4th of July in the nation’s capitol was so memorable. I was blessed with the presence of my mom, aunts, and family friend Sally. The fireworks on the national mall illuminating the Washington monument was unbelievable. Our weekend was filled with fun laughs and new adventures, including our double-decker bus tour that put us in danger of being knocked out by low branches and OF COURSE, a trip to Georgetown Cupcake :). Our most unusual activities included the Georgetown dog parade and going to the White House Visitor Center’s CHILDREN’S activity during which we wore patriot hats and pretended to be part of the Continental Congress that ratified the Declaration of Independence. After having guests I realized how I have truly become well acclimated in a new city!
JULIA AND I AT THE GEORGETOWN DOG PARADE
MY FAMILY AND I AT LA TASCA IN CHINATOWN
This past weekend I realized that I have moved past the tourist stage as I ran into people around DC whom I had met since arriving here. A friend from Pittsburgh came to visit me last weekend. He and several other of us in DC met two years ago in Philadelphia through the Washington Crossing Foundation Scholarship Program. It was fun to reunite for a fun filled weekend. We had a full weekend with dinner, karaoke, salsa dancing, a 4.5 mile hike in the Shenandoah Mountains, a rooftop party and a short trip to the farmer’s market all between 5pm on Friday and Sunday at noon! I have had very eventful weekends (and weeks) including a trip to the movie theater for the midnight showing of Bruno—highly inappropriate yet hilarious moments.
FELLOW WASHINGTON CROSSING SCHOLARS
ONE OF THE BEAUTIFUL WATERFALLS WE SAW ON OUR MOUNTAIN HIKE
I continue getting closer with my roommates which has been great! Out of all of my experiences here, I have most consistently enjoyed them! We had our biggest setback last week when a mouse popped out from behind the stove. It freaked me out as I stood on the couch and screamed. Julia told me to stop screaming followed by her short panic. We came to the conclusion that we couldn’t kill the mouse because we are vegetarians and mouse traps are animal cruelty. So…we just scrubbed the kitchen and have been sanitizing things more frequently, cohabitating with who Katie calls “Stewart”.
Work has been pretty slow, but I have had some cool opportunities that I am thankful for. First, I have been able to attend an Arabic language table during lunch. People who speak Arabic have very interesting backgrounds and having a sign at our lunch table that says “Arabic Table” in Arabic attracts some interesting people from future translators to missionaries to a man born and raised in the Gaza Strip! I was also given the opportunity to go to the Saudi Arabian Embassy to learn about the culture and the people of Saudi Arabia. It was a beautiful embassy, and I got to ask some “politically charged” questions of the PR person, all of which he answered skillfully. A highlight of my time at the State Department came when I was able to see Secretary Clinton speak at the employee Town Hall meeting last Friday. I admired many of her remarks and her great interest and interactions with employees and interns who had questions and comments.
My time here has brought me so many happy moments. However, for some odd reason I have been thinking almost daily about the Bible verse that says “consider it pure joy whenever you face trials of any kind because we know that the testing of our faith develops perseverance.” (James 1:2) Now I know that I was thinking of this verse because I was about to face an emotional trial… I had a bit of a setback yesterday which was really unexpected. Today my attitude was seriously impacted and consumed by the issue, but when I left work that verse kept scrolling through my head. I decided to work out to a different playlist (Bob Marley). Listening to a song called “Positive Vibrations” actually relaxed me. I had been thinking all day that I need to be positive but didn’t know how to pick my mood up. The workout helped! When I walked out of the gym, I felt an amazing peace and then…got half off at Qdoba! Today is significant to me because I feel that I have matured so much since last year. It was through the trials I had last year that I learned to deal with unexpected trials. Today I felt the verse is true…I have developed “perseverance.”
Be encouraged when you read this and know that whatever trials you are facing are for a reason. Remember, a trial today might be just what you need to face a trial tomorrow!
