6/3/13
Today was the first day of my internship, we were picked up from the hotel on vans at 8, which really felt like 10 because of the time difference. We began by introducing ourselves to everyone and telling who we are, where we are from, what we are doing in our lives, and how we got connected with Joni and Friends. There are 18 interns and out if all of those there were two that were laid on my heart. The first one was Emily. When you look at Emily it is clear that she has a disability, but when she speaks you would have no idea. Emily starts by telling us that she has cerebral palsy. She went on to explain her struggles she had growing up with anger at God not understanding why he chose her to be different. When she was around 13 her parents felt that she needed a role model. They gave her a volume of Joni Eareckson Tada's books. She began looking up to her and soon gave her life to The Lord. Emily then came to terms with her disability and is now working in a community home to help assist others with disabilities. She found out about the internship, applied and got it, and then began fundraising. The week before leaving she had only raised $100 and was thinking that she would not be able to come. By Thursday before we were leaving she looked at her account and her trip was fully paid for. The other intern whose story grabbed my attention is Lindsay. She was raised in a Jewish household. She became a Christian when she turned 17 and her mother did not speak to her for a couple years. She found out about the internship and immediately applied when she was accepted her parents told her they would not financially support her. She didn't know how she would raise the money she needed to get to California considering her entire family was Jewish. She found an extended aunt and uncle that happened to be Christian and due to the support they wanted to show her the financially supported her entire trip. These stories allowed me to sit back and think about how easy I have had it growing up in a Christian home and being healthy my whole life. Once we finished the day our directors gave us a tour of Thousand Oakes and Newbury (the area we are staying in). We hung out at a beautiful shopping area and then came back to the hotel for us to have our free time. Ellen packed her eno hammock so we hooked it up and relaxed before we went to bed.
This was my one of my friends I met while getting coffee and hanging out.
This was a beautiful fountain in the middle of this shopping center.
No comments:
Post a Comment