Preparing God's Kingdom - an Advent Reflection

The following is a reflection by Anna Mayer, one of this year's Little Village Volunteers.  Anna shared this with the Amate community during her house's Los Posadas-themed Advent reflection.

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.
As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way.
A voice of one crying out in the desert: “Prepare the way of the Lord,  make straight his paths.”
John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
People of the whole Judean countryside and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem
were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.
John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist.
He fed on locusts and wild honey.
And this is what he proclaimed:
“One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.
I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”   - Mark 1:1-8

I think I have a lot to learn from John the Baptist. He does come off a little crazy in this passage, eating locusts and all, but at LV we ate the ants that made their way into our peanut butter, so who am I to judge? But in all seriousness, I find John’s radical simplicity both inspiring and challenging. His ability to live with so little offered him the freedom to travel and preach the word of God. As I struggle to commit myself to a simplicity that my friends find difficult to understand, I need to remind myself why I’m doing it—to live in solidarity with those I serve, gain a better appreciation for what I’ve been given, and ultimately to bring me closer to God. Because in getting closer to God I learn how to better prepare the way of the Lord by building His kingdom.

This Advent season I have been asking myself how I can build the Kingdom of God, and ironically enough, I’ve decided that I need to start by tearing down much of what society has built. We need to start by tearing down the structures and systems that create injustice and divisions among us.

Recapping the SOA Protest

The following is a reflection by Michael Pederson, one of this year's South House Volunteers.

Saturday morning, the 20^th of November greeted me unexpectedly, somewhere between Indiana and Georgia I had miraculously fallen asleep on the bus full of SOA protesters from DePaul, headed to Fort Benning, Georgia.  SOA stands for “School of the Americas”, and although the institution is now officially labeled as another name, its purpose remains; to train Latin American soldiers. As I stretched and painfully moved my overly stiff neck around, I was captivated by the beautiful landscape surrounding me; forests and hills and land! A stark contrast from the cement-laden city of Chicago, I was once again filled with the butterflies of adventure, I was headed to Georgia, to the fabled SOA protest I had heard about for so many years.  I had never been able to attend in college so when Amate offered to set us up to follow with DePaul for a small fee, I was in.  Friday night our trio of Amate House Volunteers, Colin , Lindsay, and I found ourselves entering the DePaul student commons, feeling older and more experienced than these undergraduate creatures we so recently were.

As we rolled into Columbus, Georgia, where we were to spend the night, I slipped on my headphones and put on one of my favorite songs, “The Adventure” (Check it out, it’s great!) and could feel I was about to be part of something way bigger than me. After checking into the hotel, we drove off to Fort Benning to add to the crowd gathering outside the gates of the SOA. As we walked down the coned-off road, which would hold the main events of the protest for the next 24 hours, I felt very intimidated and anxious.  Flanking us on each side were multitudes of police, most of them very large and stone-faced.  Looking around amongst the people trickling down the wide road, I was surprised of the polarity between the police and the protesters. Not one person that I saw on the way to the protest even displayed a trace of violence or a threatening look. By the end of the trip I would estimate the total police count to be over a hundred, not to mention the soldiers; I don’t even want to think about how many thousands of dollars was spent on their unneeded security.

The Changing Faces of Chicago

The following is a reflection written by Lindsay Williams, one of this year's North House Volunteers.

This year I am working as an Oral Health Educator at a community health clinic, and a large part of my job is to give dental health presentations at schools and community centers around the city.  As a result I have been ping-ponging all over Chicago to present to parenting groups and schools in diverse neighborhoods.  Driving the alleged “grid system” of Chicago without a GPS has been a (slightly stressful) crash course in orienting myself in this city that seems to morph and expand exponentially each day,  but this has been one of the aspects of the year that I feel most blessed to have.  Because I spend hours and hours each week navigating the streets from my scribbled Google Maps directions I have had an opportunity to observe some of the most interesting, and most challenged, areas of the city.

People in Chicago really identify by their neighborhoods, and each and every neighborhood has its own unique taste.  One thing I have noticed as I drive around is the abrupt and significant shifts that occur in neighborhoods in just a few blocks.  These shifts can be seen clearly in the types of stores, restaurants, language, and populations of neighborhoods.  I can drive down one street for a few miles and feel like I have passed through ten different towns.

Giving Thanks

The following is a letter that Little Village House Volunteer Melissa Carnall sent to friends and family in this season of Thanksgiving.

Dear Friends and Family,

I hope this letter finds you enjoying some crisp near-winter weather!  Will you grab a cup of tea or coffee and join me as I share a bit about what I’m up to here in the windy city of Chicago?

As you probably know, when summer drew to a close and my days of post-grad relaxation and snuggling with my precious nephew dwindled in number, I set out on an adventure to a city that I knew nothing about…Literally, I had to look up what Great Lake Chicago bordered (Lake Michigan) and I didn’t even know that the Sears (well, Willis) Tower is in Chicago. But I packed my bags and flew north to this city I’d never been… and Chicago quickly won my heart! Some naysayers like to tell me I might change my mind come winter though. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it!

But something that has won my heart even more than Chicago is Amate House itself. Amate House is the Catholic young adult volunteer program that I currently have the blessing to be a part.  Amate House is actually three houses throughout the Chicago area. I live in the one in a predominantly Mexican immigrant neighborhood called Little Village or La Villita. Here in Little Village, I live in community with 8 other volunteers. We like to say that you can’t spell ‘love’ without LV.

Amate Thanksgiving 2011!

What a special occasion Amate Thanksgiving was this year! For those of you who are unfamiliar with our Thanksgiving tradition, we invite Alumni, Board members, parents of Volunteers, and other friends to join us for a weekend of football, a special liturgy, and (of course) a big traditional meal. It's always a wonderful time. This year, we had the added joy of dedicating our new Little Village house!

Look below for some of the weekend's highlights!

Team Alumni gets ready for action

Team Volunteers huddles up pre-game

Fall Retreat Recap!

Courtney Hardebeck, one of this year's Little Village House Volunteers, created a video of some of the highlights from our recent Fall Retreat weekend in Watervliet, Michigan. We hope that you enjoy it!

Self-discovery Through the Enneagram

The following is a reflection written by Earl Carlos, one of this year's Little Village House Volunteers.

One of my reasons for joining Amate House is to find out a little more about who I am by immersing myself in the neighborhood I am living in, by getting to know the stories of my co-workers and clients and by being inspired by my vibrant and loving community. The more open we are to experience, to change and to life itself, the more we will slowly and gradually uncover life’s mysteries and beauty; an unsaid and unexplainable beauty that takes conscious effort and perseverance to unveil. Deciding to spend a year with Amate House is a part of my effort to uncover that, and finding out about our personalities is just another small part of that lifelong process.

Our In-Service Day this past week took us to meeting a lady who is very passionate about the Enneagram. The Enneagram is a tool used to recognize our hidden and not-so-hidden tendencies of our personalities. It classifies individuals under 9 different types, each type being highly significant and interconnected to the other types. Everyone was very excited and open to the experience and it was definitely interesting actively trying to ‘type’ ourselves under a certain personality. It is very important to remember, as emphasized by our speaker for the day that identifying and recognizing our type is not supposed to trap us or destine us to be that type for the rest of our lives. Identifying and coming to grips with our type is supposed to help us find ways to free ourselves from both our hidden and not-so-hidden “kinks and quirks.”

A Day in the Life of an Amate Volunteer

The following is a reflection written by Katie Pollard, one of this year's South House Volunteers.

After pressing snooze on my alarm three times, I frantically pull myself together in the morning and hop in the red van with McKenna for the routine drive from South House to Academy of Saint Benedict the African. Upon arrival at the Catholic elementary school in Englewood, I greet a vibrant classroom filled with eager fifth-graders completing the morning work assigned by Ms. Schallock (Amate alum ’10-’11). This is my first year working in a school, and as the assistant teacher for fifth grade (slash substitute teacher, religion teacher, and extended day staff member), I have come to realize that the rest of our structured days in the school will in fact be wonderfully unpredictable. Our schedules are as set as they can be in elementary school, but every day in my first month at work has had its own set of challenges and joys.

I am still adjusting to my new role as educator and role model, adapting to school mores and procedures, and getting to know the students and their stories. Low moments (or I suppose I will call them “opportunities for growth”) include: my somewhat frequent inability to take control of chaotic groups or motivate students to “keep their voices off” at appropriate times; frustration when students struggle to understand lessons; and the not infrequent act of misbehavior or backlash of attitude. Every day I learn from the staff, students, and my own mini successes or failures how to improve as a teacher, leader, and friend. High points (which always make the moments of frustration seem less important) include: the excitement on students’ faces when a topic truly excites them or “clicks”; frequent hugs, hilarious comments, and unsolicited kindness; and unexpected questions about life, God, and everything from seals to my love life. Although it can be easy for me to get frustrated, the kids and their genuine goodness help me to keep everything in perspective. At the end of the day, I am there to help them realize their full potential. They push me to cultivate the unselfish patience and thoughtful understanding that this task will require.

Carrying on in Community

The following is a reflection written by Katy Gill, one of this year's North House Volunteers.

As the story goes, an old, old nun, known as Sister Clotilde lives in limbo amongst us Amate North volunteers, never to have left this convent which was once her home. She lurks about the halls, once inhabited by the habited. (Pun!) Mostly keeping to herself, Sister Clotilde is only spoken of on occasion, when something goes missing, or strange noises are heard. She is very mysterious. She is very inconspicuous. And she is very… made up.

It’s certainly a fun way to entertain ourselves, musing about what Sister Clotilde might be doing with her days in this place. But it’s perhaps more curious to imagine what the real sisters who dwelled here before us, were once doing long before we arrived – the very real sisters, whose ghosts don’t really haunt our bedrooms, but whose legacy has been left behind, and perhaps been a bit forgotten.

To follow in the footsteps of vowed religious life: what big shoes we must have to fill. But the shoes are nowhere to be found. How are we to know whether our feet are really fitting into the sweet little black sneakers that once squeaked about these grounds? We don’t see the faces or know the names of the leaders here before us.

Welcome to Chicago!

The following is a reflection by Tori Dice, one of this year's South House Volunteers.

Considering I am not a native Chicagoan, becoming an Amate House Volunteer has presented me with many more new experiences than just volunteering. For one, I am new to Chicago and this first month has given me a wonderful opportunity to explore the city and begin to appreciate my new home! I never realized how diverse and opportunistic the city of Chicago is. It is a gross understatement to say I am excited to be living in this mid-western metropolis. Between the food and the people, there are so many additional aspects of the city I am learning to appreciate. For instance, each of the city's neighborhoods has its own personality, restaurants, and ethnic roots. Another facet of Chicago is its unique sense of architecture. If you are living in Chicago and have not yet taken the architectural boat tour downtown, then you should. It is an absolute must! One side of Chicago that I have not witnessed, and am apprehensive to endure is the city's brutal winters. Growing up in Nashville and going to school in Los Angeles have only presented me with mild winters. I still need to invest in a good pair of gloves and some waterproof boots. Any suggestions of additional warm attire are greatly welcomed!

Aside from the city itself, Amate House has given me the opportunity to live with nine housemates and experience this year as a community. Living with nine other people is interesting to say the least. For one, there is always something to do and someone to do things with. Although many of us have different personalities and living habits, I am taking this chance to appreciate learning from my housemates and growing as an individual through this community. I am quickly noticing that I need to allot myself alone time and go to sleep earlier. While I love hanging out with my housemates, unfortunately many bonding moments go late into the night. This is an aspect of community living that I am still learning to balance. I guess I am fortunate that this is currently the largest problem I am experiencing at home. Everything is a learning experience and I look forward to embracing those opportunities as they come my way the next nine months!