Personal Reflection from AmeriCorps Round 1
Round 1 has given me such an amazing opportunity to live in a city and really dive head first into everything Philadelphia has to offer. I have reconnected with old friends, explored the city with new friends, and found love in the City of Brotherly Love. I never thought I would feel so alive in a city, and I feel incredibly grateful to have been here for Round 1. My time in Philadelphia started off on an amazing note due to my adventures touring the entire city as a participant in the Philly Naked Bike Ride with an old friend of mine. It was definitely the best way to connect with where I was and meet likeminded adventurous spirits! I spent a lot of time wandering the streets for miles and miles and seeing and experiencing as much as I could in the time given. Some of my favorite places are West Philly, Fairmount Park, Old City, Penn Harbor, the South Street Magic Gardens, the Wildlife Refuge in Eastwick and meandering down random streets away from the Center City.
The moment we started working at the Region III HQ in Center City Philadelphia, I was immediately brought on board with the All Hazards Plan Conference. The people I worked with in NDRF were absolutely wonderful: hardworking and passionate about the work they do, inclusive and welcoming, and conscious of the importance of creating a positive work environment. I feel blessed to have had the chance to be a part of their team during my time in Philadelphia. During our time here I also assisted with the RISC & RAC Conference and the COA Workshops as a note-taker. Some people may find note-taking tedious, however I feel that documenting conversation and discussions are extremely important for productive outcomes. I also feel that my comments about making language accessible helped to encourage a more inclusive environment for State and Local participation in the recovery planning process.
Of course there were challenges and struggles as well, as the universe aims to balance us in life and keep us humble and whole humans. Our team dynamics we not the best and I found myself escaping most weekends to stay in the city, or going on mini-road trips to New York City. Personally, I loved these adventures as they kept me from going crazy in Eastwick and gave me a chance to really be myself in a program that requires a lot of forced interactions. However, our team did not bond in Round 1 and this made it very difficult to express and be true to myself and I found myself highly frustrated with team dynamics and wanting to leave the program multiple times. It is extremely difficult to be on a team with such different backgrounds, personalities, and such an age and experience gap. Coming from a very liberal background, I found myself getting easily irritated and upset with sexist comments, immature behaviors, and teammates who did not have the same desire to travel with an open mind.
When we left for Michigan to assist with recovery efforts, I had hoped our team would become closer with a new experience, however the long hours and disappointment with the work we were doing led to an increase of separation and bad feelings. In order to find much needed balance in my life, I reached out to a friend in the area and met new people through networking. Just as I had done in Philadelphia, I escaped the discontent of our Michigan DSA work by getting out as much as possible. I wish that my team could have had the same opportunities that I did with meeting new people in the area and learning that there was more to Michigan than shopping plazas and traffic, however most people on my team expressed that they did not want to hang out after work anyways, and I did not want to force interactions that did not organically happen. I seriously considered leaving the program while we were in Michigan but decided against it.
Although this year already has presented a lot of challenges, I strongly believe that how we deal with suffering makes us grow and become stronger. There is a lot to be learned through every encounter, experience, interaction, and opportunity. As humans we will always be tested, and having just graduated from college, this is the perfect year to rise up and accept that challenge. It is the perfect year to realize what works and what doesn’t, to find that indestructible inner peace, to make deep connections with people and place, to attempt to let go of the negative and as much as possible—embrace life to the fullest.
