So it's been almost two years since I posted on this dang thing and I'm pretty much only doing so now to keep my account active.  But I suppose there is a small chance that I'll end up writing on here again at some point, so who knows...

Has it really been a month since I first arrived in Aliquippa?  Have I really planned and taught (both words used loosely here) two weeks' worth of 1st and 2nd grade classes?  Are there actually 7 other amazing people (8 while Ben's here) living with me, sharing with me, teaching me, shaping me on a 24/7 basis?  The answer to all of these things is of course "yes".  It's hard to believe that a mere 4 weeks ago, I was anxiously and nervously anticipating the trip to Aliquippa and wondering what this summer would hold.  God has done so many things already this summer that I could not have even imagined and we still have another 6 weeks to go!  I cannot wait to see what He has in store for the future and I just hope I am taking sufficient time enjoying this experience and learning all that I can.  It's not often that you get a chance to mold and be molded so intensely and simultaneously and I just hope I am having a fraction of the impact on my students that they and the rest of the Aliquippa Impact Ministries staff are having on me.  I meant for this to be sort of a recap of what's been going on the past two weeks but apparently I'm too sentimental for that.  But I relish (is it really spelled the same as the stuff you put on hot dogs?) the opportunity to talk at length about everything that has happened on an individual basis and I hope I get frequent chances to do so.  Hope everyone is having a great summer and it really is true that I can do anything through Christ who strengthens me.

Well, I've been here in Aliquippa for a little over a week now and it is simply amazing.  I have less than 7 minutes left on my allotted computer time so I don't have time to go into a lot of detail but I'll try and touch on the major stuff.  This week and next are training weeks for working with the kids and we have already been instructed and guided by three or four very engaging and knowledgable speakers on things such as discipline, communication, and reaching young children.  We have also done a team-building ropes course (not that we need it because every minute of every day is practically a team-building exercise, more on that in a minute) and been CPR certified (not that I have confidence I'd actually be able to use the skills if necessary).  The team we have is awesome and I am so excited to see how we grow and complement each other as this summer unfolds.  There has been so much laughter and bonding already and it's only been a week!  Joel Repic is a terrific leader and he has put us in situations where we willbe stretched and challeneged but we are properly trained and prepared to tackle the assignments we've been given.  There is a ton of other stuff I haven't touched on but I'm down to about a minute left and I don't wanna lose all this so I'm just gonna post and hope to further this discussion at a later date.