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