Project Inspire. part 2

so it's been a while since pi, but i have to blog about it some more.

we camped out at a high school, yes, a high school. we looked like squatters. it was great. we stayed in tents and did all of our cooking outside. for whatever reason those in charge decided that it would be best to do all of our cooking in dutch ovens... except it wasn't an oven, it was a stove. we ate a lot of burnt food, but after a day of hard labor, i was grateful.

day two of pi was all about moving rocks and digging small trenches. for the first half of the day we moved an enormous pile of rocks in order to make  a trail wheelchair accessible. because of some legislation that is put in place to protect the wilderness, we were not allowed to use any equipment that had wheels.  we did, however, get to work with a mule which i thought was pretty cool.

the second half of the day we worked on digging drains on dirt trails. let me explain. since trails don't build themselves, they have to be kept up by the nice people of the forest service. when it rains, these dirt trails can become flooded. in order to keep these from falling apart, the forest service creates paths through which the water can be carried away, drains.

so, we hiked up a trail, shovels in hand, and dug drains in teams. it was difficult, dirty, and draining, but so fulfilling. it was the feeling of doing something and being a part of something bigger than myself. it made me so happy to be doing it. and it made me think, "one day i'm going to bring my family here and say 'i helped do this'."

okay, time for pictures.

please disregard how tired i look and look at that sunset.

look at that sunset

we fill the buckets and dirt-bags with rocks and dirt and move them to the trail.

spreading gravel and dirt on the trail. the bearded fellow is thomas; the personification of the phrase "workin' hard or hardly workin'"

almost done

pounding it out

pounding away

'i've been workin' on a trail all the live long day'

oh my goodness, i forgot this guy's name the one with the glasses in on the left, in the hat. he grew up in california. the epitome of californian, complete with sentences that end in "ya know, man?" he was great.

flowers at lunch

"and it was like...ya know, man?"

beautiful

the crew, sans thomas

Secrets

i just bought a plane ticket back to slc.

i'm going back to rexburg.

i haven't told my mom.

she's going to freak out; she thinks that i'm going to stay in ny for the next three months.

its only going to be three weeks.

i'm so screwed.

gulp.

Here and Now

so i'm actually in chicago right now doing this thing called summer jam. i love it. it is fantastic. it is going to change my life. i will totally blog about it, but i'm incredibly exhausted. chicago is amazing. i love it here. i'll blog about that too.

i hope you are doing really well, whoever you are.

s

Project Inspire. part 1.

the spring semester ended and i had about a week to spare before i headed out to chicago. so my buddy saunch and i decided to do this thing called project inspire(pi).

pi is a program organized by students at our school. the idea is that you spend a week providing service and hanging out with a group of awesome people who want to serve too. this time around, our project was to help repair trails in the teton mountains.

before i continue with this post i would like to remind you that i am a city girl, born and bred through and through.

moving on.

so, along with some member of the forest service, we spent three days working our butts off for about six hours a day.

the first day of work entailed trimming down unruly wilderness on one of the trails. i used to think that trails made themselves, but in being a part of this project, i've learned that there is a great deal of work that goes into trail maintenance.

these are just a couple of the amazing views we got to see from up there.

here is my friend s. just lopping away. trail maintenance is hard work.

here is our little battalion on our way to continue doing maintenance.

and this, this is our butterfly/moth friend. he landed on several of us during our training.

more details to come.

Calling All Teachers...

okay, well maybe not all teacher, just the ones that have worked or do work with children old enough to be in elementary school. i'm writing a paper on creative teaching for one of my classes and i'm wondering if you could help me out. you don't have to be a certified teacher, just someone who teaches in a way outside of the norm. and if not you then perhaps someone you know. what i would like to do is email some questions about creative teaching processes and the effects that they have on a child's education.

THIS is what i've been looking at.

what's my thesis you ask? well, here it is:

"Creative teaching methods engage students in the learning process by: sparking their general interest, making connections between new and old information, encouraging them to learn, think and act for themselves, and offering them greater hopes for the future."

is it weird that i just quoted myself. whatever, is conan can do it in a commencement speech i can do it in my blog.

any-who, please let me know if you can help by leaving a comment. thanks. and may the force be with you, live long and prosper and all that good stuff.

On This Friday Evening...

i wish i were the kind of blogger that posted sweet (as in tender) pictures. or filled her posts with quick quips or words of inspiration. i don't fit that category of people. instead, i'm all about not doing what is left of my accounting homework, while playing this Bob Marley song in my head. have a good weekend!

Thank You.

thank you. thank you for sharing your testimonies and your encouragement with me. thank you for reminding me that yes, i am only human, but that is all anyone is asking me to be. thank you for helping me know that i'm not the only one that feels these things and for telling me, with boldness and honesty as only you could, that the important thing is not to dwell on these. thank you for your love.