Acclimation

Noun: the process of adjusting one's body to a different climate; could involve an array of side-effects, including dizziness, fatigue, and disorientation. If treated properly and patiently, the body will fully adjust to the new climate.

Hello from Denver! A mile above sea level, prompting plenty of practice acclimating =) And hello as a Colorado Vincentian Volunteers, emotionally acclimating to live with 11 housemates in a new city and with a new task in front of me.

Orientation officially ended last night when we met our 'prayer families.' Each of us are welcomed into a local family who pledge to pray for us, feed us food from time to time (this will be especially wonderful as very few of us claim skills as cooks!), and provide familiar faces in an unknown city. Four of us, myself included, have Hispanic prayer families from a local Hispanic parish. We met last night and over a plate of fruit shared names, interests, and stories. It was a fitting end to orientation, because plunging into speaking Spanish reminded me of the challenge that this year will be. My job will bring me into much contact with many Spanish-speakers, and I'm quite nervous, mostly a sense of inadequacy and a fear that I am not qualified enough for the position. For that, I ask for your prayers.

Orientation was very comprehensive. Bill and Mary Frances, the directors, led us in many exercises to get to know each other, to know ourselves better, and to determine what our hopes and fears are for the year to come.

Already CVV has been so much FUN. The very first afternoon, Nicole and I were assigned the task of making ice-cream pies for the two volunteers who had celebrated birthdays in July. Just for fun and mischief, we hid a green bean in one of the pies. Our lucky winner Kevin received a complementary library card to alllll the many books in the CVV library! It seems that Nicole and I started a trend, because later another green veggie showed up in the chill, a large apple slice in the applesauce, and breakfast one day featured a contest as to who could determine the spices in two bowls of eggs.

It has also been so, so fun to start fresh here. With the exception of 3 volunteers who attended the same school, we are all spanking brand new to each other. After the rather exhausting prelimenary introductions were over (where are you from? what school? etc), it was an unexpected joy to explain ourselves to people who can't yet take each other for granted, since every story and personal detail is new and often surprising.

Speaking of community, I want to tell a story that hopefully encapsulate what our CVV life together has been so far and what I hope it will be.

It is entitled, "Peanut Butter and Jelly, mom style"

"As part of our preparation for going to the Rockies for 3 days, we were told to have lunches for the three hour journey. The night before, several of the volunteers went shopping for various camping needs. I stayed behind, plunking around on the piano and enjoying the anticipation of the mountains. After a while, I made my way into the kitchen, lured by the sound of '80s classics on the radio. There, I found Rachel P and Rachel B putting the final touches on 20-plus sandwiches, each cut triangularly and placed into baggies with an accompanying personalized note. And this is what touched me the most about their generosity - it was joyful. They made lunch for all of us not because they had to, or even thought they had to, but (I'm guessing here) because they saw it to be a loving thing to do, and because it was fun! Their preparation included music and laughter, and twenty sticky fingers between them. What a beautiful precursor to the year, with people such as this to live with!"


A bit more about the mountains: We stayed at the 'Eiseman Hut' above Vail. 'Hut' is a rather misleading term, since this lodging was, as one person described it, the Penthouse of the mountains. It was all log, and had a row of windows that overlooked the western ridge, providing an amazing view of the mountains and the sunset. We slept in bunkbeds in one large room, and met in a cozy living room with a wood stove. (Interesting historical note: this Hut and several others were built by 10th mountain division soldiers, who were skiers and mountaineers trained in Colorado in order to fight in the Alps during world war II.)

Every day we woke up in the moutains, breathed in the sweet smell of pine, and basked in the beauty of the ridges and wildflowers. A Vincentian priest had accompanied us for our retreat, and he said mass one afternoon outside. As a group, we will celebrate mass together every Monday evening (in addition to church on Sunday) - I'm so excited to share the bread of life together, to pray together, and to learn to see the face of Christ in each other and in the poor.

The stars were gorgeous, and we could easily see the milky way. We had a campfire and song-singing competition one evening, and many of us spent the other evening sitting under the stars and chatting in the crisp mountain air. The Hut was an amazing place to prepare for what is to come, and to spend time getting to know each other.

I hope to include pictures someday, but I forgot my camera today =( I don't have internet access at the house, so the blog posts might be a bit sporadic. Please call, email, write letters, I would love to hear from you! And if you're in Denver, come visit!!

Until next time, may the God of mercy enfold you all in his lavish love.