the journey begins

So the lovely people of the missions offices at the PCUSA have already said that it's more effective to write letters than to blog during my year in service. However, they were referring, first off, to the time spent there, which hasn't started yet, and they were referring to the people who would be funding me, of which I have yet to have any. Besides, blogs are a great, impersonal way to let the world (wait, that's creepy) know what exactly it is I'm up to. So I'm starting this in the hopes that a) people want to keep up with what's going on, and b) that those reading will still find the need to e-mail me, call me, or write me personally. I will still be a furious mail correspondent (something I honestly have never been good at, but will try sincerely), but this little blog is for your benefit, and partially my own as I will be able to read too.

Well, hang on, HA! I haven't even really said what's going on....

So for a brief introduction for those of you who don't know me....

My name is Rachel Elizabeth. I'm 22 years old at the present time (although I will be 23 by the time this is all finished with) and have recently graduated from college with a BA in Fine Arts, which I'm sure will get me far....

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Anyway, I've grown up in the church. My mother, when I was born, was a Baptist minister. Please don't get the wrong idea, she is a hardened liberal, and the church is not what you typically think when you think "Baptist" (which let's remember that Baptist churches are autonomous and aren't really subject to the whole Presbyterian hierarchy of GA, Presbyteries and Synods). Through a weird series of events (which I will share if you ever ask), she became an ordained Presbyterian minister (which nullified her Baptist ordination). Since she became a minister, I've been very involved in events of the church. I was a member of the youth council (something very important for the future of the church I feel) and attended a Presbyterian college where I was involved in a lot of Presbyterian organizations. Granted, that alone does not make me the next poster child for the PCUSA, but it has kept me involved. So when I was choosing what to do with my life for the next year, I looked to the church for a nice gap year experience.

Granted, this whole exploit started off as an excuse to go to Scotland. I have a large personal investment in Scotland being really the only ancestry I know, and being something that is linked a lot to my family. Please don't judge; again, I will fully explain if you ask. Still, I found out I could serve in Scotland through the Young Adult Volunteer Program of the PCUSA for a whole year and of course, immediately began the paperwork.

Now, the YAV program is both an international and a national program that places young adults (I think college grad-28) in sites for a year of service. All of the sites are very specific to their areas, so saying what actually goes would take forever. Plus they change from year to year and no one has received their specific site placement yet. I also couldn't name all of the national sites, but some of the internationals include Guatemala, Peru, the UK, N. Ireland, India, Ghana, Kenya, Egypt, and the Philippines. (that actually may be all of them).

So anyway, I signed up and after you complete your application you have about fifty different phone interviews (three, actually) and in one, you hear about all of the international sites (which is what I wanted to do as Scotland is not in the US). So I began hearing about all of these sites and hearing the world "calling". Well if my need to go to Scotland was anything, it wasn't a calling, at least besides a personal one. I heard about a lot of places that had some really great programs going on, and thinking, if I am begin called to this, where am I begin called.

Well it wasn't the UK (although, there are a lot of great opportunities in that site). Eventually, through a long process that I'll share later, I was eventually placed with the Philippines.

Which brings us, finally, to this blog. This particular travel journal is for the purpose of relaying my trip, prior, during, and post, to all those interested. Granted, things are already rolling, so I've kind-of missed the boat there, but feel free to keep up or just check in whenever you please. I'll try to keep photos coming and all that jazz. So that's the double edged sword of the internet. Even though I'm half way across the world, I'm right here...only truth be told it's not very personal and you can't hear my voice or hold my hand...but just wait...one year isn't forever.

Although, I'm thinking now it may be a lifetime...