Happy

Happy.

That is the word that comes to mind when I think about my first three weeks in KCMO. I feel like I have been living here a lot longer though. Time seems to go by so quickly and so slowly at the same time. A year seems like an incredibly long time to be here, but I already know I am going to have such a hard time leaving. I have never gotten so attached so quickly to a group of people or to a place. I really feel like I belong here and Kansas City is exactly where I am meant to be spending this year.

Moving to a new city in a completely new part of the country, starting a new job, and living with new people was something I thought I was really going to struggle with. Despite all the newness and big changes that have happened over the last few weeks, I have been surprised at how happy and content I feel. I am so lucky to live with the four other people that I do. I know without them, I would not be as happy as I am. Being able to come home after a long day of work and have people there who know just what I am experiencing helps so much.

Liz, Ali, Dave, and Dave (Mills and Wats for short) and I live right on the edge of Rockhurst University’s campus. Our house is tiny, but it’s very homey! Its all one floor, 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom (!!), kitchen, living room, and dining room. We have a little front and back yard, a front porch, a small deck in the back, and a garage. Ali and I share a room with bunk beds and 1 dresser and closet for both of us. Luckily that just means my wardrobe doubled! J

All of my community members have different placements around Kansas City. Liz works at the Kansas City Free Health Clinic. Ali works at the Migrant Farmers Workers Project. Wats works at Operation Breakthrough. Mills works at Donnelly College which is right next door to Bishop Ward. The two of us drive over from Missouri together in a red jeep that says “Donnelly College Parking Control” on it. It’s got about 194000 miles on it and I am just praying it makes it through the whole year!

I am still adjusting to being a high school religion teacher and working in the Campus Ministry office at BWHS. I’ve learned to respond to Ms. Fox, but I always look around for my mom when the kids call me Mrs. Fox! Everything here is fast paced and I always feel like I have a million things to do (or that I should be doing!) It’s hard to keep up with these teachers who have been teaching before I was born! And it’s hard to adjust to being the newest and youngest teacher in the building. I am lucky that BWHS is such a great community. Sometimes when I am standing up in front of my class, I have one of those “I can’t believe this is my life” moments. I feel like I still should be wearing my uniform at O’Connell and listening to my teachers go on and go. Instead I am the one trying to get students to be engaged and interested in the Sacraments. Not an easy task! I love my classes, both are very different groups of students, but they always make me laugh and I’ve been surprised to learn how much I enjoy being around high schoolers. I really like getting to know my students better and being able to connect with them because I am so close to their age. I am learning a lot about being a teacher and what works and what doesn’t work in the classroom. Some days I feel severely under qualified for dealing with the issues at hand, but other days I feel like I know just what to do.

I am not sure how regularly I will be able to update this blog, we do not have internet at home. I’ll try to keep you all update on life in the MidWest, its definitely different then life on the East Coast!

Me, Mills, Ali, Wats, and Liz at orientation in Indiana!