Adjustment Period

So it has been over a month since I have moved here to Chicago and I am starting to settle in. I am working as an intern at La Salle Street Church and I am definitely getting into the swing of things. My work ranges from doing office work to helping out at a senior food market to volunteering for our Breaking Bread program, which is a community dinner kind of thing for mostly homeless and less-privileged people around the area. My favorite thing about working at La Salle Street Church is the huge amount of outreach opportunities that the church offers. I have already met so many great people and have been involved in some really cool things like cheering on people at the Chicago marathon, going to some trainings in the city, and just being able to connect with people.
        Adjusting to city life is something that is a little bit harder for me to do. I am not used to hearing sirens on a daily basis and public transit can certainly be an adventure at times. Since being here, My housemates and I have found many different activities throughout the city. We have gone to the Lincoln Park Zoo, explored Navy Pier, checked out the downtown area, and many other cool things.
        One of the things that I have been struggling with the most is the reaction of people when I tell them that I live in Garfield Park. Even for people that live in Chicago, the view of Garfield Park is one of violence and crime. While that does happen here, there is also a lot of great things about the community. My favorite part about living here is the people that I have met, either through conversations on the street or people on the bus or train. People here are genuinely kind and I have felt extremely welcomed here. 
         Another thing that I am struggling with is figuring out what my life will look like after this year. I miss my friends and family back home a whole lot, but I have also fell in love with the city life so it should be interesting to see what I decide to do after this year. 
        Overall, I am having a great time and meeting some even better people here in the great city of Chicago. I look forward to hearing from you about any questions you may have. 

Well I have been in Chicago for a little over a week and despite feeling overwhelmed at times, I have really enjoyed my time here so far. The food here is so incredibly amazing, and the people are even better. I have felt so welcomed here by almost everybody. To be honest, I wasn't really sure what to expect since the biggest town I have ever lived in has 1,200 people; Chicago has almost 3 million. One of the first things that stuck out to me about the city was the diversity. There are countless cultures being mixed into one giant pot and it becomes a very beautiful thing. 

   Many of you may be curious about what exactly I will be doing with my year here in Chicago so I will try to explain it as best as I can. While here, I will be working at La Salle Street Church mainly working with kids, but doing a little bit of everything. One of the biggest parts of what I will be doing here is living in intentional community. I am living with five absolutely phenomenal people for the full year, so that could be pretty interesting. We will be living in intentional Christian community so we all have our own different job placements, we will have the shared space of our house to explore what it means to be a Christian in the city. I will also be involved in exploring issues with social injustice. 

    One theme of our orientation week in New York and a topic that has been discussed so far here in Chicago is social injustice. We have talked about ways that we can be aware of what is happening and how to contribute to a society that is welcoming and loving, not one that is oppressive. We have toured parts of the city and gone to many different neighborhoods. One of the things that stuck out to me about the neighborhoods was how almost segregated they felt. The city itself is very diverse but the neighborhoods themselves are not very diverse at all. 

   I haven't started working at my placement yet but I am very excited to start working with kids. I will try to keep you all updated on things that are happening and how things are going here in the Windy City. Thank you for reading. God bless