Orientation Begins

Dear Friends and Family. I am only half way through my first week of orientation and it feels as if I have been here much longer (which is a good thing). The environment is a lot different than that of home since Chicago is a very large city. We have spent some time exploring, especially today during a city wide scavenger hunt. The people here are very friendly and willing to help out. I am also really enjoying the company of my team and everyone else in Radical Journey. I have already heard it said many times that it feels like we have known each other longer than just a few days.

The atmosphere is also very different than what I am used to at home. Instead of having my own room and seeing my friends for about half of the day, I share my small room with three other boys and the rest of our flat is shared between seventeen other people. The quarters are a little closer than I am used to, but so far it has been pretty nice.

We have also spent much of the last three days with a lot of discussion, at least several hours a day on average. This communication has helped us learn more about each other and bring our group closer together. My paraguay team in particular has grown very close to each other as we talk about paraguay and for what is to come. We also try to spend about forty five minutes a day working on our spanish. Today we were the Curious George in Spanish and are working on memorizing simple nouns.

These past few days have been very encouraging to me and I have greatly enjoyed them. The people are all amazing and the whole situation is exciting. I look forward to getting to know everyone better as we prepare for our coming year. Thanks for all of your prayers and support