2020: A Year Full of Change

It has been a very, very long time since I have posted anything on my blog.  But I truly want to begin want to use this as a platform for people to be able to see what I am up to and where life is taking me.  I want to begin using my blog as a place where I can give more in depth updates about all that is happening.

Alrighty!  With all that being said, time for the update!  Yay!!  Here we go....

2018:

April 2018:  I was baptized at my church in Omaha (Citylight).

August 2018:  This was my last month working at the Jewish Community Center in Omaha as an assistant teacher.  I absolutely loved this job.  The work environment was amazing and I truly loved my coworkers and all of my toddlers.  This job challenged me and allowed me to grow in such an amazing way.  Following up finishing up my job, I spent about a week in Wisconsin visiting family and then moved back out to the west coast.




September 2018:  I moved to Corvallis, Oregon and I began my Master's in Public Health Program at Oregon State University.  GO BEAVS!  This was a huge transition adjusting to a new town and to being back in school.   Luckily I found an amazing new church to join right away (Grace City).



December 2018:  I finished up the craziness of my first term of my program and drove down to California to spend the holidays with my family.

January - June 2019:  I focused on getting through winter and spring terms.  Classes kept me busy, but I got through it!

July 2019:  Around this time, I started up an internship for my master's program.  I decided to do my internship at Holt International.  This organization is so amazing, and I would love to share more about the organization as a whole if you have the interest!  I primarily worked with the Child Nutrition Program there.  This month, I also started working part time as a barista in the Target Starbucks located in Albany, OR.  It was definitely a nice way to keep me busy!

August 2019:  This month was focused on working on my internship and spending my free time working at Starbucks, exercising, etc.

September 2019:  I started my second fall term at OSU!

September through December 2019:  These months turned into rough ones.  I ended up filling my plate too full and I struggled with prioritizing and placing appropriate amounts of focus where focus was needed.  Luckily, I made it through those last few months of the year and I made it through my term at OSU doing decently in my classes.  And then I was able to take three weeks to breath and reprioritize my life.

On to 2020!!!!!                      

And now we find ourselves in not only a new year, but a new decade!  This year will be a year of many transitions and changes.  I am entering the last term of my masters program.  With my program coming to an end in a few months, this comes with many changes such as the possibility of moving, finding a new job, etc.

With this in mind, I am switching my overall focus and mentality.  I am placing myself first above anything else.  I am preparing myself not only for the future, but also to be as successful as I possibly can.  One of the biggest things that I have realized that I need to do is take care of myself.  I need to learn to fully learn myself and in a way that is healthy.  With this, I am focusing on taking care of my overall wellbeing.  This will include exercising well, eating healthy, taking good care of my skin and hair, and making sure that I incorporate activities into my life that I really enjoy.

One of the first things that I will be intentional about is incorporating my faith into my life more.  My faith has always been important to me.  I am hoping that in making sure that I incorporate my faith into all facets of my life (at least talking to God on a consistent basis), that will set a foundation for me to set myself up to be more prepared for transitions and changes that will occur later in the year.

When it comes to exercising, I am taking full advantage of all that the OSU recreation center has to offer.  I am taking advantage of the equipment and group classes.  I am also taking advantage of my Beachbody account and taking advantage of the variety of workout videos when it just does not work out for me to get the the gym or if I just need to change things up and add a bit of variety into my workout routine.

And I am adjusting my eating habits and overall nutrition and trying very hard to make sure that I eat healthier.

In addition to that, I am also finding ways in which to take better care of my skin and hair.  I have finally found products that I really love and am super excited about through Monat and they really seem to work well for me.

As I adjust my focus on myself and take care of myself, I am excited to be able to share with others what I am doing in my life.  And in doing so, I really hope to be a positive influence and a source of support for others who are going through similar walks of life and/or seeking to find and make similar changes in their life.

With all that is to come this year, I am excited.  It will be a challenging year, but it will be a good one.  I am so excited to be able to share what life has in store with everyone and to provide updates as much as possible.

Have a wonderful start to the new year, all!

Until next time!  ✌🏻

Recognizing Growth, Strength, and Weaknesses

Coming out of an awesome weekend of being in community with women from my church in Corvallis and giving myself a time of reflection, I have come to realize the need to recognize my strengths, weaknesses, where and how I have grown, and in what ways I need to continue to grow.

Here is a reflection of realization that I found coming out of this weekend:

I am stubborn.

From that comes my strength and determination.

On the other hand, from this also comes getting stuck in my ways, habits... not always listening like I should.

From this stubbornness comes being a perfectionist and being unhappy with unmet goals and expectations.

I need to learn to find BALANCE.  To focus and strengthen good things that come from being stubborn and to be able to let go of the weaknesses when needed in order to take care of myself and hear, really hear what's being said to me (from God, from those who care about and love me, from my body).

I can also be fiercely independent and have a heart to serve and take care of others.  Not necessarily a bad thing in that this has led me to be self-sufficient and has allowed me to find my passion of service and serving others.  But in that, I have also lost a sense of balance when it comes to [really] taking care of myself.  And in some ways, my struggle to LISTEN to God and to my own needs has been pushed aside.

With this in mind, I not only need to love on others, but let others love on me.  Let them in.  Let them hear my struggles and hurt.  Let God in.  Let Him listen.  Yes, He may already know... but He wants me to not only acknowledge them myself, but to actually say them out loud.

And not forgetting to try to live in the moment as much as I can and be happy with where I am at in that moment.  Remembering that although the goals are important, the journey to get there is just as important.
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With this reflection, I needed to write down not only for myself but for others to see as well.  My hope in recording this reflection is that it will not only force me to keep myself accountable, but allow others in to help keep me accountable as well.

Thanks for reading, everyone!

Discovering Myself and How I Fit In The World

Hey there blog world!

After a bit of a hiatus, I have found myself in the need to get a post up.  I have been finding myself in moments in which I have been reflecting quite a bit about my journey over the past five years or so, beginning pre-Peace Corps service in Ethiopia up to this point in my life.  I have stumbled, hit rock bottom on a few occasions, have picked myself up, and have changed for the better.  I found myself physically changing and also changing within.  I discovered a new confidence and strength within myself that I never know that I could possess.  As a whole, I am a much happier person and can handle myself in spite of anything this world may through my way.  Giving a special shout out to all the ladies out there, it is never too late to start your journey!  Wherever you are in life, no matter how you feel about yourself, your job, or anything else, it is never too late to make a change.  In my personal journey, I have found myself become a huge advocate for this and for having support for all of my fellow ladies out there who have and/or going through their own journeys.

 

So here I now find myself in Corvallis, Oregon starting a masters in public health program at Oregon State University.  Some days are fantastic and others are draining.  This week in particular was draining and my Friday afternoon left me feeling annoyed and frustrated.  I found myself questioning my self worth and even found myself being frustrated with people in general.  With that being said, I realized that I need to take time to myself and recheck my overall outlook.

I have been reflecting upon all of my insecurities and struggles.  Despite all the growth I have been through, there are still some insecurities and struggles that I deal with.  In being that advocate for all of the women out there that can resonate with me on some level, I have come to realize the need to share some of my insecurities and struggles.  And in doing so, I hope that getting some things off of my chest will allow me to feel a little more free.  One of my biggest struggles in life is and has been my singleness.  I am almost 28 years old and have never been in a relationship.  I think in large part, guys could pick up on the self-consciousness and lack of confidence that I had in myself for a majority of my life.

As I have found my newfound confidence, I have found myself in a place where I have guys flirting with me.  In some ways, it actually funny because I am still in the process of figuring out how to handle myself in these situations.  It has its fun moments.  But within these moments, I still find myself having doubts and insecurities.  With the lack of own personal experience when it comes to dating, I have been questioning my self-worth and how it relates to dating.  I find myself asking questions like, "Will a guy lose interest if he finds out that my lack of experience goes as far as never having been kissed?"  And let me reiterate that I am almost 28 years old.

IT IS A STRUGGLE.  But I remind myself that it is one of those many challenges that life will throw my way that I will need to fight my way through.  As I continue to grow, find myself, and figure out how I fit in this world, things will fall into place with time.  I have realized that the most important thing is to focus on myself and allow that growth in confidence and strength happen.  And that can only happen with me LOVING MYSELF.  Things will fall into place in time.  That right person will come at the right time (maybe in a time when I am not expecting it at all).  But for now, I will take life one day at a time.

To all the ladies out there who are reading this, remember that you are not alone.  We are in this together.  Our struggles in life may look different, but we have all gone through something challenging.  We need to support each other and lift each other up when we fall.  Without the people in my life who have built me up, encouraged me, and have held me up when I fell, I would not be where I am today.

Well, I will end my rant here.  For those reading this, I want to be able to continue to share about my personal experiences, struggles, and challenges.  Feel free to reach out!

Changes and Hitting Lows

Over the past six months, I have gone through a lot of changes.  I left Ethiopia and moved back to California.  I slowly tried to adjust back to life in America.  This slowly turned into getting a job at Starbucks to not only help with the transition, but to also keep me busy.  Most recently, I moved to Omaha, NE for nursing school.  It has been a bit of an adjustment.  What I initially thought would be a 12 month program has now turned into 16 months for me essentially because I won't be starting my clinical rotations until January.  With still trying to get used to a new place and with trying to establish friendships, this unexpected thing has been a bit of a low.

I am trying to use this as a positive though.  In not doing clinical rotations until January, I will have more time to study for the [difficult] classes I will be taking over the next few months and will allow me the time I need to establish a routine, get used to where I am, get back into studying, etc.

I know that it has been a while since I have last posted anything and wanted to update all of you who regularly read my blog.  Please keep me in your thoughts over the next few months!

Finding a Sense of Peace

My whole life, my mind has always been quick to become anxious or become full of stress.  More recently (the two years of my Peace Corps service in particular), I have realized the effect this has had on my life and on my own personal health and wellbeing.  I have been trying all that I can to find ways in which to find a sense of peace, especially in those more high stress moments.

I used to think that in becoming anxious or stressed quickly was in part, part of who I am.  It took a long time for me to realize that it was an unnecessary extra thing in my life that has had a negative effect on my health.

I have been back from Ethiopia for almost four months now.  It has taken that long for me to start finding a sense of peace with where I am at in life.  The time in addition to working part time at Starbucks, exercising regularly (and trying to get into better shape), spending time with friends and family, and just having time to myself have been huge in helping me to readjust to life in the states. 

After doing something like Peace Corps for two years and coming back to America is a BIG deal.  Everyone copes and readjusts in their own way and it isn’t an easy thing to do.  My readjustment has relied on me focusing on the present and the future (primarily the near future in getting ready to go to nursing school in Nebraska in a couple months).  In my case, it wouldn’t be good to focus on the past because of how I ended my Peace Corps service.  On that note, I have to say that my experience as a whole was a good one in that I grew in so many ways and I have found some of my best friends in the world.  But I do have some bitter feelings towards the Peace Corps organization (which I can go into a little bit more in another post).

It has been interesting to come back to America and realize that despite all volunteers having to go through a readjustment period, it looks so different for each of us.  We do it in different ways and it takes us all different amounts of time.  With that being said, although I am much more adjusted than I was a few months ago, the adjustment is still a work in progress.  I am still working on finding a sense of peace, but I am getting there.

Ethiopia Photos Post #5 #BAphotochallenge

#People in Your Host Country

Photo #1:  #hand

In Ethiopia, I found that the best activities I could do with students were hands-on activities.  These types of activities they seemed to enjoy so much more and go so much more out of.  For example, I did one activity with a group of students where we built a bench using recycled materials.  It was a little messy in that our hands got a little gross from handling trash and some got covered in cement.  But it was still a lot of fun for the students.  They learned that there are so many better options in reusing recyclable materials rather than just burning it and this activity also encouraged them to get creative.  No matter what it is you are doing abroad, I will always now recommend taking a hands-on approach if possible.

Photo #2:  #games

When working with youth, I have found that games are super important.  You have to find ways in which to catch their interest.  I did a lot of trainings when I lived in Ethiopia and the people that attended my trainings would not have enjoyed them if not for including activities throughout the trainings.  Games and activities not only important in keeping participants interested, but are a fun way in which to help them retain important information.  Especially for youth when in a long training, they won't want to stay if they get bored (applicable for any youth, not just those in Ethiopia!).

Photo #3:  #family

In Ethiopia, family is super important.  The structure of a family is really important when to comes to running a household and maintaining a sense of that Ethiopian culture.

Photo #4:  #shoes

One thing I noticed in Ethiopia is that in the more rural areas (once you are out of the major cities), a lot of people (kids in particular) will either be wearing very worn out shoes or opt to wear no shoes at all.  In such poor areas, I do understand why this is.  I wish I could have been able to give every kid with no shoes a pair, but I did and still do not have the means to give every single one a pair.  With this being said, I had to avoid giving anything out because others would expect more from me.  It is sad to me that when being in a place that has such a huge need, I couldn't provide certain types of help because of my limitations in providing that type of help and not being able to meet expectations.

Photo #5:  INeverKnew

One thing I never knew until arriving in Ethiopia and getting to know the people and culture is how prideful the Ethiopian people are in their country.  To be honest, despite how great this can be, it can unfortunately be handicapping the country in that it can be very hard for people to accept change because that would mean potentially changing their culture, their way of life, and/or they live on a day to day basis.

Ethiopia Photos Post #4 #OutAndAbout #BloggingAbroad

Here are a couple more photos.  Enjoy!

Photo #1:  #SomethingILove

To be completely honest, when living in a third world developing country like Ethiopia for an extended period of time, there are a lot of things that you would either just like or tolerate... and even fewer things that you actually will come to love.  There are certain aspects of the Ethiopian culture that fall maybe a bit closer to like but are somewhere between that and love.  For example, I really do like the concept of a coffee ceremony there.  There are also certain kinds of Ethiopian food that I maybe don't quite love, but really like.

Peace Corps Ethiopia Volunteers Group 10!!  #SomethingILove  

One thing that I have come to love over the two years of my Peace Corps service wasn't really a thing but a group of people.  I have come to really love and appreciate the other volunteers that I was fortunate enough to serve with.  In many ways, the two years in Ethiopia were extremely difficult and the only people who really understand what that experience is like are other volunteers in Ethiopia.  I really appreciate and love my particular group of volunteers in particular.  This group of people all arrived to Ethiopia at the same time (February 2014) and we have left Ethiopia around the same time.  There is a special place in my heart for this particular group of people because there were things that we experienced as a group (trainings, conferences, etc.) and we all had similar timelines of ups and downs due to the same starting and ending dates.  And many of my closest friends have come from this group of people.  If there is anything that I have definitely come to love during my experience in Ethiopia, it is definitely love for other Peace Corps Ethiopia volunteers that have helped and support me through the two years that I was there.

Photo #2:  #Movement

It's amazing to see how much Ethiopian youth love to stay active and play sports.  It's great to see how active they stay and watch how they move as much as they do when it comes to staying active.  It is also interesting to see the interest that youth in Ethiopia have in sport.  When youth think of "sport," if they aren't thinking of running, they are thinking of actual sport such as soccer (futbol) or handball (volleyball), whereas in the states, we also think of doing things such as biking, hiking, or going to the gym as doing things to stay active.

*Side note:  This may or may not surprise you, but gyms can be very hard to come by in Ethiopia.

Basketball!! #Movement

Volleyball!!  #Movement

In the first photo, there are a couple of volunteers playing basketball with some kids.  Basketball isn't as well of a known sport in Ethiopia, so it was a very cool experience to see that my friend had taught the kids another way to stay active and keep moving.  And of course they still like to occasionally go back to handball (volleyball) or futbol (soccer), sports that they are more familiar with.  The concept of staying healthy and active is different in Ethiopia than it is in the states, so I love to see it when there are common interests when it comes to movement and staying active.

#OutAndAbout  #BloggingAbroad  #SomethingILove  #Movement