Week 13 - Cruising Colorado
Spending this past week in my hometown of Colorado Springs, we were able to work with a halfway house for recovering addicts supported by a Russian Pentecostal church. We were connected through a friend of my parents, Slavik. Slavik is from Ukraine and is involved with the church. He has spent a significant amount of time at the house with the three guys who live there: Artem, Gus, and Artem (yes, two Artems). During our time adding drywall to their chapel, I learned how much Slavik has sacrificed to help these guys out and it shows by the respect they have for him. At one point, we were working with the guys in the chapel and we saw Slavik’s truck pull up. As one should, I threw out the idea to scare him when he walked in. They were confused at this idea. They mentioned how Slavik was such an amazing guy and did not deserve to be scared. One reason they were confused might be the difference in cultures and our jokes did not always hit well with their humor … but I think more importantly they have so much respect for Slavik because he has had a profound impact on their recovery through his consistency in their lives.
One of the amazing aspects of this trip is experiencing situations we would not typically experience. Truly, I have not spent any time with people from Russia or Ukraine, so it was a treat to get to share stories, work together, and experience some of the traditions and meals (I learned that Russian Olive Salad is good but Russian Beet Salad is not so good). Time with people from different backgrounds and cultures is life-giving even though it can be uncomfortable at times. Hayden and Emily Brown, two of my best friends from Clemson who now live in Colorado Springs, gave up an off-day from work to lend us a hand. Trying to get people to understand what we are doing this year can be tough, so bringing people into our work is the best way to explain. Thank you to Slavic, Artem, Gus, and Artem for welcoming the LOST Bus into your community, cooking us warm, tasty, Russian cuisine, and sharing your lives with us.
Later in the week we went on a hut trip near Leadville, CO with my parents and a group organized by their friends. 15 of us hiked to the hut at 12,000 feet and spent two nights together without running water BUT with a fire burning stove to keep us warm and a beautiful view of the Rocky Mountains to keep us entertained. Our time was spectacular: avalanche lessons, skiing through the backcountry, hiking under a full moon, melting snow for drinking water, and so much more. Cain and Davis are already researching how to enter the lottery system so we can reserve a hut for a trip with our friends next year.
I realized our trip was very similar to our time at the Russian halfway house, and other service work we have done over the past few months. When we set off on our grueling hike, everyone approached it with the same end goal in mind: to arrive at the hut. Some prepared a lot (my mom was hiking with weights in her backpack prior to the trip), and others not as much. We struggled together, and because of that we bonded together. Although at the beginning I did not know everyone in our group, by the end of the trip the entire group was very close, much closer than you would expect after two days together. In the same way, many of our weeks on the bus have felt similar. We have worked closely with new people to serve others, and through our time we have bonded from working with the same mindset.
Thank you to Jeff Weeks for taking all the amazing photographs. Check out more of his work on his website - Show the Story.
Being back in Colorado for these past 2+ weeks has been amazing for many reasons, but one reason that sticks out is time with my parents. Throughout our journey, families have welcomed us in and we have viewed different family dynamics. Although we have seen amazing families with parents who have raised great kids, I would not change a thing about how my parents raised me. My parents often ask my siblings and I what we would change in how they parented us. I continue to struggle to come up with an answer. I am a mix of my parents and I am proud of that - in their good ways and bad ways. I have my mom’s goofiness and energy, and my dad’s leadership. I love both of them dearly, and they constantly remind me how much they love me. What a gift to be with them these weeks and include them in this amazing journey I have embarked on with Davis and Cain.
The Bus will continue time in Colorado moving to Fort Collins to work with my cousin Nate at his non-profit, Vindeket.
Spent time with Brian (Biscuit) Reichel who is the brother/uncle of the Reichel family who hosted us in Wauchula, FL week 1.
