With youth group being moved to Wednesday nights, I’ll hardly ever be able to attend, but since there was no Soul’d Out this week I took full advantage of getting to go to Pulse. They were having an all nighter, and we got to spend two hours at iTrampoline all by ourselves. Although I only jumped for about twenty minutes before calling it quits, I enjoyed every minute of being surrounded by old friends.
For just a night I got a taste of what life used to be like, and I loved it. I could talk about inside jokes where I wasn’t the only one laughing. I received warm hugs and gave even more away. I was surrounded by people from last summer who I felt comfortable around. They were familiar, and I’ve missed them so much.
Last summer I didn’t just stick to my position, but I got involved in more ways than one. Coming back this summer I’ve witnessed how rewarding being intentional was. I can go to WNA and be swarmed by children. I can go to youth group and also be swarmed but this time by teens. I can even go to Genki sushi and run into a familiar face. Friends back at Loma tease me and say I’m really from Hawaii not Northern California. One friend even described it as having roots in Hawaii. I do have roots here. I have roots that are seen in friendships and involvements.
As I continue to analyze myself and process my emotions, I’ve realized that I am so familiar with my surroundings while the other interns aren’t. It’s nothing against them, but it’s only been a week. In a week I could hardly pronounce LaFaele’s name correctly. I need to give it time and patience and understanding. I am surrounded by a great group of people and with time they’ll be just as familiar with everyone and everything as I am. And when that time comes there will be no holding us back.