Week 1: Welcome to BTA!
After everything that's happened since I got here, I can't believe the first week of Basic Training Academy is over. Although I enjoyed the week, it felt long. Each day, I was awake and actively using my mind for much longer than I am accustomed to- at least I'm being eased into becoming an early riser! I was ready to go on the first day:
Snooze? I don't think so!
We started off the week with a physical service day at the JFK Elementary School in Jamaica Plain. I absolutely loved the feeling of building something from scratch that will actually be used in the school. My partner, Travis, and I were responsible for building a bench that will be used in an outdoor science classroom. Check it out:
In the works!
The finished product.
At the end of the day, it was great to see the school completely transformed! My fellow corps members painted murals inside and outside of the school, contributed to the school's community garden, and carried out many other projects to create a better learning environment for the students.
Later that week, we were asked to write statements on why we chose to serve. The senior corps members all shared their statements, and hearing their stories was so powerful. I found it profound that despite the fact that everyone had a unique reason for serving, we are all here, united for a common cause. I am posting my statement here, as a reminder to myself when things undoubtedly get tough:
My favorite event of the week was a scavenger hunt through Boston. Since I've been so busy working on applications, I haven't gotten too much of a chance to explore my new city- this was a perfect place to start. We were given a list of clues and had to find various points in Boston, and document the journey with our teammates on Instagram. If you want to check out all the pictures from the day from the entire Corps, search the hashtag #meetboston on IG. Here are my favorite pictures of the day:
Team Love and Joy!
Through the week, I really enjoyed getting to know my founding team. It's definitely going to be an adjustment transitioning to our service teams next week! But for now, I'm looking forward to Basic Training Retreat! Hartford, Connecticut, here I come!