the oversized enterprise
Hey people!
Sorry about the whole not posting in A really long time thing. I've been adventuring in the village of ouzinkie and leave for the weeklong mainland trip tonight! Yippee!
Start looking for new posts in a week or so. I love you all!
Rach
meanwhile, check out my best friend hannah's blog at hannahgordon.tk
peace
so I haven't written a new post in a while... sorry about that.
So here's what's been happening in between my last post and present time.
We go on these random hikes during the week sometimes and it's fantastic. By the end of the day everyone is completely exhausted and ready to sleep, but one person says "hey y'all! lets all climb Old Woman (a small mountain nearby)." and so we do...
Usually on our midweek ventures we get back around 10:30 pm, which is just fine because it's light outside ALL the time. You can fit so much stuff into one day when it doesn't get dark until 1 am! So this week we climbed Old Woman and went gill netting.
Old Woman:
Old woman is this "small" mountain near Kodiak. It's supposedly the easy one. Chyea right! Almost died.. It's like 45 minutes of straight up. straight up. ....
But we made it! It was sooo satisfying. So now we're on to bigger and better mountains! There's one called Barometer that's like the mountain of all mountains. GRRR!!
Gill Netting:
WAAAAAAHHHHH!! This happened on Wednesday, which was pretty much one of the greatest days of my life.
The weather was b-e-a-utiful! Sunny and calm waters.
So what gill netting is, is casting out a large, really long net that the fish swim into and get all tangled up. We then either take a little boat and "pick" the net, untangle the salmon one by one from the net as they come in, or pull the entire net in after a few hours and get the fish at the same time. We picked the net.
So four or so, of us would get into this tiny floating boat, off of the larger boat, named Diakonos, and pull ourselves along the net until we reach the trapped fish. We then proceed to pulling the fish and part of the net into our tiny boat, so the fish won't flop out when we free it, and slaying the catch. All the while, this tiny raft-like boat is bouncing around on the waves, and is slowly filling with water.. and fish blood/slime/scales. It reached a point where I was sitting half on top of a friend of mine, and half in a large puddle of blood. Hard core man!!! Besides being rather gross, it was rather awesome. It seems like in the past i would have been totally grossed out by being covered in slime and guts, but I kind of embraced it! I felt so alive and in tune with nature. My hands were nearly numb from the cold water and pants were soaked completely. soooooooo wonderful. we caught ten nice Red Salmon!! Best tasting fish in the sea.
AHHH! Pasagshak!
So today was probably the warmest day so far, so we decided to go swimming at the beach!
What a wonderful day it was!
We drove about an hour to this fantastic place called Pasagshak, to surfer beach. There were actual surfers there! Like, people surfing! Now, they were in full body wet suits, but still! I think the water is about 40 or 45 degrees. Huge, crashing waves that were the perfect shade of blue rolled on in. The sand is black and nice and warm from the sun! Just perfect AHH!
So, because all of us here at KBM are a little crazy, we decided to go swimming! And by swimming I mean sprint into the ocean as fast as possible, leap into the frigid waters, scream a little and run back out. I managed to stay in for a minute or two, until my legs started to go numb. It was so exhilarating!! It's so cliche, but I felt so alive! not to mention, I was easily in one of the most beautiful places in the world.
The beauty of ANYWHERE in Kodiak is just so much more awesome than anywhere else.
ok so to top the day off, the Lord decided to give us more gifts! MORE!
We could see whales off on the horizon all afternoon, but they were too far to really be interesting. Then, Hannah screamed, "Look! A whale, RIGHT THERE!" About a hundred feet from the shore was a whale. A freaking HUGE WHALE! right there! Just rolling around in the surf. My mind still can't really comprehend the fact that I was staring at one of the world's largest mammals, in the wild, so close. Only Jesus can create such a perfect situation. We followed the animal down the beach for several minutes, as it would wave to us with it's gigantic fin.
To add the icing to the cake, there were cute little seals that would swim around every once in a while. it was pretty much the Discovery Channel in real life.
And to add the icing to the icing, we saw a wild buffalo in the road on the way home. just standing there, meandering along. so so so so so wonderful.
Thanks, again, Jesus!!
This morning we went to a Russian Orthodox church service. It was completely opposite of everything i'm used to. They stood, with women on one side and men on the other, and literally sang almost the entire three hour service. No pews, no hymnals, just standing and singing the must beautiful music! They had gorgeous voices! I really loved how everyone was creating the worship service, instead of sitting and listening to one person. It was one big family, worshiping together. They were so welcoming, and loved us being there! Afterward, they served a brunch of halibut, brown rice, watermelon and other deliciousness, and read stories of Orthodox martyrs in history. Greatly great day.
Should be posting pictures in a day or two! If you wish, go to facebook and look at my pictures there, and the ones i'm tagged in!
Rachel's Facebook
Click on "rachel's facebook" to go there!
Awesome.
Thanks for keeping up with my adventures!
AHHH! no time! no time!
So here's some pictures of adventures we went on this week. Hopefully there will be a full out blog soon. very soon.
I'm doing Challenge Course camp this week! a.k.a. Ninja Strike Force training camp.
Totally. awesome.
We have great behavior here at KBM.
Here's a video to prove it!!
One week is already gone!! whoa!
So here's this week's sixteen fast facts. Yippee!
1. Kathy Crabtree is the most amazing woman in the world. : Kathy is a woman on our entirely college age team, who's late 50s in age. She's also more energetic than everyone else there. She's been EVERYWHERE! She can lead a group of unmanageble children with ease. When asked what she was afraid of, she answered, "nothing." She fits right in! The other night she baked the most delicious homemade cinnamon rolls. greatest smell ever. Kathy Crabtree is Chuck Norris in woman form. She rules. Really.
2. Once you go watch, you never go back. : pretty sure i will never not wear a watch again.
3. Showers are valuable. : One house. 15 girls. One shower. It's all a gamble anytime anyone wishes to shower. I love it. and i love living in community, something I wasn't sure about. I guess there's going to be 21 girls here at once. IN-tense.
4. First Kayak paddle = sorry trapezius muscles. : so we went for a very short Kayaking trip to learn all the rules and such. Thought I was doing great, until the next day. The trapezius muslces are the ones that run down the back of your neck and back. It feels like someone punched them. darn these woman arms!!
5. Cell phones are dumb. : Yep! Never use my phone, and it's wonderful. There is, in fact, cell service here, but my phones floats around the bottom of my backpack. I love feeling so totally free from the outside world. What's happening in the news? Don't even care.. :)
6. I haven't even started working with kids yet! .... ? : week long training.
7. Note to #6. I'm terrified of working with kids. : We've been taught this childcare program called Love and Logic. It puts the kids in control, by giving them choices in everything they do. Tell them the things that they CAN do, instead of drilling what they can't, and a bunch of other things. Seems easy right? wrong. It's so much to remember! But i'll do it. I'm actually looking forward to learning this system. I think it'll be awesome in the end. Embrace the fear!!
8. Packing job = 80% effective. : How was my packing job? how do you pack for 2 months? Actually, i'm pretty satisfied with how I packed. I pretty much have everything I need, without too many leftovers. It looked like i was taking my entire house with me (that's for you mom), but really i sacrificed a LOT of things. I backed startingly light compared to other, shorter trips. Great.
9. Pure joy can still be achieved. : So the other day, Erik, Tanisha, Hannah and I decided to go down to The Kodiak Crab Festival after training. A friend gave us tickets to ride The Tornado with her. Four people sit in square around a turn table, where they can spin their section at will. The whole ride lifts these turn tables up and moves in a large circle. We literally just laughed like fools the entire time. Pure childhood joy. It was so so amazing. I love how something so simple can be so awesomely fun. Pretty sure I haven't felt that pure of JOY in years. Years.
10. Judgement is the root of unhappiness. : One things that makes KBM (Kodiak Baptist Mission) so great, is that everyone loves everyone. No matter what. 20 insta-best friends. I've realized that I haven't been this happy in months, maybe even years, because I get so worked up about people judging me, as much as I try not to. Don't judge, people! It's a problem in culture today. People are blinded by judgment and may not ever see the real person. These are the greatest people to be around because you know exactly who they are, and vice versa. I feel like i've already known them for months. I love you guys!!
11. Hands down, I love church/church gatherings. : Frontier Baptist Church had a BBQ last night! WOOOO!!! so much great free food, and great free(?) people! ahhhh.. AND we got nametags. it was great. they had a huge birthday cake that said "Jesus Lives!!!" So much love in that place. Jesus rules. The potluck was followed by a "no talent-talent show." ohhhhhhh High School Musical sing alongs..
12. I don't miss much. : Yeah... i'm super surprised. Only cried once! right as I leaving my mother and step-father in the airport, and that was only for like a second. God has given me such bravery that I didn't realize I was capable of. I love Kodiak so much. I still don't really believe i'm here. I already know that I will live here at some point in my life. I do miss my family, friends and cats though. oh yes.. and heat. i miss heat. it's mid 50s and rainy. It rains every day. more about rain later.
13. Living in Community. : Living in community rules. Three girls in my room! The Lovely Tanisha Bush from Texas, and the dashing Candalina Rivas from southern California, and me of course. Were in room "awesome." And were awesome.
14. Movie nights. : We've been watching a lot of movies at night. weird, i know. But Erik, who works here, is house sitting the most amazing house. Huge and open and cabin-like. It has a home theater in the basement. The sreen uses a projector, it's so huge. Great! we watched Avatar. Good, but not as good as 3D. Mr. Clay Burrows from Alabama (said with a southern accent) and I have also had some Office marathons. I'm so glad someone else can watch six hours of The Office straight like me!
15. First two camps. : So each week is a different camp. One in the morning, and another at night. my first two camps are Treasure Hunting, a.k.a. Pirate Training Camp, SOO excited. ARRH! and Sand Engineering. Sand castles! Yay!
16. Rain. : Kodiak is actually considered a temperate (?) rain forest. It rains every day, but that stops NO ONE. it doesn't even slow people down. I love how everyone here embraces the rain. They love Kodiak and with Kodiak comes rain! Just more to love! We thank God for the sunshine, when it's here. and we thank God for the rain.
16 + 1. Me. : I love being so incredibly free of everything and letting God guide my every move completely. Through this week i've began to relese selfish wants and put it all on God. I'm beginning to see just how much, and in such great detail God's decisions are, even the people we end up sitting next to at lunch/movies/walking were put there for a reason. It all means something. God is sooo powerful.
Yay! you should all get a certificate for reading that whole thing. Novel Blog!!
So down the hill from KBM is the a small beach. About a five minute walk. It's wonderful! It's so different from anywhere i've ever been. Every direction is beautiful. Even the moss on the trees is fantastic.
I think Kodiak tends to suck people in. It only took one day to get me. I'm officially in love! Only God could create this work.
So as mentioned earlier, my roomie Candalina and I explored a small local beach. black sand and mostly rocks. GORGEOUS!
The days are filled with various training activities with "playing with children" time dispersed in between.
Currently the rest of my team is in CPR training, but, luckily, I'm already certified! (woo!!)
Dinners during orientation are at my cousin Kelli and Stephen's house. It's awesome to see familiar faces and my graduation invite on the fridge! :)
ok picture time.
That's a rather large, jagged rock.
So i've been trying to make sure there are pictures with me in them, because it's so hard to believe i'm actually here.
So last night after dinner/training, the group decided to climb Pillar, a local mountain/extremely large hill. Yeah... we climbed it.. it the red 15 passenger van! woot!
Photos do not do this view justice. Words cannot describe the wonder the Lord has made with this island.
That's Kodiak!
I'm poking the boats!
Go wind energy!!
Greetings! Not much time to go into detail about the awesome-amazwondertasticness of this island. The almost exactly 24 hours of travel went startingly fast! I'm so so so excited to begin camp and explore this place.
PICTURES!! (yay!)
1. That's a view from my room! Neat!
2. Another view!
3. That's my house! Ayer Cottage. Apparently there will be 23 girls living here at some point this summer. intense.
4. Everyone loves some airplane pics!
It's so weird packing for this trip. instead of "10 pairs of underwear" the list reads "All underwear possible." I've always taken plenty of pairs of underwear, usually twice what i think i will need. so here, packing for two months? all underwear.
We leave in four hours, for a 13 hour travel.. overnight. I haven't decided if that's a good thing or not. good, because i can sleep easier. bad, because it's dark and i won't be able to see the pretty scenery on the flights up! hmmm..
It's a very surreal feeling. I've been waiting for this for months and now the day is here! how time flies! I would always think about how excited i was for Kodiak during track practice. weird! A few days ago i was completely terrified, but then it got a lot better. Said goodbye to all my friends, began packing everything i own into large bags. Now i'm just SUPER pumped. i don't even know if i'm going to cry!! it's nuts!! i'm just so freaking excited!!
wish me luck on my travels and ministries!
so. Two days ago I graduated from high school.. ya know, not a huge deal.. it's not like i'm about to leave the comfort of my home and family for the first time in my life, right? psh.. it's nothing..
........HA! that was sarcasm.The truth is, i AM about to leave the comfort of my home and family, and i AM about to embark on a two month excursion to Alaska! Most days i look in the mirror and say, "What the crap am I doing?" But, most days, i also look in the mirror and try to envision an adventurer, someone awesome and brave, Like my sister annie!!!The thought of working all summer at Kodiak Baptist Mission has been on my mind for a very long time. I was encouraged to send in an application before i had even committed, and so i did! My sister worked there for a summer in 2008, so i had a reference to answer all my questions. lots and and lots and lots of thinking followed...I have been through some difficult and just plain weird things emotionally this year, and it seemed like every time i was in a low spot on the roller coaster, i was super gung ho about going. Was it just to escape? probably.. it couldn't be about that.I realized that i needed this for myself. and for Jesus. I don't know who i am? It's so easy to go about living my easy life in Nebraska.. going to college with a bunch of people i already know.. never having to leave my comfort box.This needed to happen. for Me and for Jesus.Now i'm so excited. and SO terrified. but more excited, to completely open myself up to the world and God. I'm ready to not have an ounce of comfort in my life, because that when you can truly find yourself. I know i know.. cheese fest! But it's so true! cliches are cliche for a reason.So. Hello God. i'm no longer in high school. I'm vulnerable, scared and confused, but i'm darn well ready to let you shape me in to the Rachel i'm supposed to be!let adventure number ONE in my official post-high-school life BEGIN!(que gong bang)
