Week One: Whirlwind

Greetings from San Diego!

I have been here for a week and so far am loving it. There are about 110 students and 40 staff.

Day one I moved into my apartment with 13 other girls. Yes, that’s right… I share a bedroom with 7 other girls and one shower. No worries though, it’s been completely fine so far. I love everyone in “Condo 4” aka The Upper Room. We have a kitchen and got lucky by having the nicest sofa set and curtains at project. We are envied by all.
I am in a growth group, which is 3 girls and a leader. My leader’s name is Mallory and the other two girls are Lauren and Mercedes. We get along great and I am enjoying getting to know them better. It’s basically a small group that we meet with and do activities with. Also, I meet with Mallory for discipling.

This summer I will serve on the Community Life team. We are in charge of “uniting the project through intentional situations.” Okay, we may be referred to as the “party group,” but in all honesty we play a crucial role. We serve other teams and plan fun events to bring everyone together. I am enjoying it so far.

Alright, so a huge part of project is WORKING. Currently, San Diego is experiencing 13% unemployment. Everyone is persevering in pursing jobs. I have a few leads, but no success yet. If worse comes to worse I plan on working with Invisible Children or another non-profit.

Location, location, location!! I am about 25 steps away from the bay and a block from the beach. It is absolutely beautiful here. It’s so fun to people watch, too. Everyone is so athletic and loves to run, skateboard, inline skate, surf, boogie board, et cetera. I have access to free surf rentals so I plan on being a pro by the time I return to Knoxville.

Spiritually, this week has been encouraging and exhausting. Finding time to have quiet time means being disciplined by getting up early or dismissing yourself from social time at night. However, the revelation of its importance has dawned upon me. Without time in the Word I am more exhausted and rely on myself instead of Christ throughout the day. Being around and pursing relationships and spiritual conversation everyday is draining. So it’s a lesson I am learning quickly. ☺

We have had some training with the Knowing God Personally booklet and have already been sharing with people on the beach and college campuses. I have been assigned to Grossmont Community College, which is also known as the “Harvard” of community colleges in San Diego. There are 20,00 students. We will hold a weekly bible study on Mondays for anyone on campus who wished to attend.

There has certainly been lots of fun in between meeting times and job hunting. We had a staff hunt the other night. They walked around “in plain sight." Most of them dressed up like a different person. We had to find them and get them to sign a paper. It was all over Mission Beach so we had a vast area to cover. It was a blast.
This past week has felt like a month, but once we get a schedule going I have been told that time flies… and I believe it. I will attend Newbreak Pacific Beach Church. I have been told it is a beach bum church. It is held in an elementary school. I am so excited.
This is all I can think of now…. One week in a nutshell! I appreciate all of your prayers and interest in my project. Feel free to leave a question in the comments area of my posts- I would love to answer them!
Love,
Olivia
P.S. ALL pictures will be on my Facebook under my San Diego album. It takes forever to upload them on here!