Saying Goodbye...

Well I have officially reached the end of my adventure here in Washington D.C. Although I am sad to be leaving, I am very excited for the next adventure. I am really excited to be going to Cincinnati and seeing Laura again! It has been so long! I am also really excited to be going home again. I really miss the Northwest. The East is a great place, and full of lots of things to do, but if there is one thing I have learned, it is that I am an NW girl through and through. I love rain, cool weather, evergreen trees, wide open space, the coast, and not feeling grundgy when I go out with a t shirt, jeans, vans and my hair up. I am also very excited to get back to Provo. I have really missed it actually. I miss my friends, family and the mountains that are there.
This week was my last week with my kids. I worked Monday through Friday even though I was done with my hours on Wednesday, because I wanted to spend more time with them. Unfortunately they were rather difficult this week, but I was still able to have some good times with them. I took a lot of pictures! They loved the camera and loved posing and taking pics with me. We finally did our event that we had been planning this whole summer on Tuesday. It went okay. I was more excited to have it done and over with, and I think the other Jumpstarts felt the same. The kids really enjoyed it though and that is what matters. I spent the week with them, usually just playing. I just wanted to let them know how much I loved them, 'cause its a whole lot! Friday was hard, but it was pretty funny too. In circle time the teacher told the kids I would be leaving. They all asked where I was going. I told them I was going back to my house, which is so far away that I have to ride in an airplane to get there. One kid then exclaims " Your house is in the sky?!" Hahaha I had to laugh and then tried to explain that a plane comes down again, and that is where my house is. It was pretty funny. I had a couple kids that wouldn't let me go either when I was leaving. It kinda broke my heart. The good thing is that I know that they will soon forget about me. They will get new Jumpstarts and they will love them just as much as they loved me. It still is just sad that I won't ever see them again, or know what happens with them. I just pray they will make good choices and remain as precious as they are now.
It has been such and amazing experience being here. I have never once regretted coming out here. There have been times that I wanted to leave and go home, but it was always just a passing feeling and would go away. The funny thing is that I was expecting to learn a lot about stuff that would help me with my major, and then I figured it would be just fun the rest of the time, sightseeing and living in Washington D.C. However, I have learned things that I never thought I would have. I have learned a lot about myself, my weaknesses, my strengths, my likes and dislikes. I have gained more understanding of how much God loves all of his children. I have been put out of my comfort zone, and had to learn how to deal with it. I have had to learn how to stand up for my self, and voice my own opinion, even in the face of a sassy, intimidating black woman. I have been a minority for the first time in my life, and have learned what that can be like. I have learned how to love someone even when they don't seem to love me. I have learned from roommates examples as well as the encouragement from family. It has been a really great summer, and I am grateful for the life lessons that I have learned. I am so excited to get back to my regular, comfortable life, but I am so glad that I got to come out here and work with the kids, teachers, roommates and friends, and live in the capitol of our great nation!
Only 4 more days!

Less than two more weeks left here!

I have so many mixed emotions right now! I have only 12 more days left here in D.C. before I leave for Cincinnati and then Portland! I am getting really excited to go home and see friends and family. I am also really excited to get back to regular life. I miss my car, and being able to go grocery shopping when I need to with a car. I miss having space. Not that I don't like people but I am looking forward to having some open space around me. AND I can't wait for less humidity. Although on the other side I am so sad to be leaving! I have loved it here! I love being so close to all these fun places to see. I still love looking out the window while I'm at the gym and seeing the Washington Monument in the distance. Or when we ride the yellow line to work and it crosses the Potomac and you can see the capitol and monuments and everything. I will really miss all of this. I also will miss my kids. I LOVE them. I am not sure how much help I have been able to give them, besides just loving them. I have worked with one kid for the last week with some speech stuff, but other than that it just hasn't been enough time to do a lot of it. So I have had to accept that love is the best thing that I could give them. I just can't say how much I love these kids though. They are so precious and full of love. They are so willing to give love too, I have learned a lot from them and the other people I have worked with.
Well the last two weeks have been pretty good! I didn't do much last weekend besides work on a project for work. It was about 110 degrees last weekend with humidity so we stayed inside most of the time. This last week we realized that we only had a couple weeks left though so we made sure to get out a lot. Thursday we went to Alexandria again. It has been my favorite place so far. Nick, Kiera and I all went in the evening. Kiera and I also brought jars to fill with our favorite things from Alexandria. Haha. We first went to Ben and Jerry's because they have a happy hour ice cream deal. We all got a scoop for a dollar and sat on the pier and ate it. We got a flyer for the deal and put it in our jars. Then we went to the Christmas Attic. I LOVE this shop. It just makes me happy to see all Christmas stuff. I bought an ornament from there as a souvenir. Then we walked around the waterfront. We put sand and driftwood in our jars. Then we walked to the candy shop. We got some chocolate chip cookie taffy and put it in the jar. We also got a small pebble from the cobblestone roads there and put it in our jar. Then we walked past the La Madeline which is delicious. We got a flyer from there and put it in our jars. Then sealed them up! It was really fun.
Friday I went to work to help with graduation. Some of the kids in the older classes were graduating and going to Kindergarten. They needed some extra help so I went to see what I could do. I couldn't help stopping in my classroom to say hi though. They were so surprised to see me in a dress and told me that I looked pretty. I just love being around these kids! Graduation was pretty good. It is hard to sit through any graduation and this wasn't much different but I was glad I could help. Kiera and I then went to DuPont's circle to see what it was. Then we went to the National Gallery of Art. I saw some Monet, Renoir, Van Gogh and Picasso, and more. It was cool to see once. We then went through the sculpture garden and to the American History Museum. We finished the war exhibit. It made me very grateful for all the men and women who have sacrificed everything for the freedom that I take for granted. I had been complaining a couple days before about not feeling appreciated. The administration at my school canceled an event that we had been planning for weeks. It was very inconsiderate and it made us all feel very unappreciated. My roomates and I spent the night talking about how upset and hard it was to deal with. The next morning we got on the metro and a man in a military uniform looked over at us. Very genuinely he turned to us and thanked us for our service. Here was a man who had volunteered to fight for the rest of us and give his life if needed, and he was thanking us for our service. It was a good reminder to me that I have a Heavenly Father who knows me and loves me. I didn't pray for it, but he knew what I needed to hear. I know that He loves me. We thanked the man and told him how much it meant to us, and thanked him for his service. He then gave us a pep talk to encourage us to keep going. It was a really nice.
After this experience and then going through the war exhibit I can't help but feel like it was stupid to feel unappreciated. I am not risking my life to save someone else. I am working with children all day long. That just doesn't seem like much of a sacrifice anymore. I am blessed to work with them and just love them.
This is a really long post, but a lot happened this week. Saturday I went to Gettysburg, Philadelphia, and Valley Forge. We left early in the morning. Nick drove us. We went to Gettysburg first. It was a very pretty place. Obviously a little sobering since so many men had died there. I can't imagine what that would have been like. We then went to Philly. I thought that I had gotten tickets to Independence Hall but apparently it didn't work. So we got to see the outside of it. We did get to see the Liberty bell though. We also saw a Quaker church, Ben Franklin's grave sight, and the town hall which was home to the Supreme court for a while. It was fun to see Philadelphia and some of those things. We then went to Valley Forge. It was pretty cool. I was tired and had seen enough open fields for the day, but it was cool to see Washington's headquarters. I touched the original banister that Washington would have used. We then got some dinner at Boston Market and went home. It was a very full day of driving and sight seeing, but it was enjoyable. It was Michaelann, Kiera, Michelle and Nick. They are all so great that no matter what we do we have fun.
This is my last full week here. I have some stuff planned, and things to do before I leave so I should be pretty busy. I am looking forward to having life slow down again though.

Harry Potter and Baltimore!

This week marked the end of an era for me! Harry Potter officially came to a close. It was a very weird feeling. It may sound really dramatic, but I grew up with Harry Potter, I was 11 when I read the first book and just continued to grow up with him. The books finished when I was about 17, same as him. The movies kept everything going still until this weekend. It is officially over. The good thing is that you can still read those books and you fall straight back into the world of Hogwarts, and Harry Potter. This movie was fantastic though! Although they changed some things that I liked from the book, the changes still got the same emotions, and story through. I was crying and laughing most of the time. I thought this one was the best as far as getting the emotions of the characters through. They didn't hold back on showing the severity of the situation to make it a kids movie, which I appreciated, even though it made it hard to watch. I loved it though, and I want to go see it again!








The day after was a slow, relaxing day. It was really nice. The weather was also really nice.
Saturday we decided to go to Baltimore. We rented a car for the day and headed up there. It was really fun. We went to the Harbor first. We ate lunch there and enjoyed the view. We then took a free walking tour of Baltimore. It was just Kiera, Michelle, Michaelann and I on the tour so we ended up with a personal tour guide. It was about a mile and a half walk, and the weather was great! We got to see Little Italy, City Hall, the Harbor some more, and learn about the history of Baltimore.









After the tour we went to Fort McHenry. This is the place that the Battle of Baltimore happened in the War of 1812. They were defending Baltimore against the British Navy. All through the night bombs were flying, but they never gave up. The people of Baltimore stood on the rooftops, or looked out their top windows watching. In the morning the bombs stopped. The people waited to see through the morning light, which flag would be raised. The Star Spangled Banner was raised. Francis Scott Key was watching this and was compelled to write the Star Spangled Banner because of the courage, and endurance of the American Spirit that night. It was very cool to see. The flag that flies there is the same size as the original that flew. It is huge! It was also a beautiful view of the Harbor!









We then went to the creepiest cemetery I have ever been. I was so happy when we finally left. It was where Edgar Allan Poe was buried. We then went to find his house. I honestly didn't care that much, but my roommates did. It was in a super sketchy area though so we left.












After that we drove back down to Washington D.C. We went to the temple on our way back. The temple is closed, but we went to the visitor center. I love the temple! It is such a beautiful place, and can fill you with happiness! I enjoyed being there alot. After the temple we decided while we have a car we should go to Target to get groceries. It was a very busy, full day. I was exhausted. The roads are really confusing around here, and it took a lot of concentration and stress trying to figure it all out, and parking and everything. I am glad that the metro gets us most places.

Running through rain, and the Dalai Lama

So this week was actually pretty long. My kids really struggled this week, probably due to the long weekend. I was flipped off by a 4 year old! I didn't even know what that meant at 4, but she deliberately did! I was so shocked I didn't even know what to do! We also went on a field trip this week. Field trips should be fun, this one was extremely stressful. We went to the Dept of Education. They invited a couple schools to read to them, and play games with them. Honestly it seemed more of a publicity stunt. They had Kareem Abdul Jabar there read a book, Miss America as well as the U.S. Secretary of Education and another cabinet member. It was cool as adults to see them, but it went right over the kids' heads. The kids were going crazy and didn't want to sit and listen, when there was a huge room to run in. The games were really hard for the kids to do as well. This made it really stressful and hard to keep track of our kids. Other than that it was okay. They all left with snacks and a free book!
I was definitely done by Thursday though. I was exhausted! Kiera and I decided to go to Target to get some groceries. It is a mile and a half walk to Target, so it is a good workout and a nice walk. We then just hung our that night, and went to bed early.
Friday we got to sleep in. I went to the gym and read. After lunch Kiera and I decided to go to Arlington National Cemetery. We were there for Memorial day but hadn't gone back so we decided to do it again. It is HUGE! We went to Robert E. Lee's home, walked around a little, and then went to the Iwo Jima Memorial. We were kinda tired still. And it started raining. At one point on the way back from the Iwo Jima Memorial, we would stop under trees while it poured and then when it stopped we would run to the next. At one point we were sprinting past these Army men who had umbrellas to get to the metro. It was fun to run in the rain. The Iwo Jima memorial was worth seeing, it is huge and a powerful image. The Arlington House is boring though.
We then went back and went to the store to get some stuff for a Harry Potter party! On our way to the store an old little Asian lady came up and asked if I could help escort her across the road. Of course I would help. She then proceeded to tell me how crazy cars are here, and I was starting to sense a little crazy in her. She was looking for the Foreign Currency Exchange. We told her that it was in the mall and that we could take her there. She was very concerned about the address, and didn't believe that she was in the right place. I started to get a little concerned. I thought some small talk would be good so I asked her where she was from. "Asia". Ok well I got that much. She couldn't speak English super well, but well enough, and looked Asian. So I asked her where in Asia, since it is a very large area. She then whispered, " Can you keep a secret?" I just decided not to go there. Haha, we eventually found what she was looking for and continued on. It was pretty funny.
Then we had our Harry Potter party. Nick came over to join us. We attempted to make butter beer but it didn't work. So instead we had Licorice wands, jelly beans, "chocolate snitches" (oreo truffles) and "chocolate frogs" (Hershey kisses with cards Kiera made). It was really fun!












Saturday was an early morning. We got up early to go see the Dalai Lama speak on the Capitol lawn. He was here doing a World Peace Talk. Whoopi Goldberg was also there to ask him questions. It was very interesting. It was a very "hippyish" event. I was happy that I sorta fit in with my Chaco sandals but I wished I had been wearing my tie dye shirt. It was very hot outside, and I had a hard time understanding him which made it hard to focus. I was able to hear a few things that I liked though. The first was that he said that "Everyone is born with the right to be happy." I like that a lot. Because being happy is a choice, and sometimes it is harder to be happier than other times, but you can always be happy if you choose to be. It is our right as human beings. The other thing that he said is that in order to have world peace we all need to have inner peace. He said that if you have inner peace than you will be able to pass it on, and it will ripple out. "Real beauty is inner beauty". He spoke very informally which came across as choppy, but other than that it was very nice.












We then went to the Holocaust Museum. I had heard it was emotionally and spiritually exhausting and was very worried I wouldn't be able to handle it. They have you take an ID card when you get on the elevator. They then take you up to the top floor and you work your way down. You start by getting off looking at a picture an American soldier took of the horrors they encountered. It was a horrifying picture, none that I hadn't seen already from the Holocaust, but I figured it was going to hard, if that's how it started. It however wasn't anything I hadn't seen already in school. I purposefully did not watch any of the videos that said "viewer discretion advised" though. I could get the same message out of reading about it. I didn't need an image engrained in my mind too. It took us 4 hours to go through the whole thing. It was full of information and was very interesting. I came out of it in awe at how human beings could allow it to have happened. I just can't understand how so many soldiers willingly shot an innocent child, or mother, or father. It was horrifying to think about. The sad thing though is that it still went on. There is still genocide in Africa and Bosnia. Americans even years after this, still didn't understand and treated Black's horribly. How have we all not learned? I even see it in my class. Other children finding reason to put other children below them. For whatever reason. It is horrible. I wish people could see that every time we discriminate against another person, for whatever reason, even though we are not killing them, discrimination is where it all starts.
On that happy note, there are things we can do. We can start with inner peace and love for our God, ourselves, and our neighbors. If we can see everyone as God sees them, then we will have a happy, peaceful world.

Happy Birthday America!

This last week was great. So I got sick, one of the pleasures of working with children, but I worked really hard at getting better and I did. By Friday I was up to doing everything! We started on Friday by getting up early to get tickets to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. You have to get tickets early in the morning for the rest of the day, so Kiera and I got up early to get tickets. Michaelann joined us later. After getting lost a bit, we finally got the tickets for later in the morning. This gave us time to walk along the waterfront, which was very nice in the morning. It also gave us the great idea of paddleboating in the Tidal Basin of the Potomac. Greatest idea ever. We went to the Bureau first, but its boring. About exciting as the Tillamook cheese factory, except you get free cheese there. After finishing that up, we got into a lovely paddleboat and set out into the river! It was a fun hour of going in circles, taking pictures, talking about first kisses, and awkward dates.












After our wonderful ride in the murky water, we went to the Supreme Court building. It is a gorgeous building. We were sad that its not in session so we can't sit in for a oral argument. Oh well.








Saturday we got up early again to get tickets for Ford's theater. After getting tickets for later that morning we went to Eastern Market. It was a really fun market place. It slightly reminded me of home. The reason we went was to get the famous "BlueBuck" pancakes. They are blueberry buckwheat pancakes from Market Lunch. It is a local favorite. They were very good, although I wouldn't say the line was worth it. We waited for at least 45 minutes.









It took so long we had to run back to Ford's theater. We barely made it. Abraham Lincoln is an incredible American hero. It was fun to learn more about him. The museum was interesting to me. The actual theater was cool, except the experience was odd. They had a storyteller come on. This guy told us we were Linchnians from this made up country, and he was Leo Tolstoy telling them stories about the great American here. "The Lincoln". He always referred to him as that. The stories he told were cool, except some were random, and I get distracted trying to keep track of Leo Tolstoy, and the Linchnians. Other than that, it was cool.
We finished up the afternoon at the Portrait Gallery and American art museum. It was pretty neat. I found Joseph Smith and Brigham Young in it! After that we went to the store an got stuff for a BBQ. We were very excited about it. We grilled hot dogs and corn. It was delicious! AND we did it without boys!
THE FOURTH OF JULY
Monday was awesome. It was just amazing to be in Washington D.C. for the fourth of July. We got up early again to make a pancake breakfast and get going. We went to the parade first. It goes down Constitution Ave. It was actually pretty lame. I was disappointed. But it was still cool to see once. It was pretty warm however so we went to the American History museum for a bit to cool down. We then walked to the Lincoln Memorial to meet up with some friends. They staked out a spot to watch the fireworks and brought blankets and food and everything. It was very fun. We did get bored waiting though and decided to walk down the mall. There was a lot going on. Concerts, festivals, and lots of people watching. It's a long walk though. We got back right before the fireworks started. The fireworks lasted about 20 minutes, and were the coolest fireworks ever. It was worth waiting forever for. They played music and we all sat and watched. After that we decided instead of fighting the crowds for the metro we would walk. We thought it wasn't far. It isn't too bad, but after we had already walked about 5 miles back and forth all day along the mall, it was a long walk. Eric a new friend in the ward walked back with us, so we had a man with us. It was slightly scary at times. It was very enjoyable though. Overall, I calculated it, we walked just under 10 miles the whole day. It was a perfect ending to the weekend, and holiday. It was hard to get back to work today. Although once I was there I was reminded how much I love my kids in the class! I am using a lot more of my ASL with a boy who is hard of hearing. It has added another form of communication and has helped. It is really fun!







We also thought we were really cool and would coordinate our nail polish :)

"Beauty is Truth, Truth Beauty"

"Beauty is truth, truth beauty" is one of the many beautiful quotes that I read this week at the Library of Congress. That is a place that I would highly recommend to anyone to visit in their life at least once. Kiera, Michaelann, and I visited the Library on Friday for the first time. We were there at the end of the day, so there weren't many people there. It was so beautiful! It was overwhelming! There are quotes everywhere you look, on the ceilings and walls. There are murals everywhere and even the floors are pretty! It was very cool!
We spent most of the time just wandering trying to take it all in!
I also got to see where National Treasure was filmed! It is in a big "reading room" that you can't go into unless you have a card and something to research. But you can look into it, from a balcony. Next goal is to come up with something to research and go there.





Besides the Library of Congress we also went to the capitol this week. A friend in our ward gives tours so he was able to take us in. It is so incredible to be in a place that has influenced the lives of people all over the world! It was very cool to see where everything happens politically in our country. Every time I go to these new places I am reminded how blessed we are to have this country!








After the tour we went to a Nationals Baseball game! It was the perfect way to finish the day. It was a very warm night, but it didn't matter. We were almost at the top, but there was lots of room because it wasn't very full. They were playing the Mariners, which is funny because I have only been to one other pro baseball game and it was in Seattle. It was fun to cheer them on here though. I added another large free t-shirt to my collection there though! We went with a fun group of friends in our ward too. It was a good night.









The other fun thing we did this week is we went back to my favorite place- Alexandria! We went to the La Madeline, because Laurie told me it was to die for. It is. It is this cute french restaurant, not badly priced, and we ate outside and loved it! It is fun to live in a big city, but I'm starting to miss the smaller city feel. Alexandria is slower paced, and gives us a fresh breath of air, when we start to feel claustrophobic. My roommate Kiera said it perfectly, she wishes she could put it in a jar and open the jar whenever she is sad. Ha!
Other than these adventures, I worked, we finally made some chocolate chip cookies, went to institute and also found the airplane park. It is a park nearby that planes fly right over as they land or take off. Awesome.
Work was slightly better this week. I still have issues with the way the class is run. It is very authoritarian, and I have a hard time with that. I have however started to do things how I would when I can. I have made some progress with some kids, with earning some respect, but there is much to gain still. I also was able to talk to my teacher about speech therapy. I was able to tell her some observations on some kids that I had. She was impressed which gained some respect from her. That was really good. She is also very happy to help me get with the speech therapist, or let me work with individual kids. I was able to find out more about a few kids as well. One, for instance, that I have been worried about, has been suggested to have tests done, but the mother won't allow it. It made me realize that my teacher is aware of her struggles, and there is more to the stories than I see. I have also been observing a boy that doesn't seem to comprehend things very well, and I always had to repeat what I needed him to do multiple times. I found out that he is hard of hearing. Now that I know this I am able to use some of my sign language and speak slower and clearer to him. This has helped a ton! It is fun to use some of the skills that I have learned. I hope that I can talk to the speech therapist soon to get suggestions on how I can implement therapy in the classroom. I am excited to do this!

Navy Seal Challenge and Holy Eucharist.

This has been a very busy, crazy, new, adventurous week!
Monday- A girl in my class told me her mom hit her with a bat. That was the first of many things I heard. It has really peaked my attention and I'm keeping my eye on it, but wow. That is not something you ever want to hear.
Tuesday- I went to work, and then we finished up the rest of the Natural History Museum. We finished seeing the mammals exhibit and the Hope diamond.
Wednesday- After work we adventured over to Georgetown. We walked around for a while. It was a very nice area. It would a fun place to go shopping, get dinner and walk around. We saw the canal there as well. The water is disgusting in the Potomac though.









Thursday- Really GREAT day! We had the pleasure of going on a field trip with our kids! We went to the National Aquarium in Baltimore! First off, Baltimore is going to be visited again, because it was a great place. The bus ride was about an hour long, which was fun , but exhausting for the kids. They were all really excited about riding the bus. One girl when we got there, turned to me and said "that was a fun field trip!" We hadn't even been inside yet! I had two boys in both hands. The rule was that they always had to hold our hands. The kids were so excited to see everything! I loved seeing their faces light up, and watch them jump around like crazy. We got to see jelly fish, fish, turtles, alligators, sharks, stingrays and the best part, DOLPHINS! We watched a dolphin show that was pretty awesome! The kids were clapping and screaming they were so excited watching them jump and everything.
The ride home was fun, I had one of the kids fall asleep on my lap. They were so tired. Although it was fun, it was tiring so once we got home we wanted to relax. Sarah and I got lost for an hour though after getting my TB test checked. That was interesting. The roads here are so confusing! I fell asleep that night at 9:30. I woke up to a massive thunder and lightning storm around midnight though. The weather this whole week has been slightly stormy, but not as hot.

Friday- Since I had gone to bed so early I woke up around 7:30. So I got up and finished watching the movie I had fallen asleep to. Then went to the gym, then layed by the pool. It was a great morning. After eating some lunch we headed to the National Mall to go see the Archives. It is so incredible to learn about the inspired documents our country is founded on. We also finished up the Air and Space Museum. That night Sarah and I went on a walk on the beautiful Mt. Vernon trail. We were looking for a cool park, apparently we have a knack for getting lost, because we never found it.
Saturday- For Jumpstart we volunteered to help at a Navy Seals Challenge. It was Howard University. The challenge included running, swimming, pull ups, push ups, and curl ups. "They were not recruiting" but pretty much they were so all the men were young college guys. I was put on the cheer squad to cheer them on. Not a bad morning. After that we joined up with some friends and went to the National Zoo. It was really muggy outside, but the zoo was really cool. We got to see a lot of different stuff, including a Giant Panda! We then went back and had a pizza party and got shakes at chick-fil-a ( a new favorite a couple blocks away). After being re energized we went to THE mall and walked and sat around the monuments. It was a really relaxing night. I still can't get over the fact that I can do that whenever I want!












Sunday- It was Father's Day! Happy Father's day to my wonderful dad! At 11:15 the National Cathedral holds Holy Eucharist. We decided this could be a pretty cool way to see the cathedral and get a taste for how other people worship. It was incredible! The building is huge, and beautiful! The actual service was very interesting, and very different than what I am used to. It was Trinity Sunday so they focused on the Trinity mostly. That being one thing that I do not agree with, was interesting to learn more about. The man who gave the sermon was a very good speaker. I would love to hear his other sermons. It was obvious that he had studied this for a long time, and that he loved it. He also really emphasized that God loves all of us. It was interesting to see the truths that we both share, and where the fullness of the Gospel has helped fill in gaps and answer questions. I am grateful that I know who God and His Son Jesus Christ are, and that I know that I am His child. I love the gospel. I was really grateful for the experience! I then went to my own ward. I was sustained for a calling with out being given the call, which was kinda funny, but it is nice to be apart of the ward so quickly.