tears, laughter, relaxation and a very happy birthday

Hey,

So week two has been going great. So here is a summary of the week so far. 

On Monday Darrell came to visit us and we were asked to journal about "What do we think faith is? "Who or what do we believe God is," and "What the church means to us." Then we shared with our map groups.  

The rest of the day was spent telling our personal stories/personal faith stories. This was a very emotional for all of us. We split up into our teams, and my team along with the Paraguay team went with Rev Dutt to the church and began telling our stories. I think that at one point all of us were in tears and at other points we were all laughing. It was very good listening to others stories. I learned so much about my house mates. It was a very good learning experience and a good bonding time. Then the rest of the night was spent playing games and watching the office.

On Tuesday  Darrell came to visit us again and we were asked to go to the local prayer labyrinth sometime during the day, so we basically had the morning free to go to it whenever we wanted. It was during this time that Dani, Becca, Bethany and I decided to go to Garfield park to chill for a while before we headed to the labyrinth. We arrived at the park and searched for a place to set up our blankets. This task proved harder that expected. It had rained a lot during the weekend, so we had to search for a dry spot.  We also had to be mindful of where the geese had been, because it would have been most unpleasant to set up our blankets in geese poo. After chilling at the park and listening to some really good music, Becca and I decided to head to the labyrinth while Dani and Bethany went food shopping for food for the house. The labyrinth was really relaxing experience. I had a lot going through my mind during this time. So I prayed about all things that had been running through my head as I headed to the middle. Once I reached the middle I felt really relieved and calm. Then I made my way back out. On my way out I had a bunch of phrases running through my head telling me that things were going to be okay. It was a really relaxing experience, I can't really explain who or what it was telling me these things, but I felt really good after I was done. Then later that night my cool Manitoban friend, Scott, and I headed to the Chicago Public library downtown. We returned what we needed to return and got some new things and then left. We decided that we wanted to walk around some more and found ourselves in Millennium Park. Millennium Park is beautiful at night. We took lots of pictures, which I hope to post soon. After that we headed home. All I can say was I had a blast! The city at night is so completely different than it is during the day. It was very peaceful. 

 

On Wednesday we did Myers Briggs tests, which was very interesting to say the least. We learned what personality types we are. I learned the I'm an ENFP, and to most of you who are reading this, these letters mean nothing to you, so I'll explain the best I can. It means that I'm an extrovert and that your very friendly and open. It also means that you're a little bit scatterbrained and I believe that is sums me up. After we spent the better part of the morning doing that, we had some free time. During this time Sam, Lee and I had a mission to take a movie back to the library. So we set off to find the library, which we thought was just a hop skip and a jump down the road. We walked around for a while, got frustrated and started to head back. Then on our way back we ran into Bethany, who gave us precise directions. So we headed back and as it were the library was about half a block away from the point in which we turn back. So we were very frustrated and it was uber hot, so that added to the frustration. Then we went to Emmaus Ministries, which is a place that helps out male prostitutes. We heard stories about some of the people that Emmaus helps. This was really interesting because it was the directors of the program sharing the stories and they told it through songs. Then when we got back we took a test that tells us how we receive love. I learned that I receive love through touch, which basically means if you want to show me love, you better do it through a hug :) After this, the rest of the night was spent out on the balcony with Becca, we discussed lots of things. It was nice having someone there to listen to all my concerns. 

Today, which is Thursday, is my birthday and it was really weird because it was my first one celebrated away from home. It started off with my family calling me at 7 to sing me Happy Birthday. Then I came down for breakfast and was wished happy birthday by everyone in the house. Then we had some one come talk to us about Anabaptism. After that we had free time, so Becca, Dorothea and I decided that we should go shopping downtown. It was a riot, I had so much fun. We danced on the train and sang random songs, all in all it was a good way to spend my afternoon. When we got back it was time to make supper, which was baked potatoes and things that are commonly eaten with them. When supper was finished cooking, I had sometime to check my emails before we sat down to eat. I was the last one down and when I got there, Bethany we like we are going to sing God is Great. So here I was all ready to sing God is Great, when my house mates burst into the Happy Birthday song. It was great and I was so surprised. As it turns out, they had made me cupcakes the night before and I couldn't help but smile. I felt so loved. 

All in all it was quite possibly one of the best birthdays I've had and I would like to thank all my new friends for making it a great and memorable one.

Until next time

-alyssa