busy, though, and that has helped tremendously!

I've spent quite a bit of time with my friends and family. I've been out in the boat with my dad, enjoying the beauty of a Tennessee lake, and doing a little kneeboarding. I've been chilling with my bro quite a bit since we're now sharing an apartment together, and that's been super fun! I've helped my friend Amanda plan her wedding a little bit...we went dress shopping and had some success, I'm super excited about my bridesmaid dress; it's gorgeous! I've also spent a lot of time with my bud Ellen, chilling, watching movies and such...we haven't done a whole lot of planning for our road trip, yet, but we'll get to it eventually, lol.

This past weekend, I was able to attend the NAMM show in Nashville thanks to my Uncle Sam! The NAMM show is held at the convention center and is basically a "show", exhibits, etc., for small music retailers and stores to see all the latest in technology for musical instruments, equipment, and accessories. It's super awesome!! :-) I got to see lots of really cool gadgets and some pretty talented people.

So...I've done a lot of chilling, visiting, and driving, lol. This past weekend, I drove to Nashville twice and road once to Knoxville, plus a lot of driving back and forth between Cookeville and Sparta...I think I'm making up for the lost driving time while I was down in Mexico, lol.

The upcoming week promises to be fun, shopping with Mom tomorrow, finally doing some work at the Foreign Language department, and more hanging out with friends! My cousin David is coming in next week, as well, so that should be pretty fun!

Hope all is well for everyone out there. I'll update again soon...

Amor y paz,
Amelia

Week 6...VBS...Headed back home

Well, I guess it's taken me a while to update about week 6, sorry about that. I've felt pretty frazzled since returning home. My last week at UTRI was awesome! We helped out a local Spanish-speaking church down there with their VBS, and it was a blast! I ended up leading the kids in worship at the beginning of every night, and that was so fun. I loved singing kid songs again...it's been years since I remembered what it felt like to sing a song as a child. Those kids just loved it! I also participated in the drama part of the evenings...I felt pretty ridiculous dressed in a sack-like dress thing playing the part of Gideon, but God needed us to act out the Bible stories for the kids so I donned that sack with pride, lol. The kids loved it, and I had fun performing the little skits with my fellow interns and staff members of UTRI.

The end of VBS was bittersweet since it was the end of the week and time for me to go. It was definitely hard saying good-bye to everyone. I miss all of them tons! It's been a hard adjustment for me this time as opposed to when I returned from Costa Rica. Everything is new back in TN, and it's taking me a while to adapt. I know that everything will be okay, it's pretty freaky for the moment, though, lol.

I've been trying to keep myself pretty busy. I've spent quite a bit of time with friends and family. I spent one night in Nashville and a day at Nashville Shores (a waterpark) with some good friends. I'll probably be headed back to Nashville next weekend to chill with them again. I currently don't have a job, which is disappointing. The coffee shop I was working at before I left doesn't need any more workers for the summer. I know that God will provide a job for me, so I'm trying to not freak out too much, but I feel restless right now. I should be enjoying the free time since school will be starting before I know it, but I'm stressing out as usual, lol. Oh well, everything will be fine.

I've started planning for my amazing road trip across the U.S. with my best friend, Ellen! We're super excited and can't wait to hit the road. I'm excited for her as she begins this huge chapter in her life...film school in L.A.! I know she's going to do great!

Hope all is well for everyone out there! I'm probably going to be changing the URL of this blogsite soon...ameliaincostarica just doesn't really apply anymore, lol...but I'll make sure to let everyone know about the change before I do it.

Lots of love,
Amelia

Week 5...Nonstop

Here's another update from down here close to the border! After the Missouri trip we had about 2 days of rest and then we were hard at work again with a Disciple Now that we held here at UTRI for a local youth group. Some of the staff here at UTRI is really involved at the church, and I think it's super awesome because the church is Spanish-speaking. I love going to the services on Sunday mornings because the sermons and songs are all in Spanish. It's so cool to be able to understand another language. :-) The Disciple Now went really well, the kids were awesome. Sometimes it's nice to spend time with teenagers and kids...I wasn't there that long ago and it's nice to remember what it was like.

This week, we're heavily involved with a VBS at the same church. The kids are adorable! It's so fascinating to me how they are all bilingual already...I'm slightly jealous actually since I've been in college for 4 years to learn Spanish and I'm not nearly as proficient as them. They have such beautiful spirits! Lately I've really loved being around children...they are so innocent and fun!

I am slightly sad at this point, though, because I have to leave this place in 3 days. :-( I love these people and I love being here. It's going to be strange being in a non-Spanish speaking place again. I hope I have the opportunity to come back at some point. The plans for the week consist of continuing the VBS, spending time with everyone here, and throwing a bridal shower for one of the staff members here at UTRI that's getting married in August. We're all excited about that!

Hope everything is going well for every up there in the North, lol. I'll post again next week to let you guys know how the last week went. Lots of love!

Dios se bendiga,
Amelia

Week 4...Lots of love :-)

Another week has passed, and it's been quite an exhausting week! We made the 18-hour road trip up to Missouri just fine and continued doing things nonstop for the next week. The majority of our time in Missouri was spent ministering to people in Springfield. We helped one of UTRI's sponsor churches minister to people downtown, and we spent quite a bit of time with them during a 16 hour prayer/praise service they were having on Sunday. All in all, it was a very fruitful week. I can honestly say that I've never felt God's love as strongly as I felt it this past week, and I'm so thankful we were given the opportunity to go up to Missouri and do what we did.

My job, for the majority of the week, was leading worship/playing music/singing/doing whatever they needed me to do with music, lol. I played more music this week than I have in quite a while. The calluses on my left hand are now awesome from playing the guitar so much, and my endurance for playing the piano nonstop definitely increased substantially, lol. It was pretty awesome! I learned a lot about leading worship and using music to help people feel God's love. The next few weeks, I'll be playing even more music, so I'm excited about that, too!

UTRI is going to be helping out for the next week and a half with a Disciple Now for youth and a Vacation Bible School for children. The church we're going to be working with is a Spanish-speaking church, so there are going to be opportunities for me to practice quite a bit. It's going to be a busy week and a half, but I'm excited to see what's going to happen.

I can't believe that time has flown by so quickly and this 6 weeks is almost over! I love the people that I work with down here. The other girl interns are like sisters to me, and we've bonded so quickly! I can't believe that I'm leaving in 9 days! :-(

I am excited about what's waiting for me at home, though. I'm going to be moving in with my bro and another close friend, and from what I've heard, Frank found us a super nice apartment. I'm going to start planning the road trip of a lifetime with my buddy, Ellen...Route 66...St. Louis to Los Angeles...it's going to be incredible! I'm also going to be helping my chica, Amanda plan her wedding. So...I know that it's going to be an awesome rest of the summer back in Tennessee, but I'm still really going to miss UTRI and all the people here. It's definitely been one of the best summers of my life so far, though, and I know it's just going to continue to get better.

Hope everything is going well for everyone wherever you are. Miss and love you guys!

Paz,
Amelia

Week 3...Tired...

Hello, hello...things are continuing to go well down here...it's just been a really tiring week, lol. We had another team here from Tennessee so we went to Mexico quite a bit, which I love, but it's definitely tiring. We built more picnic tables and helped out at the orphanage again. This time we did quite a bit of digging...I think I've shoveled more this week than I ever have in my life, lol. The orphanage is digging a new septic tank area, so we worked on that for a while. It was great to see the kids again, though. They are so joyful and fun to be around, yet they have so little. It's just so humbling.

This week all of UTRI is headed to Missouri! We're leaving on Tuesday morning bright and early for the 16-hour drive. I'm pretty pumped! It'll be nice to see a change of scenery, and I love road trips, so it'll be great! We're still not 100% sure what we're going to be doing up there, we just know it's going to be street ministry. I think I'm going to be taking my guitar and setting up on the street corner to play with a few other people from the church up there that we're going to be working with. Springfield, MO is apparently a pretty artsy town, so people jamming on the street isn't anything new, which is awesome! I'm super excited! I think the tentative plan is to have a coffeehouse type thing close to where we're going to be playing and giving away free coffee. I'll let you guys know how it goes! I just have to learn about 20 songs between then and now...lol...

In other news...one of my best friends, Amanda, got engaged this past weekend, and she asked me to be her Maid of Honor! I'm so excited for Amanda and her fiance, Tim. It's going to be craziness, but I can't wait to help them out in any way I can! :-) Yay!

So...all is going well. I'm halfway through the 6 weeks, still having a blast, but missing everyone from home. I'm looking forward to these next 3 weeks, but I'm also looking forward to being back home and enjoying some summertime in TN! Hope everyone is doing well. I'll try to update again next weekend!

Here's a link to some pics!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2072351&id=52702346&l=1a01862f9b

Mucho amor,
Amelia

Week 2...Growing

Week 2 is officially over down here at Alamo, TX, and what a week! We had a team here this week from Missouri, and they were tons of fun...7th and 8th graders! We went to Mexico three times this week. We did some work at an orphanage, built some picnic tables for an elementary school, and helped serve food at the dump. All of these things are so humbling. I love being able to help these people. I spent a lot of time translating and playing with the kids. They have so little and yet they are so joyful and loving. It's a time of growing for me right now. Being down here really puts everything into perspective, and God is teaching me a zillion things all at once but I wouldn't wish for it to be any different. I love being down here and working with the teams and the UTRI people. They're all such amazing people. I don't know how I'm going to say goodbye in 4 weeks!

Right now we're all enjoying a few days off. Yesterday we walked to a local pool and caught some rays...the summer tan begins! :-) Today we're going to do some laundry at a nearby laundromat and then maybe rent a movie or go to the drive-in theater. Lots of fun! It was awesome to sleep in this morning after being up before 7 every morning this week...not exactly what I'm used to, lol, but it's been awesome.

We have another team coming in on Monday, college kids this time. It should be pretty amazing! I can't wait to see what's in store. I'm sure I'll be going to Mexico quite a bit. Hope all is well with everyone. I'll update again next week! Miss everyone!

Dios te bendiga,
Amelia

Week 1...Preparation

Week 1 is officially over and week 2 has started in this 6 week journey. We spent the majority of the week preparing: spiritually and physically. We did lots of odd jobs around the mission and spent quite a bit of time in classes learning about what's in store for us over the next weeks and about what God is doing in our lives. I'm pretty excited to see what's going to happen. We've got teams coming this week and next week, so we'll be going into Mexico quite a bit to work with an orphanage and in the dump, where many people in Mexico live. It's going to be really humbling and eye-opening, but I'm really excited to work with the Mexicans and the teams.

The week after our last team, we're going to be heading to Missouri! I know, random, right? Due to the swine flu and the problems with the drug cartel, several teams have canceled their mission trips down here, so we have several weeks free. Since we have so much free time, a church in Missouri invited us to come up there and do some street ministry with them. The people that started UTRI are originally from Missouri so they have quite a few connections up there. I'm pretty excited about that, too. I love road trips, so it's going to be a blast!

This week I'll be going to Mexico three times with the team, and I've already been recruited to do some translating tomorrow. I'm nervous, but I know that's one of the big reasons that I'm down here, so I know I need to do it, lol. I'm sure it will go fine, but we'll see.

Big things are happening down here. It's going to be an awesome summer for UTRI and all the interns. I feel like I've known these people for years already. We just clicked. It's been pretty amazing. I don't know how I'm going to say good-bye to them when I leave in the middle of the summer. The majority of everyone else is staying for the whole summer, so it's going to be really sad to leave while they continue to live here. I know there's a reason for everything, though, and I know there are reasons that I need to be back in TN for a while. I'm already planning a pretty awesome road trip in August...Route 66 from St. Louis to Los Angeles!! More details later...

Hope everyone is doing well. I'll try to update again next weekend after our first team leaves. Hopefully I'll have some awesome stories from Mexico!

Paz afuera (Peace out),
Amelia

Orientation @ UTRI

Hola a todos!  The first couple of days of my internship here at UTRI have been completed, and it's been pretty cool thus far.  We haven't gotten into any of the intense stuff yet, but this week will prove difficult.  I got here on Friday and spent yesterday and most of today just kind of chilling.  I'm thankful for the downtime, though, because I know that I'll need it to get me through this next week.  Our days will start at 7:30 and end around 7 pm for the most part.  We have a team coming in next Sunday and another team the next week.  After that, all of UTRI is going to be taking a road trip to Missouri!  That was quite a surprise but exciting nonetheless.  The founders of UTRI have deep roots in Missouri, so we're going to work with a church up there for a week.  It should be pretty cool...I'm always up for a road trip!

We haven't gone over to Mexico, yet...we'll go over a lot more when we have a team here.  I did have the chance to go to a Spanish-speaking church this morning, which I enjoyed immensely.  I understood pretty much everything that was said, and it was nice to be immersed in the language.  I love being able to communicate in another language even if I'm not 100% correct all of the time.  Hopefully I'll improve while I'm here, though!

I'll try to update again soon.  We might have a free day next weekend, so I'll let everyone know what's going on.  Hope all is well!!

Paz,

Amelia

Oh, Mexico...

Hello to everyone! Yes, it's been a while since I've posted. I've been enjoying the pleasantries of doing relatively nothing! :-) School has been over now for about 2 weeks, and I couldn't be more ecstatic! I ended the semester pretty well...passed everything...what more can you ask for, right, lol? The gig went pretty well and received a pretty good response. More to come in the future, I'm sure. Other than the end of school and the gig, I've just been working at the coffee shop and chilling! It's been pretty amazing...

In two days, however, craziness begins again! I'll be leaving Nashville on Friday morning to spend 6 weeks in Alamo, TX/Reynosa, MX. I'm pretty excited to see what's in store but a little nervous at the same time, I'll admit. This is a completely different experience than studying abroad, and although I will be using Spanish quite a bit, I'll also be doing a lot of other jobs like cooking, cleaning, construction, etc., etc....actually, I'm not 100% sure what I'll be doing, yet, but I know it's going to be awesome. I'm going into this with an open mind and an open heart, and I'm ready to be used for God's work. Viva Mexico!

I'll try to update this as often as I can, just so you guys know that I don't have the swine flu and that I wasn't kidnapped by the drug cartel...I'm going to be fine, lol. Hope everyone is having an amazing summer!

Mucho amor,
Amelia

Three weeks left...

Wow...this semester has just flown by! I'm glad and extremely nervous at the same time. That 20-page paper I have to write...yeah...haven't even started, and there are only three weeks left, lol. I'm such a procrastinator. On the other hand, though, only three weeks left until I'm free from this hellish semester!! I'm on to bigger and better things!

On May 8, I'll be doing a show at my place of work, Poet's on the Square. I'm pretty excited since I haven't really played out anywhere in quite a while. It should be pretty awesome!! If you're in the area, come check it out!

I leave for Mexico on May 22 and I'll be there through July 3. I appreciate any thoughts or prays sent my way, and I'll try to update every now and then to let people know I'm still alive, lol. I'm not really that worried, though. I know that safety is a priority for UTRI.

Hope all is well for everyone out there. Short post, I know, but I'm headed to German class...yuck... I'll update again soon after finals are over and everything! Send me some love, and let me know that people are still reading! :-)

Paz y amor,
Amelia

¡¡España!!

Hello to all! I have returned from my travels to Spain! Things are hectic, as usual, and I'm just trying to stay afloat in a sea of books, notes, pencils, and pens. I have about 6 weeks left in this semester, and I can't wait for it to be over, lol!

Spain was awesome! I had never been to Europe, so it was definitely a new experience. I was very surprised to find that I really had no trouble understanding the Spanish in Spain at all. I was afraid that the accent was going to throw me, but I did alright. The only exception was an incident I had in a pastry shop where this grouchy, old Spanish woman thought I was trying to cut her in line when I was clearly there first, and she proceeded to chew me out for it. I still have no clue what she was saying to me, and another grouchy, old Spanish lady behind us just kept saying that I didn't understand, and I did understand that, lol. It was frustrating because I had been doing so well up until that point. Oh well, I know I'm not fluent, yet, so there will be times when I don't understand something. The rest of the trip went off without a hitch, and I was able to understand the majority of what I heard.

I saw incredible cathedrals and mosques that were over 500 years old, and I enjoyed some very nice sangria in Sevilla. All in all, it was a marvelous trip! I can't say that I want to go back to Europe anytime soon, however, because the Euro against the dollar makes everything quite expensive. Still, I'm glad I went!

My next journey on the horizon is a 6-week stay in Mexico!!! I got the internship I had been praying about, so I'll be spending 6 weeks in Alamo, TX/Reynosa, MX doing mission work. I'll be working at an organization called UTRI-Upon This Rock International. They do a lot of amazing work right there on the border. Their website is http://www.utri.org/. If you have a chance, check it out!

So...hopefully I will make it through this semester with sanity still left. I'm in the process of writing a 20-page research paper, making a 10 minute Spanish presentation, and trying to keep up in my German class...whew...I'll make it through somehow, lol.

Here's a few links to my photos from Spain if you want to see what I saw! :-)

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2066081&id=52702346&l=a5045530f5

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2066087&id=52702346&l=2d7faeb439

Hope all is well with everyone!

Amor,
Amelia

Busiest I've Ever Been!!

So...I know it's been a while since my last post, but as the title "suggests," I've never been this busy before in my life! Here's a brief recap of the past month or so:

I went to Mexico for a week for a mission trip, and it was incredible! I've applied for an internship there this summer, and I'm really praying that I'll get it. I love being able to use my Spanish in those types of situations. Most of the time I feel really inadequate when I speak Spanish, but when people can't understand each other without me, it makes me feel like maybe I can speak Spanish better than I thought.

I turned 22...yeah, I'm getting old. I know in the grand scheme of life I'm pretty young, but I just can't believe that I'm 22. The decisions I have to make in the next year are pretty big ones and pretty scary ones. I just hope I have the discernment to make the right decisions. Hopefully everything works out alright.

I'll be leaving for Spain in less than a month! I'm really excited about this because I've never been to Europe. It's going to be a very busy 9 days there, but I can't wait for the break from school!

Speaking of school...I pretty much hate it right now. I'm only taking 13 hours, so I thought it wouldn't be that bad. Boy, was I wrong. German is killing me because I can't remember any of the German I took over a year ago, and the history class I have, in which I have to write a 20-page paper, requires me to read several books. The one I'm currently reading deals with the views of ancient Jews in relation to Black people. ???? Is that seriously going to have anything to do with my life in the future? I seriously doubt it. So...I'm just trying to make it through this semester. Hopefully I'll be somewhat sane at the end of it.

School, studying, and work are basically my life. I have taken up yoga two times a week in an effort to destress, but thus far, I've just been really sore.

Hope all is well for everyone else out there! I'll try to blog again after I get back from Spain.

Besos y abrazos,
Amelia