life’s not a paragraph

we had our first class for my alternative winter break trip on friday! in case you don’t know what that is, alternative winter break is much like alternative spring break; we are going to be working with habitat for humanity during the second half of our winter break. the major difference between asb and awb is that instead of working domestically in the united states, awb takes place in EL SALVADOR! wohoo!

there is a history class attached to the trip because we are going to a country that is still recovering from a twelve-year-long civil war, and much of the reasons why we are going there is because of this terrible war. this week we had our first few meetings. social justice training on thursday (it’s a presentation provided by diversity services to help people learn a little bit more about discrimination/oppression/advantage in the global society). our first class was friday night. and then we all volunteered as a group for the first time saturday at the boston local food festival!

the festival was awesome. i am so glad that i got a chance to be a part of it! there were so many amazing people and incredible vendors. we worked as “zero-waste ambassadors” which makes us sound really fancy, but what we really did was stand near the compost, trash and recycling bins to make sure that people put the right waste in the right bin. i know it sounds a bit unglamorous but it was actually really fun! they were trying to divert 90% of the waste from the event to compost or recycling, so our job was incredibly important. and it’s amazing how much people don’t know about their trash. (just so you all know- food is compostable. nature at its best. i can’t even tell you how many times i would be asked after i told them to put their plate in the compost bin, “but it’s got chicken on it”).

i got to talk to some really great people and meet some really interesting people. it’s amazing how much the boston area has to offer. we are always so quick to go to the big national brands. i’ve determined after saturday that equal exchange makes some of the most delicious coffee i have ever tasted on this side of the atlantic, farm fresh eggs make the BEST breakfast sandwiches and a booth filled with fresh vegetables and fruits is one of the most beautiful things i have ever been lucky enough to see.