CTI Update

I've been here for over a month now. It's been very overwhelming at times and very exciting at others. It's the most structured thing I have ever been a part of, the first "team" I've ever been a part of. It gets intimidating thinking about all the rules and regulations, the uniforms, the responsibility, and the living standards. But once you sit back and look at the bigger picture, you feel it. You see and feel the beauty of it all. The beauty of what you are going to accomplish. You feel a part of something so much bigger than yourself, something that is going to make a change! Exhilarating for me at least.

So we are divided into 4 units, and each unit is made up of 7 teams. I am a part of the Raven Unit on Team 5. We have no special name for ourselves thus far, just go by Raven 5. Our team is made up of 10 people, 1 being the team leader. It's scary to think that this 10 people thrown together are going to spend almost every waking moment together and become as close as a family. The differences between us are incredible! We are all so different, I definately forsee challenges that I'm going to have to face this year. It'll just be one more accomplishment I can chalk up on the wall for myself. I anticipate a lot of growth for all of us on the team & I'm incredibly excited to see the end results. To look back and remember what each of us were like at the beginning, and the things we've gone through together! Hmmm....WOW!

We also each have specialty roles. I am the Project Outreach Liason (POL). Which really means that I have to contact potential sponsors that would like to partner with Americorps*NCCC and get our volunteers to work with them. I also find Independent Service Projects for the team. Which are side projects that we find ourself instead of being assinged to by the staff. I have to talkt to a bunch of head guys at businesses basically. I'm nervous because I am not a good public speaker. I feel akward in situations like that. I really have to know my stuff. I'm a darn spokesperson for the NCCC. SCARY! But I'm excited to change all that, to become confident in my social skills. I definately need them for what I hope my future will bring. And I unexpectedly recieved another role on the team. I am the Assitant Team Leader(ATL). Which I was at first "honored" that my Team Leader chose me after seeing the qualitis in me that I needed to take on the part, and I was also excited, to build leadership roles and benefit myself. But I was struck with fear and anxiety at the same time. I realized that I have a ton of responsibility and I'm the youngest member of my team! I hope people take me seriously and I hope that I can do my job well.

So training like I said before is rather boring, we sit around in lectures, just being sponges and soaking in information. But we have had the oppurtunity to go on 2 service projects. Each were a day long and were trail clean ups in Baltimore. The first we pulled invasive species, not very satisfying. But we made it a good time, and got a lot done. It's such an awesome feeling to see what you've accomplished and how thankful our sponsors are for our work...haha It's free! How could they not be? The other was in the urban area of Baltimore. WOW! is how to sum that one up. We did trash pick-up. UNBELIEVABLE how much garbage is in one city and we only had a 1-2 mile trail to clean up. But we collected about 200 garbage bags full PLUS other junk, like toilets and washers and tires. All that good stuff. Teams were there the day before us and cleaned up just as much, and we still left tons of garbage there. It's insane how much garbage I picked up...the shoreline is literally covered, every inch of it with garbage! I smelt like a mixture of alcohol and pure BUTT! I looked good doing it though! LOL! Pictures are on facebook.

So on my freetime, we have a lot of fun, how could you not with 300+ people hanging around in the same spot. I went to D.C. the other weekend for the first time outside of the train station. It was unbelievable. I know I could never settle down in a city. But it's cool to see, it's cool to be on the east coast where so much history happened. But we saw tons of monuments and muesums and went out to eat at cute little restuarants! It was awesome, I had a blast, took over 300 pictures, and spent way too much money! GOOD TIME! All in all I LOVE IT HERE! Can't wait til I have some really good stories to tell you all about the places I go and the people I help!