It has been a hectic past few weeks but has been filled with many fun, and not so fun, events. The weekend before Valentine's Day, the Alliance Against Domestic Abuse organization held a chocolate lovers and speaking event in the community. I happened to score a free ticket and ate a nice filling dinner before I went so I wouldn't gorge on sweets. I would not have done that had I known the overflowing amounts of food they had there, as seen by all of the trays when I walked in. I went with some friends and did see some people from work there as well. The weird things I tried included chocolate covered bacon and saffron and orange white chocolate fondue. Next year if I am able to go, I will not eat before hand so I can try all of the delicious appetizers as well. Afterwards, I hung out with a friend at her house and we watched a movie and talked for some much needed girl time. Her little kitten is very lovey and perched up on my shoulder half the night nuzzling in my fake fur collar like I was his nursing mother.
The person I am replacing also likes to take me, and sometimes other coworkers, out for lunch randomly, so I am trying different places around town. Valentine's Day itself we went and got burgers, and I swear that was the best one I've had in a long time. I have also gone to a Mexican restaurant where to the shock of others I poured Habanero hot sauce on my food. I like it spicy! I have been learning more about my position and am mostly going to a lot of meetings and trying to sign up for training. I have been working through a sexual assault course, which will probably take 3-4 weeks to finish, and next week I will be traveling to Ft. Collins for a workshop on domestic violence. The county pays for the gas, hotel and food so of course I'm picking out nice places to go HA HA. It will be good to get out of the mountains for awhile and see some civilization.
It has been a rough past week though, as I have had to deal with four deaths. A loss of a family friend, my step dad's father, and two I got called for work. It has been a trying week for my sleep and sanity, but it makes me grateful for everyday. This is the part of my job that is hard, being with families who have just lost a loved one, but it is actually very gratifying to help them through the process. My first call was of a man who committed suicide by shooting himself, and the second one was a possible heart attack of a man in which his wife was trying to give him CPR. These were both very sudden deaths and traumatizing for the now widows. It was also very interesting to listen to what they had to talk about and who their support systems were. My role in helping them is to notify them of the death (if they haven't been already), explain the procedures for things like investigation and autopsy, make phone calls for them or help them with any needs, and to provide emotional support until they are stable enough to continue on their own or for others get there to take my place (relatives, pastor, friends). I have been through this process so much personally that I can truly empathize with them yet not get wrapped up in their grief.
On the positive side, I have been enjoying other things in life. It was my dads birthday yesterday so I was able to talk to him and catch up. Yesterday, I was able to help a friend and her family address wedding invitations and talk about the upcoming extravaganza. Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend as her wedding is the same day I graduate (for which I will be back in Ohio), but I was able to see some stuff in advance like the cake topper and her dress. Awana has been fun as we had a boot camp night a couple weeks ago, where I got to yell at all the kids as they ran through the obstacle course. This weekend is Grand Prix where they make their own cars out of wooden blocks and race them down a track. I have the hard job a keeping all the cars in order to race, but I think I will be able to handle it. On Wednesday, our church also hosted the community event of a children's church from Watoto in Uganda, Africa to perform and share their stories. I bought some CD's and am now a sponsor for 4 different people at their Watoto camp in Africa. I had such a fun time and would love to go there for a missions trip in the future.
Last of all, this next week is my last week of class and then one more 8 week course until graduation. I am so ready to be done and am having a bad case of senioritis. I am hoping this master's degree will be worth it in the end. When I come home in April, I will be able to go to my mom's last chemo treatment, then the next day is a dinner for graduates, then the next day (Saturday) is commencement. I will be able to stay for the whole week after also! Mom is already feeling pretty bad, so I will probably just do dinner at a restaurant for whoever wants to come and not have a big party. Any one will be welcome and gifts are not necessary, but welcome. As always, any prayers for my family to get through the new few days of funerals, and my mom to feel well from her treatments are appreciated. I'm sure I left out many important things, but my mind is still scrambled from being out late last night on a call. At any rate, I hope that you also find peace and happiness in your day to day life, as you never know when you have to say goodbye. Until next time!
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