Week 7 Arrives

Welcome to week 7! I officially am on my second to last week of volunteers. That also means at this point, I only have one more set of Sunday night home visits left! I honestly hate thinking about it. I'll admit I get stressed out a little bit at times, but thinking about NOT being here is super hard for me. This weekend was a ton of fun. We went to Scott County, TN for the night, and went in to Cumberland Falls to see the moonbow. It was beautiful! (Above is a pic). It was a fun time hanging out with a few other staffs. We did a little rock climbing at night around the state park. It was risky and fun at the same time! We found this awesome rock for all of us to sit on and view the falls far away from the rest of the tourists. We had a great time.

This week is going to be great! We have 10 crews from 4 different states: Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota (ey). Our group leaders seem like a lot of fun and they plan to get a lot done on our projects. Having them come in with lots of energy was fantastic, since I was feeling slightly burned out this morning. One more week after this. Can't believe it.

I feel safe here. I don't feel like I have to be anyone else but myself here. I know it sounds bad, but at home I live like a chameleon, fitting in with wherever I happen to be or whoever I'm with. For years, it's been great because I feel like I can mold into any group of people, but living here in Appalachia has given me the opportunity to become more comfortable with who I am and I feel I have the confidence to be strong in my beliefs. Doesn't mean I've changed too much! Just means I feel a lot more confident in myself, which is great since I've been extremely too self-conscious for way too long.

Three weeks from this time, I'll be in East Lansing with Dre for work training! Crazy to think about, but I am super excited to see my loves again :) Erika will be home from Spain then as well. So we'll all have a week to have a "typical" summer before marching band starts for me. Lake Michigan beach time? Ikea shopping trip? FINALLY having time to run. Sounds good to me.

Thinking of everyone at home! For those I haven't skyped in awhile, hit me up!