South House Fun Day!

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

As our Amate House experience comes to a close, many of us have struggled to remain focused and present within community.  Amidst the stress of trying to plan what we will be doing post-Amate we continue to work a 40-hour workweek, have numerous Amate House obligations and still attempt to maintain the relationships we have outside of Amate. Needless to say that within this juggling act, often times, we lose sight of why we are in Amate.  So, for our final in-service we took a break from the hustle and bustle of daily life to enjoy a bit of the beautiful Chicago scenery.

Our day began at 9:00 a.m. with a scrumptious breakfast prepared by two of our wonderful roommates.  We enjoyed the relaxed meal over some light-hearted conversation and once again, came to appreciate the community that we’ve formed over these past 9 months.  After breakfast we grabbed our bicycles and headed out into a nearly perfect spring day.  Our bike ride began through the busy city streets of Chicago’s south side, a territory that we at South House have come to know and love.  The scenery took a drastic change as we turned onto the bike paths that follow the gorgeous Lakeshore Drive.  Along the lakefront we stopped for pictures and water and walked along our first destination: Navy Pier.  After a brief rest on the pier we continued north to our second destination: North Avenue Beach. We spent a couple hours at the beach soaking up the sun, playing catch and going for a quick dip in the refreshing lake water.  A few of us were brave enough (stupid enough) to challenge the rays of the sun with SPF 0…the sun won and continues to win every time I move my shoulders.  Content with the tan (or burn) that we received, we hopped back on the bikes and headed to Portillo’s for a late lunch.  With Amate House picking up the tab, we treated ourselves to our first ever community dinner while dining out.  I chose the Italian beef sandwich with hot peppers and a side of fries, a must have if you ever dine at Portillo’s.  Bellies full and bodies burned, we decided to call it a day.  We biked back along Lakeshore Drive all the way down to the south side and cut directly across the south side of the city to our humble abode.  After a few hours of retreating to our rooms and entering various states of coma, the house once again joined together to grill out and enjoy one final community meal for the day.

South House could not have asked for a more perfect day at a more needed time.  The in-service truly helped our house re-focus on the communal aspects of living that had most recently fallen to the wayside.  By taking a break from our day-to-day realities and focusing only on the community in which we live, we re-discovered the beauty that arises from forming a loving, supportive and caring community.