It's hard to know where to begin - so the easiest place might be the beginning! At least, the beginning of my relationship with VLM. It's difficult to talk about what service means to me now without showing where I came from.
I discovered the Vincentian charism of service to the poor upon entering St. John's University as a freshman in 2005. I didn't know what it meant, and I certainly didn't know where it would take me... but a seed was planted. Who was St. Vincent? I knew the basics - the St. Vincent de Paul society had a thrift store in Salem, near where I went to youth group at St. Vincent de Paul parish. However, it seemed there was more to him.
I joined a program called V.I.T.A.L sponsored by campus ministry. Vincentian Initiative to Advance Leadership. We met several times a semester, to discuss who St. Vincent was, and how service pertained to our skills as leaders. It wasn't until my junior year that all of this really had a chance to sink in...
I remember the day it all started very clearly. It was February 2008, spring semester of my junior year. I received a forwarded email from my dear friend Lauren - who from the very beginning, was the reason I went to St. John's in the first place. It was an application for VLM - and she prefaced the forward with a note that said "hey, you're studying education, and I think you would really love this experience. I did this program the first year in 2005. The application is due tomorrow though, so here is Sister Mary Beth's contact information if you're interested."
Teaching English for a summer in Ethiopia? Having just returned from a study abroad experience the year before, this sounded right up my alley. With less than 24 hours to act, I immediately contacted Sister Mary Beth and asked for an extension. From there, the ball kept rolling...
Since sending in the application, life had gotten so busy, with my brother's wedding, catching mono, getting accepted into the President's Society, and trying to stay afloat with my grades after missing over a month of classes - Getting accepted into the VLM program had gone on the back burner of my mind almost as quickly as it had entered. I'd been a devout Catholic all my life, and everything I'd done just seemed like the right thing to do. I was so busy building my resume and trying to conquer the world, that WHY I did all the things I was doing had rarely, if ever, crossed my mind.
So there I was, school was over and the million things on the to-do list were all complete - and I was standing in the airport, looking for my flight to Chicago. It hit me - I'm going to AFRICA. I panicked inside. What had all of my "resume building" gotten me into? I didn't know a thing about Africa, I felt green and inexperienced as a teacher, and I didn't know anyone going on this trip! Almost as soon as I had that thought, I saw another light blue polo just like the one I was wearing, with the VLM logo on the front. Jenna and I talked and talked, and suddenly we were in Chicago. We got to DePaul, and with everyone I met, I felt the same ease in striking up conversation, like these folks had been friends my whole life. I realized I wasn't the only one who was nervous, too. The fear of not knowing anyone quickly passed, and then our orientation sessions started on what we would be doing.
Those next few days are all blurred together in my mind. We talked about the culture of Ethiopia, what our work days would consist of, "Ethiopian time", and the schedule of the program. We ate Ethiopian food in a restaurant in Chicago. Finally, we all gathered up our things, and boarded a plane bound for Amsterdam. My ticket was next to this amazing guy, Evan, and we talked for hours on end. We boarded another plane for Nairobi, and our tickets were together again. We boarded another plane for Addis, our tickets side by side once more. After over 57 hours of traveling, talking, and occasionally attempting to sleep, I knew I'd made a friend for life. I just didn't know how right I was ;-). Although that's another story...
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