The Pre-Return Jitters

Hello, friends. You're witnessing a makeover.

As you can see, "My Mosaic" has returned to "Lauren Likes Saint Mike's". The background has returned to a school-spirited theme, albeit more subdued with a simple Purple Knights color-scheme rather than anything obnoxiously designed (I hope). I have returned to America. And very soon, I will return to Vermont.

I have to admit, parting with "My Mosaic" is one of the more difficult things I've done this summer. Hence the header photo of the kasbah in Ouerzazate. I decided that can stay just a little bit longer.

Life is a mosaic. I'm not in Morocco anymore, but don't worry, I'm still working on mine.

The truth is, a part of me will always be in Morocco, and a part of Morocco is always in me (they don't call them cliches for nothing). I get so frustrated when I can feel so much of it slipping away the longer I am home. The general themes of what I learned stay, but minor details--the things that really made the whole experience special, made it mine--change or fade away altogether. I very badly want to go back. In my worst moments, I sometimes wish I never came home.

But I know that Morocco would have never been possible if it hadn't been for Saint Mike's. If I never went to college I never would have studied abroad; perhaps I never would have traveled at all. If I had gone to a college other than Saint Mike's, I would be on a completely different path. Maybe I would've gone somewhere else, maybe I would've stayed at my school all four years (a very distinct possibility, since many colleges don't transfer financial aid to students studying abroad--something I was very shocked to hear from my friends at other schools who I met in Morocco. Luckily, they found other ways to afford it). Would I be happy? Probably. I am naturally a pretty happy person, after all. But I'd just be different.

Despite my heartsickness for the people, sights, places, food, smells, and everything else I fell in love with in Morocco, I have a lot to look forward to. In just over a month, I will be back on campus for senior year. I will be working hard on my senior seminar project with Sheila and at whatever internship I end up with through my experiential learning course with Professor Cleary. I will be enjoying the company of friends who I consider family, most of whom I have not seen in over seven months (wow--it's about time). More importantly, I will be welcomed into a place that's ready to accept who I am now, with all of my new experiences and everything that has changed me while I was off venturing through the "real world". Almost all of my friends went abroad at the same time I did, meaning they know what it's like to make the rough transition back into normal life. Those who didn't have already endured long hours of "Why Morocco is the Best Place Ever" rants over the phone or Skype, and will most likely hear hours more when I see them in person (really, guys, thanks for being willing to do that). The Study Abroad office, creative writing folks, Office of Admission, and plenty of other groups on campus will welcome me with open arms and ears, asking me to speak as much (or as little) as I want about this past semester. I couldn't ask for a better place to go after something so profoundly influential happens in my life. I left Morocco and had some time at home, and now I'm ready to go home, if you know what I mean.

There are worse places I could return to.

Worse people, too. God I miss these guys. (Yes, I did intentionally choose the most unflattering photo of us all that I could find...you're welcome.)

Even though this year is going to be crazy and go by in a flash, I'm excited to return. It's actually weirding me out a little that I haven't been to Vermont in so long. It'll be another bittersweet transition when it's over, since I'll be graduating in May and I still have no idea what I want to do with my life. But we won't think about that just yet.

Anyway, my summer has been broken up in to a bunch of strange little segments. They've been great-- after a month of being home, I returned to South Dakota to visit old friends in La Plant for three weeks, working with Simply Smiles again and keeping that Saint Mike's connection going (another opportunity I would not have had without SMC). Then I went to California for a week to visit a friend I made in Morocco and plan to keep for life. I returned back home to New York last week, where I started up a great internship at Mark & Phil, a local non-profit that does marketing and web design for other non-profits. It's awesome to be home and learning in a new environment, but much of this summer segment feels a lot like waiting. I'm now in the home-stretch, so all I can think about is getting back to school and everything that has become so familiar to me over the past few years.

I'm being pulled in so many directions now. If you attached little strings to me and then placed the other ends on the people and places that have influenced who I am--South Dakota, California, New York, Vermont, Morocco, Ceuta, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Canada, and on and on--you'd have me bursting at the seams, ready to spill the stories of thousands, and also you'd have no string left. (Sorry, that ended up being a lot less deep than I thought it would be.) I want to explore and keep moving forward and find even more stories to collect, but I also want to return to all of the places that started my momentum in the first place. It's like I expected myself to do a marathon, but instead I'm on track for a relay.

Who knows where I'm going next?

I didn't know then, don't know now.

But it'll be fun trying to figure it out! (I'm making excuses to post Morocco pictures, I am fully aware of that.)

I want to go, I want to stay, I want to turn around, I want to rise up, I want to take a nap. I'm happy, but I'm confused. I'm not quite content with where I am right now, but I think that's a good thing--that means there's still something driving me to keep going and learning and loving and being and doing.

I think a lot of this has to with not just a longing for the past, but for the future. My immediate future is set (as soon as I pay that tuition bill that came in yesterday). But the finish line is in sight, and after that there is so much uncertainty. Sometimes it freaks me out. And sometimes, on days like today, it excites me. It's the first time in my life where I will have to choice to do anything, go anywhere. I could return to Morocco, or South Dakota, or California. I could look for a job in New York City, or stay in Vermont for a while. I could backpack Europe or South America. I could couch-surf America. Or I could (and let's face it, I probably will for a few months at least) hang out on my own couch in good ol' Poughkeepsie, just as I am now.

Time moves in a circle. Seasons change, people change. But I always figure out a way to return home.

"So no one told ya life was gonna be this waaay..."

Here's to one more year at Saint Mike's!

Cheers,

Lauren

SMC: Round 3

Welcome back to school, everyone!

After a wonderful, crazy, busy, and (kind of) relaxing summer, it's finally time to get back to classes. As many of you know, I spent my summer here at Saint Mike's working in Admissions and giving tours. I had a great time, but to tell you the truth, I'm really happy to be getting back to business--it was WAY too quiet and empty on this campus, especially during my last few weeks!

I was actually able to go home and visit family and friends for a week right before school started up again, which was awesome. However, that means I missed the New Student Orientation and all of the fun activities for our new students. So, to the class of 2017, I'd like to officially say congratulations and WELCOME HOME! It's been a pleasure meeting some of you, and I absolutely cannot wait to get to know you all even more (if anyone reading this sees me around campus, don't hesitate to say hi--but be forewarned, I'll probably hug you).

By the title of this post, you may realize that this means I am now a junior--oh, that word is frightening. I feel like I just got here. I've done so much with my time, and yet there is still so much I want to do. I know it's a little early to start getting nostalgic, but first-years, take some advice: Time goes by very quickly. Enjoy the time that you have here, and definitely take up all of the opportunities you can. You only have four years--don't waste them!

Anyway, I have been through my first week of classes now, as well as my first week living the townhouse life. Yep, that's right--I'm living in a townhouse this semester, and it's pretty awesome. Not only am I living in a very spacious home with three of my closest friends (including fellow blogger Alex Brenock), but I am also conviently located in the 100s townhouses, which are right next to Bergeron (AKA Home of the Journalism Nerds). Basically, I can roll out of bed and be in my classrooms in a matter of seconds.





I was so excited, I tweeted about it (Shameless plug: Follow me on Twitter!).

Here are some of the highlights from my first week in pictures (there aren't many, but then again I don't have my fancy Photo-J camera anymore :/ ):

After moving in, I went to Lake Champlain with a bunch of friends--one of my favorite back-to-school traditions.

We've already had friends over for several gatherings at the house. The living room is so cozy!

My housemates and I have decided to make a weekly thing out of buying flowers from the SMC organic farmstand. This way, we can decorate our house while supporting an awesome MOVE program! Small decorative details have really made our house become a home in just a matter of days.

I can't believe I'm already halfway through Week 2 of this semester. I don't want to count, but I can't help it...everything is just moving too fast! I don't want the semester to end any time soon, even though Morocco awaits me this spring. I'm still excited, but I'm also still nervous--and counting down the days doesn't help! My sense of time is completely thrown off--if I'm not worried about how fast it's going, I'm convinced that I have all the time in the world. There's no in-between lately.

I think this is also why I had a rocky first week when it comes to academics. Don't worry, it's really hard to make irreversible mistakes your first week of classes, but keep in mind what I am about to tell you: Time is not infinite. If you have free time and there isn't much going on, start your homework. Don't say "later." Because later, you will want to go visit a friend, or check out the new Quad Commons, or have family dinner with your housemates, or watch a lot of Boy Meets World. It's hard to transition back into school mode after being in summer mode for months, but staying on top of your work will result in much less stress (and much more sleep) during Week 2 and for the rest of the semester. If you start out behind, it's a lot easier to remain behind. As for me--I'm definitely catching up now!

I will probably be posting within the next few days to tell you more about my classes and goals for the semester. Until then, study hard!

-Lauren

MOVE Trip 2013: CRST Reservation, South Dakota

As most of you know, I've been avoiding this post for a while. I'm not totally sure why--I think it's just that I still don't know how to put this experience into words strong enough for anyone who wasn't there to understand the meaning. But that's the incredible thing about extended service trips with MOVE in the first place: nobody can ever fully understand it except for the people who were there with you at the time. That goes for every trip, every year. Even groups that go to the same place year after year do not have the same experience as the last group.

For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, MOVE is Saint Michael's College's volunteer program, and it stands for Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts. MOVE has tons of programs that run on a regular basis throughout the year, from weekly events throughout the local community to extended service trips both domestically and internationally. Last year, as a first-year student, I went to Beaumont, Texas over my winter break and spent a week at the Big Thicket National Preserve, where my group learned about biodiversity and environmental protection and helped plant trees and take care of the preserve. For my second MOVE trip, which I got home from about three weeks ago now, I did something drastically different. I joined ten others from Saint Mike's for a trip out to South Dakota and into the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation, to the town of La Plant. We volunteered to work with a non-profit group called Simply Smiles, and spent the week staying in their community center. Our group was a "guinea pig group" for MOVE, as last year was the first time MOVE ever went out to the reservation and it was a group made up entirely of student leaders who had led other MOVE trips in the past. This year was the first time this trip was open to all students to apply for. Luckily, we were pretty much the best group in the history of MOVE trips (please don't let the bias in this sentence make you be skeptical about the rest of this post...)

Here we are arriving in South Dakota, prepared for the Big Red Bus to take us to the reservation! None of these photos are mine--as I said before, I barely took any pictures. This was taken by Josh Dufresne, a Simply Smiles staff member. The rest of the photos are by Carlos Sian, a member of the MOVE group...although I'm sure some were from the kids playing with his camera!

The reservation belongs to the Lakota people, whose roots trace back through generations to this land. As my group entered the reservation, the Simply Smiles staff reminded us that we were no longer in South Dakota or "in America" as we knew it. We were guests in someone else's place, and had to be respectful of that. Simply Smiles had been welcomed into the La Plant community a few years ago, and they were given the community center to work out of. They had been honored to gain the trust and respect of the people in the community, and paid it back with an equal amount of trust and respect. The reason for Simply Smiles' presence on the reservation is because it is an area of extreme poverty, with little infrastructure to help people survive. La Plant is a very isolated area, and people often have to fend for themselves.

The Community Center, looking on from the back entrance.

Some of the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen were in South Dakota...and I live in Vermont, so I know sunsets!

Simply Smiles is "dedicated to building bright futures while improving the daily lives of impoverished children." It sounds like a general mission statement, but what it means is that it's taking on a lot of work and tackling several issues at once. That's why it's important to move slowly but steadily, and to make sure things are done correctly. The organization has had some success with their ongoing program in Oaxaca, Mexico, where they began. The CRST project is the first domestic project taken on by Simply Smiles, and they're the only outside group with a presence on the reservation.

So that's a lot of talking, but it's good to have some context before I launch into the whole story. We did a lot throughout our week on the reservation, but the best and most important thing we did by far was make connections. Despite everything else--the hardships, the poverty, the lack of resources or anything material--the best thing we could do for this community is show the people there that they are not alone. We ran a summer camp for the children in the community and spent time playing with them, laughing with them, and just getting to know them. The philosophy of Simply Smiles is that if we made one person smile each day, we were succeeding. Because when faced with so much struggle, it's difficult to smile.

Not only did we spend time with the kids, but we also got to know many adults and elders within La Plant as well. We helped Simply Smiles host a few community gatherings throughout the week, including bingo night, waffle breakfasts, and bison buger barbecues. As we sat down to eat with the elders, they would tell us about life in La Plant or teach us about Lakota culture. One of the highlights of the week was when Steve, a prominent member of the community, led a drumming ceremony for our group and told us about the meaning behind each of the songs they played. It was really great to see some of the younger boys learning how to use the drum, showing pride in their heritage and carrying on some magnificent traditions around our bonfire. We were all really happy to be included in the community, and to have been greeted with such a warm welcome.

 

 

During the mornings, when we were not holding summer camp, we'd work on projects that needed to be done around the community center or within the town. We helped finish renovating the kitchen of the community center, a project that had been started by previous volunteer groups, and some of us helped start a community garden.

Measuring and cutting wood for the kitchen.

I wasn't involved in this project as I was helping out in the kitchen, but many hours (and memories!) were put into the garden.

Some of the more artistic people in the group worked hard all week on the sign for the garden!

Sometimes we had projects that had not been expected by anyone, including getting vehicles unstuck from the mud.

One major goal for Simply Smiles on the reservation is to help provide adequate housing for everyone in the community. The climate in South Dakota allows for extreme weather, with incredibly hot temperatures in the later summer months and winter temperatures that can reach negative 50 degrees. The wind is incredibly strong when it rolls over the plains--I've never experienced anything like it. I can't imagine what that wind is like in the winter. And many people on the reservation live in homes that simply cannot protect them enough from this weather.

When it rains, the dry ground becomes what the locals call "gumbo": heavy, clumpy mud that sticks to your shoes. This kind of soil isn't very productive for agriculture...or walking...

So, as part of our project for the week, we helped set up for what would be the first Simply Smiles-facilitated home construction project on the CRST reservation. These affordably-priced homes were designed by the people living on the reservation, who know better than anyone else the exact issues to consider when building them. The community members also help build the homes, and by involving everyone in each project, people begin to come together and support each other.

 Although our week was too short for us to see the construction for the new home begin, it was really great to know that we were helping to prepare the area where it would be built. This included helping our friend Steve move everything out of his current home and begin taking it down so that the new house could be built in its place. I've been following Simply Smiles on Facebook, and the foundation has been completed. I can't wait to see pictures of the whole thing when it's done. It is one big step in a series of thousands of smaller steps to help build up this community, both literally and figuratively.

It took all of us for a project of this size! This is another photo by Josh.

How many volunteers does it take to move a doghouse?

I could spend hours talking about this one week of my life. I could go into much further detail about these incredible kids; the older community members who I had the pleasure of meeting; the amazing resilience of this one small community; Simply Smiles as a group; my wonderful MOVE group who have become great friends and are possibly the only ones who wouldn't mind listening to my constant rambling; and my ups and downs throughout the week that the rest of my group, and probably the community itself, felt as a whole. I could tell you about how I loved and hated everything about this place at the same time, and try to explain how something like that feels. I could tell you about each of the people behind the many friendship bracelets covering my wrists; or the fact that not a day goes by when that one week doesn't occupy my thoughts and free time; or that I do not just want to go back but feel the intense need to. I could try to describe all of the mixed feelings about that week to the best of my ability, despite the fact that there are things I still don't understand and probably never will. I could even apologize for the long post or the dramatic language, but I won't, because I truly believe that this trip deserves more attention than anything I've ever done. There are a lot of things I will keep to myself, simply because I don't know how to put them into words.

All I will say is that if you're still reading, and if any of this has struck a chord with you, then this trip is for you. You might buy Simply Smiles coffee or send a donation, but if that doesn't sit right with you and you feel that you need to do more, this trip is definitely for you. What Simply Smiles needs in order to work, and what this community needs, is people who care. People who will set their lives aside for a week at a time, people who will forget about their own wants or needs (including the need to know or understand everything and the luxury of indoor plumbing), people who don't mind getting their hands dirty or being challenged with something every step of the way. If you want to volunteer to do something that truly takes all of you, and that you don't do for the "rewarding" feeling afterward but simply because it's something that needs to be done, then volunteer with Simply Smiles.

If you go to Saint Mike's, you can apply for next year's MOVE group: when the semester begins again, pay attention to application due dates. Although all of the trips are equally awesome, definitely consider CRST Reservation, South Dakota as one of your picks. It's truly a dedication, but it's entirely worth it. If you've never been on a MOVE trip, all I can say is GO. I guarantee that whatever your qualms or reservations about it are, none of them are comparable to your reasons for going. Once you go on one, you'll want to go on all of them. They will change how you see the world.

If you didn't click on the links throughout the post, I would strongly advise going back through and exploring. They will describe some things I mentioned more clearly than I did. And if you're interested, check out the Simply Smiles blog to hear from more of the volunteer groups. My group wrote three while we were there; check them out:

First Saint Mike's MOVE Blog

MOVE's Wednesday Blog

Last SMC MOVE Blog

Whatever you do, give it everything you've got.

-Lauren

Vlog: Summer at Saint Mike's

LINKS:

MOVE, and specifically a South Dakota post

Simply Smiles

SMC Study Abroad Page

Visit Saint Mike's!

You can always message me on Facebook and email me at lkopchik@mail.smcvt.edu!

Spring Break Plans

Tonight, my parents will be arriving at Saint Mike's, and then tomorrow morning I can leave after my morning class for a week of pure sunshine and relaxation! well, who really knows how much relaxing I'll be doing...

Not exactly what's in my Spring Break plans, unfortunately!

The cool part of my spring break will be Friday night. I'm not going straight home from school--first, my friend Cara and I are going to a Matchbox Twenty concert at Mohegan Sun. I am SO excited! Cara and I are huge Matchbox Twenty (and Rob Thomas) fans, and this concert is sure to be a blast. Their newest album, North, has a different sound from their older 90s- and early 2000s-era music, but I still enjoy it, and I'm hoping they'll play some of their older stuff too.

I'm really hoping that my parents knew what they were getting into when they offered to drive us to the concert...I'm currently making mix CDs to listen to all the way there. And, of course, we'll have to listen to the new album at least three times. And then, of course, after the concert on the way to my house we'll probably listen to it again!

I'm too excited for words!

 Anyway, after the concert Cara and I will go back to my house in Poughkeepsie, NY, sleep for a few hours, and then wake up and go to the train station where she can take an Amtrak back up to her home in Plattsburgh. She's going a bit out of the way for this show, but hey, that's a dedicated fan right there.

So that's my only plan that's definite so far, but I know I have a lot that needs to be accomplished over break. Here's a tentative list:

1.) Finish my Study Abroad application so that I can submit it as soon as I return

2.) Update my FAFSA and fill out a campus work study application for my summer internship

3.) Do some readings and decorate my journal for my MOVE trip to South Dakota

4.) Buy an external hard drive (imperative for an MJD major--I've got too much content for one little flash drive!)

5.) Go to interesting places around town and make use out of this awesome camera before I have to give it back at the end of the semester!

6.) Start looking at cameras so that I have an idea of what I want when I can someday afford nice things (I just added this)

7.) Work on my Malaysia project for Global Comm

8.) Continue research and begin a rough draft for my Environmental Problems paper (my topic is e-waste)

9.) Start looking at classes for fall registration

That's a pretty massive list, especially because 7 and 8 are quite time consuming. Plus, I'm going to be distracted with constantly wanting to take pictures and do the "fun" stuff, and of course I'll want to spend some time re-charging the batteries (read: sleeping) and spending time with family and friends. The good news is that Sheila, a Global Comm buddy of mine, has already agreed to getting together and working on our projects for a day (since we live just a few minutes away from each other).

So, looks like I'll definitely have enough things to keep me busy! I suppose the beach will have to wait for another time. :)

Let me know if you have any cool plans for Spring Break! Find me on Facebook, email me at lkopchik@mail.smcvt.edu, Tweet me @LaurenKopchik, and find me on Formspring.

Have a great break!
Lauren   

South Dakota, Here I Come!

Hello everyone, and Happy Veterans' Day!

Some of you may know that I have applied for another domestic extended service trip with MOVE. I had such an amazing time in Texas last year that I really wanted to go on another trip--I also love extended service because I take an entire week to devote to helping others, and focus on nothing else. These trips occur during school breaks, so it makes thema lot easier to schedule in.

Well, a few weeks ago I got the results from my application in my mailbox, and this past week we had our first set of meetings with the other MOVE groups.

Ladies and gentleman, *drumroll please...* I am going to the Cheyenne River Reservation in South Dakota from May 18th to the 25th! WHOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

You guys, I am SO EXCITED for this trip. My group is going to a Lakota reservation, where we will work with the non-profit group Simply Smiles, which is "dedicated to providing bright futures for impoverished children." While applying for the trip, it was noted that this was an extremely intense and emotional one.

The Cheyenne River Reservation has seen some harsh economic times, which affect the people in tons of ways. Many people don't stay in school, and Simply Smiles tries to keep that from happening as well as work to keep building the community and improve the quality of life. While we are there, we could be working on projects that would help the community in any way possible.

This year will be different because I'll be going with a much smaller group of people and we'll be focusing on working with people directly rather than on environmental issues. It's going to be a totally different experience than I've had on my last trip, and even though I loved Texas, I'm so happy about that because it'll be something completely new. The trips won't even be comparable--that's the awesome thing about extended service trips. You never know exactly what you're getting into!

As much as I just want it to be May, I shouldn't be rushing to get to this trip. It's going to take a lot of preparation, especially mentally and emotionally. I can't wait to have meetings with my group and learn more about what the trip will be like. Our student trip leader, Jenna, a friend of mine who I actually met on my Texas trip last year, sent us some links to the Simply Smiles website and their examples of past work with the reservation:

http://www.simplysmiles.org/whoweare/

http://www.simplysmiles.org/our-projects/crst/

This is just one example of the various opportunities one can have with extended service and MOVE as a whole. Other trips I applied to included an animal sanctuary in Utah, a Habitat for Humanity trip to New Orleans, and one that focuses on helping the migrant worker community in Immokalee, Florida. There are also bus trips that go to homeless shelters or school districts in need in places like Buffalo, NY, Baltimore, Connecticut and New York City.

I really love being involved with MOVE, even though I don't get to do local events as often as I wish I could...but extended service offers the perfect opportunity to make a difference while seeing a new place. I know this trip is going to require a lot of dedication, but I am more excited than ever to take it on and have a brand new experience.

I hope that whatever you do, you remain passionate about it. Here's to MOVE 2013!

Cheers,
Lauren

The Stress-Kicker

Hey Kids! (I'm not sure why, but that has been my usual greeting to all of my friends lately.)

Sorry I've been away from my blog for longer than usual...things are CRAZY but they're so exciting! I have several projects that I'm working on for classes, and they're pretty cool but I've been definitely feeling stressed lately.

So, what better time than the present to write a post all about...you've got it, STRESS! (I'll stop using capitals now, I promise.)

First of all, I'd love to direct you to an awesome article on our branch of the Her Campus website that's called Helpful Tips for a Successful Semester. It's written by our very own Lauren Carter, and it is an excellent source for de-stressing and having an overall awesome semester.

Want to know the ultimate stress-kicker? Manage your time. Easier said than done, I know. Trust me, I know. In fact, I have 7 minutes to finish writing this blog post...I gave myself until 5 to finish it, but since I didn't manage my time and decided to let my phone distract me for the first twenty minutes sitting at this computer, I'm now limited to...6 minutes. And counting.

In all seriousness, not managing your time can result in constantly feeling overwhelmed, and that's not fun for anyone! In fact, I was in such a bad mood last week from this feeling that I had to apologize to my friends and roommate for being so cranky! You don't want to get into the habit of staying up until 2 AM to finish your work--in the end, you're just wearing yourself out, and your grades could even suffer. I'm happy to say that I've gotten back on track and I'm my jovial self again. I bet everyone around me is relieved!

I should get going, seeing as I have one minute now to get to Alliot for dinner. Then, at 6, I'm going to an extended service meeting for MOVE. I'm so excited, and I had the best time in Texas last year! I hope I'll be able to go on an awesome adventure again this year!

Stay un-stressed!

Lauren

My MOVE Trip: Big Thicket, Texas 2012

We have an awesome volunteer program here at Saint Mike's called MOVE (Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts).  We do a ton of local projects, and there are all kinds of programs you can sign up for each week to help out the community in some way, whether it's cooking for the hungry, playing with shelter animals, or hanging out with some local kids or elderly people. There are a lot of outdoor volunteer opportunities too, like working in the organic garden or cleaning up public outdoor areas.

Some of the coolest opportunities MOVE offers are the extended service trips. There are domestic and international trips that take place over winter, spring and summer breaks, completely dedicated to volunteer service. I spent a week of my winter break working in the Big Thicket National Preserve near Beaumont, Texas.

My trip was so amazing and enlightening, and fortunately I had the opportunity to prepare a scholarship project about it to present on a panel. It was called "How are you MOVED?" and each of the panelists spoke about what they took away from their trips. I was really nervous to do this, since the panel I was on was for faculty members and my voice gets all shaky when I have to speak in public. However, I really enjoyed presenting, because I realized I had so much to say about the experience.

I made a little scrapbook on mixbook.com to use as a guide for my speech. The following are a few of the ideas I addressed:

This was the cover of my scrapbook. I was so happy that I had such an awesome time on my first MOVE trip--it  definitely will not be my last!

I wanted to set my first page up like a little yearbook. There were 11 of us on this trip, and each person was such a key character with a different personality. Everyone added to the dynamic of the group, and we really hit it off. The center picture if the Field Research Station, where we had accommodations to stay for the week.

On our first day, we met a young ranger named Elliot. He spoke to us for a while about the Big Thicket, and how it's such a diverse ecosystem because so much was pushed south from the Ice Age. After thousands of years, these different ecosystems adapted and began to thrive together, which is why the Thicket is so diverse. During his talk, he was describing how dense the forest is, and how hot and humid it becomes in the summer. He told us, "When the wind blows in the Thicket, you can see it, and you can hear it, but you can't feel it." Then, later on, we were taking a hike through a really dense area of the woods. I heard this rustling noise and looked up to see the tops of the trees swaying and leaves falling down around me. But Elliot was right, because I couldn't feel the wind! It suddenly gave me this incredibly small feeling.

That's why my favorite picture from the trip is the one on the top left side, looking up at the tree. I think it's the only picture I took that captured that feeling. I told everyone at the panel that I also like the leaf in this picture, too, because in real life this leaf is tiny but looking at it from this angle makes it seem huge. I was thinking that a leaf is such a small detail in a whole forest. But without leaves, what would the forest be? So even though it's small, this leaf makes a huge impact. That's kind of how we felt too. Here was this group of college students, staying for only a week, being dwarfed by these massive trees and doing such a small amount of work in such a gigantic place. But the important thing is that we were there, and like those little leaves, we made an impact too.

All of these pictures were taken the day we went to the Sandylands to clear trails. The Sandylands are an interesting part of the Thicket. The soil is sandier, hence the name, and the trees are more sparse. However, the brush is grassy and dense, so cutting these trails was quite the challenge! That's me in the top right corner of the left page, wielding my machete. I never thought I'd ever use a machete in my life!

This was such a cool experience because we were all pushed to our limits. We accomplished so much that we had never even dreamed of...and by the end of that day, we had cleared about a mile of trails that would be opened up for public use!

I almost got a little choked up at this part of the presentation, because Maxine is one of the most inspiring people I've ever met. She's an 83-year-old native Texan who is absolutely obsessed with the Big Thicket. She accompanied us one day in the middle of the week, and brought us to this tree on the left page. It was one of the biggest, most beautiful trees I have ever seen. Planted by Lance Rosier, "father of the Big Thicket," this elm was over 150 years old. Our task for the day was to clear the area around it--the saplings growing up near it were rubbing against its bark, which isn't good for such and old tree because it can open up "wounds" and become easily "infected."

After we completed this task, Maxine said she had to show us something. She took off through the Thicket, not even following a particular path, like a true trailblazer. She really knows her way around, because in a few minutes she stopped us in front of this old mulberry tree, which is in the first three pictures on the right page. Maxine had grown up with this tree, and unfortunately it was dying. Parts of it were rotten and scorched. She told us we were going to have a "tree funeral."

I love nature, but I had never thought of doing something like this before. As we were gathered around the tree and Maxine began to say a few words, I thought, why not have a tree funeral? Trees provide life, oxygen, and such an abundance of resources. Where would people be without trees? I will always remember this day because at that moment I learned something about respect--it's not something that only humans deserve.

As we were leaving the site of the tree, I thanked Maxine for bringing us to see it. She patted my shoulder and said, "I just wanted to share that with people who truly care." I realized then that our group really did care, and we really were making a difference. It was beautiful, and Maxine is someone I will remember for the rest of my life. 

On the last two days of our trip, we spent all of our time planting trees. Longleaf pines are essential to the Big Thicket's ecosystem. We had heard about them all week, and were so excited to plant them. The little seedlings looked like brown carrots with the soil packed around their roots, and that eventually became a joke with the whole group. We used dibble bars, which were these long poles with dull spikes on the end that could be driven straight into the ground. Then we'd take a seedling and place it into the small hole that the dibble made. This was an efficient process, and by the end of two days we had planted 10,000 trees. Isn't that crazy? Our little group, doing so much in so little time. It was amazing, and those trees will grow tall and strong as a reminder of the work we did there. Our impact will live on for hundreds of years.

Throughout the trip, we had reflections every night where we would just sit down together and explain our thoughts about the day's work. One thing that kept coming up was about how our trip is sort of different than the other MOVE trips, in that we're not working directly with people. The other trips often do work like serving the homeless or helping classes at underprivileged schools, while all of our work took place out in the wilderness with barely anyone around. The main question one night was, what are we doing to help people?

The answer came pretty quickly. We realized that serving the environment is serving people. Everyone in the world has one thing in common: we all share the Earth. That means we need to protect it, take care of it, and make sure that it stays in shape for future generations.  

Saint Mike's is a small campus, but I can guarantee that if I hadn't gone on this trip, I would have never met most of these people. I was terrified to embark on this journey across the country with a bunch of people I barely knew. But I reminded myself that I wanted to reconnect with nature and do more service as well as get out of my comfort zone, and this was an excellent way to do just that. I left Saint Mike's with a group of friendly strangers, and I returned with ten new friends who, each in their own way, had changed me for the better.

"You get a strange feeling when you're about to leave a place...like you'll not only miss the people you love but you'll miss the person you are now at this time and place, because you'll never be this way ever again." This quote truly wrapped up everything I felt about my MOVE trip. The Big Thicket was a special place, and I was there at a really special time. I will never be the same because of it, and I couldn't be happier.

So, that was my experience! After I finished presenting, I found a few of my group members who had come to support me. They were almost in tears! We all talked about how much we missed Texas, and I realized that this is why I really love these people--we may not have seen each other in a while, as we're all extremely busy, but as soon as we get together again we're back in Texas and the conversation is as easy as ever.

Michael Samara, the Dean of Students, came up to me after my presentation to shake my hand. He thanked me for sharing my story, and Dave Kells from the Counseling Staff told me it was touching and something that "needs to be heard." As I walked outside, a woman approached me and told me how much she had enjoyed my presentation and ending quote. She said it was beautiful and inspiring. I was so happy to hear the positive feedback and know that simply telling my story sparked something within so many people. That's really what it's all about, and that's why I will continue to serve.

Peace,
Ren