Broken

There comes a point when God takes your own little picture of what life and reality are like and he shatters it.  I have thought that has happened in my life before.  Little did I know that every glimpse of the bigger world was only preparing me for something more.

Over the past nine months I have been working with street-dependent youth.  What does this mean?  I thought this meant I was learning how to help a population in need, how to rally the community into action, and how to make a mark on social injustice.  However, I am learning something much greater.  I am learning that the face behind the sign on the corner is an individual with a story.  An individual with pain, needs, and desires.  Who am I to judge that person without knowing their story? 

The past months I have heard stories of trauma and survival.  Stories I had read about in books, but now can match with a face.  Many of these are victims of horrible crimes and the sad part is they often don't realize it. 

Today was different.  Today I heard the story, not of a victim, but of a survivor!

I cannot think of his story without tears in my eyes and the realization that I have had a blessed life.  My heart breaks for this 21-year-old brilliant individual with only a 3rd grade education.  At 8-years-old his father made him kill his loved dog with his bear hands and then sold him to a Russian mob for a months worth of meth.  He was then placed in a cage to fight other children for entertainment.  He had to do unimaginable things simply to survive.  At night he was chained in a basement until one day he took a marble statue and crushed the chains around his wrists in order to escape.  He tells me this as he shows me his bent and scarred hands.  He story goes on to tell of selling drugs for a place to sleep, being kicked out by his mother for simply looking like his dad, and then his dad driving him into the middle of the desert only to leave him to die. 

I cannot believe the many stories this one individual told me through the tears.  How can one life suffer so much?  He tells me he is unlovable and everyone that should have been there for him has never cared.  He tells me he forgives them because the hate will only "rot me from the inside out."  With a smile on his tear streaked face he tells me he knows what his purpose is.  To help people like him.  To help them avoid the pain, stay off the drugs, and not sever relationships with the ones they love. 

I am unable to give this story justice and to express the emotion that it deserves.   This one individual has opened awareness on so many different levels for me today.  Don't forget to say I love you today, don't forget to thank the Lord for all He has provided and especially the lack of pain!  I urge you to think twice next time you see an individual asking for food on the side of the road.  Remember, each of us has a story and most of all, each of us are children of God!

Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor will himself call out and not be answered.  Proverbs 21:13

Senior Presentation

One of the things that has been taking so much of my time lately has been my capstone presentation research.  It is very exciting but a ton of work.  If you are interested in knowing what I am looking at, here is a copy of the abstract for the presentation.

Needing a Place to Call Home: A Emic Perspective of Homeless Youth

                Teens and young adults who are living without a permanent or adequate residence often face struggles regarding social norms, fitting in with the larger society, and even issues regarding their own identity.  Youth without a permanent home often adopt street habits and lifestyle as a way of survival and may internalize this as part of their identity.  This can make it difficult for staff at resource centers who wish to help the homeless youth “better” their situation.  For homeless youth, giving up part of their street lifestyle for a more conventional one, may feel like losing part of their identity and the security they have found in it.  This presentation encourages case managers and mentors to learn the emic importance of street lifestyle before suggesting change to more mainstream ideas and action.

How to burn 1,700 calories in a day!

Bike. Bike hard.  For 3.5 hours.  Uphill.

Warning:  Following day one might feel sore, stiff, and virtually immobile.  Emotional behaviors may include and are not limited to crankiness, irrational, moody, and neurotic. 

Consult your doctor before performing this strenuous activity.

Orders, Races, and Awards!

How many things can happen in a day?  I think this was a challenge to me this weekend and let me say, my head was spinning.

Saturday morning I got a call from my husband saying the re-enlistment ceremony had happened and all the papers had been signed.  It is official people we are heading to Schofield Barracks in Oahu, Hawaii!  When we got married nine months ago, I never would have thought that we would finally get to be newly weds on an island in the Pacific!  I am so very excited.  Excited to be together, excited for new adventures, excited for new opportunities!  I am still planning on moving down to Texas in July and it probably wont be until winter or spring for the big move.

Another thing that happened Saturday morning was the 10 mile race I have been half-way training for.  Now I decided that the worst part about this whole idea is that I am not a morning person.  Who would have thought that half the city would be downtown at 6:30 AM and they are all so energetic.  Needless to say, there were so many cameras out that I almost freaked out!  Well that is just pre-race.  I must say the running part went much better than planned.  I did not walk for the first 6 miles and for the last 4 I did a run/walk deal because I had some pretty bad leg cramps.  I impressed myself with my time, though.  My goal was to be under 2:10 and I crushed it by finishing at 1:39 at 9.58 pace!  Who would have thought?  Three days later and I am still sore but who cares :)  Guess it is time for my to set a new goal!

That is not all that happened this weekend either!  Sunday night ended on a very happy note when I got a phone call.  I was informed that I had been voted SOU Outstanding Cultural Anthropologist of the year and nominated for the National United Society for Outstanding University Women!  Kinda made my night.

Anyway, these things have really motivated me to finish my undergrad well, but it has also put a lot of pressure on me knowing that all my profs are expecting so much. 

So much to do, so little time!

Action Anthropology

The big old world of Anthropology can be dangerous and confusing to try to navigate through.  Most people I talk to don't even know what it is, so maybe because I have dedicated so much of my life to this discipline, maybe I should explain it... At least from my point of view. 

Anthropology in it's most basic of terms is the study of cultures.  It is the study of how groups of people act, talk, express and feel.  At this point, most people I talk to say something along the lines of, "I get it, you are a people watcher!"  Yes and no.  See we anthropologists do so much more than observe, we try to interpret the meanings behind cultural acts.  In reality this is a day in the life of an anthropologist... Participant observation, analyze, interview, analyze, observe, analyze, survey, analyze, research, analyze, re-interview, analyze, report.  Needless to say, there is a lot of analyzing and interpretating.

Now there are many branches of anthropology that I wont try to get into but I should let you know that I am an action anthropologist.  The name it itself is a contradiction but I kinda like that.  I believe as an anthropologist I have the skills and ability to see the world from many points of view, see how people come together, where they clash, and assist in developing a plan of action to better the situation.  I believe in advocacy, policy change, and simply taking an active role in making this world a better place. 

Anyway, this post is getting long and most likely boring to most of you.  I wanted to let you in on the project I have dedicated the past 7 months to...

Since the fall I have been working as a volunteer at a local goal oriented research center for homeless youth.  It has been amazing learning the stories of many of these individuals including where they are originally from, how they ended up on the streets, and how difficult it is to move out of homelessness.  One of the biggest things I have noticed though is the lack of awareness community members have about the situation.  Many look at homeless people in a very negative light, as if they deserve it or asked for it.  My activist side has come out and I want to help people understand the complexity of the situation.  I am currently working on a research project to learn migration patterns of homeless youth and some of the difficulties they face when they try to move out of their situations.  I'm letting you all know about this because I will probably be talking much more about it because I tend to get pretty passionate about my research.  I have a lot of work to do in a few short weeks with a due date of May 31, but I am excited that I should be finished just in time for RnR!

PCS

So Michael and I are quickly approaching his first reenlistment which means we are also looking at our first PCS.  Ft. Hood has been fun but picking where in the world we would like to start our new lives has been more exciting.  I am bursting inside to let everyone know where we probably be heading but I am trying not to get too excited and we are waiting tell everything is official.  Needless to say, I am so excited it all.  Excited to see and live in a new place, excited about new opportunities, excited about meeting new people, and most of all, I am excited to be newly weds again!

Seven weeks 'til R&R!

sfAA in Seattle!

The Society for Applied Anthropology annual meeting this year was great.  Went to some awesome lectures and did some networking.  Rethinking the focus of my capstone paper and even some of my career goals.  It re-sparked my interest in working with domestic refugees, and even working to bridge some of the gap between military families and civilians. 

Some good things to think about but don't worry, the trip was not all educational.  Here are some pictures from some of the play time :)

 The SOU students.

 Megan and I loving girls nights!

 Jordan wines!

Alishia and I out shopping :)