Post Nola

    It's been a little over a week since we came back from the trip to New Orleans, and I have not yet had the chance to unpack everything. Coming back right before classes was a little hectic, although my parents like to plan vacations like that, so I am a bit used to the disorganization it causes. I feel grateful that I was able to experience New Orleans through a service trip, because I think visiting while getting to know the background of the city, interacting with locals, and being in the neighborhoods (where we volunteered, where we stayed) made the place much more memorable. I was thinking recently about what Brit said in the first reflection meeting, to make goals while we were there and to actually work and reflect on them. I also remember people saying that the goal for us as a group was to open up to each other and make bonds; I think we definitely accomplished that. Everyone interacted with one another and people did not keep to their friend groups as much as they would usually do. A personal goal I had was to understand the point of the service work and the point of views of the people living there; I wanted to open my mind to how the people of New Orleans were. I think part of what helped me with this is that I had no expectations of the city going in, unlike some others who had researched the city and planned places and sites they wanted to see. I wanted a blank slate so that I would be completely open to everything I experienced, which I did accomplish.