Last Day of Orientation

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change

Courage to change the things I can

and wisdom to know the difference.

This week has been incredible. Everyone here is amazing. I've made some incredible friends, not all of whom I will be serving with next year, and you can check out links to some of their blogs to the right. This is the first year they have had a combined orientation for the national and international sites, so I've met people who will be serving all over the place--Hollywood, New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, Atlanta, Miami, Cincinnati, Tucson, Alaska, Guatemala, Peru, India, Kenya, and of course, Northern Ireland.

Much of the time here has been dedicated to ways we can take care of ourselves in the dark times of the coming year, which is why I opened this post with the Serenity Prayer. I've also been thinking a lot this week about the Prayer of Saint Francis:

"Lord make me an instrument of Thy peace;

where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy;

"Oh Divine Master,

grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console

to be understood as to understand

to be loved as to love

for it is in giving that we receive

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life"

On a lighter note, worship here has been incredible, and in the hope of bringing you into that, here are some videos.

From Thursday Night

The Call to Worship: "N Nung Yah Dah"

Post-Worship Jam Session

Orientation Day One

I wasn't planning on posting today, but other events have changed plans. Today has been very strange for me, obviously one of beginnings, but also one of endings. I was pulled out of one of the first meetings of today to find out that my grandfather has passed away. He'd been unwell, and it wasn't a surprise in that sense, but he'd been unwell for so long that it feels fresh in a way.

It's also difficult, being here, away from family, away from so many of my common comforts, but it is also good that I'm so busy, or at least, it's helping me right now, even if I sometimes feel awkward or guilty for laughing at a joke, but I've just been so in and out of everything today, I can't fathom what I should be doing, the excitement I feel about what we're doing here is great as a counter, but I worry that I'm not mourning properly, that I can't here. His funeral won't be until January, they are holding that off so my Mom can get back, and I might be able to come back for that.

I wish I could talk about the rest of today, what kinds of things we've done for orientation and what not, but I honestly just don't remember it, my focus has been so many other places. Bizarrely enough, the thing that keeps popping into my head is a paraphrase of an explanation Langdon Gilkey gave in testimony at the trial described in his book Creationism on Trial of the difference between science and religion using weather.

"Why are we having rain today', well, the answer is because of a cold pressure front and so forth and so on. That kind of `why' question, but the kind of `why' question that is quite different, `why did it happen to rain on my wedding', is not the kind of question the weatherman will be able to answer."

Gilkey is implying that the weatherman cannot answer that question because that is a question for God and religion, not science. It is an excellent example of how religion and science are different, and I have often used it in that context, but it is much less pleasing when the refrain I just keep thinking 'I understand why he died, he was over 90 years old, but Why, my Lord, did he have to die today?'

I do not doubt that there is purpose, and reason to this timing, and if I were to be with any group of strangers and near strangers, this is probably the best of them, but even though they are all incredibly wonderful and caring people, I just don't know how to receive their care. Perhaps that is what I'll have to learn from this, but it still really sucks.

Oh, we took a Myers-Briggs test today, I flipped from an I to an E (NFP). I've got to say, I'm kind of curious about that switch.

And now I'm late for dinner, so I'm going to go eat.

Leaving

So here I am, sitting in CHO waiting for my plane to board. I'll fly from here to Dulles, than on to La Guardia for a week of orientation in New York. I've had a great weekend, and so many thanks to those of you who showed up Saturday night, and to the people who held it down last night as well. I hope all of your years are well, and I'll remain very accessible to all of you through electronic means. It's crazy to think that I will be getting on a plane to Belfast next week. Crazy that I'm finally leaving UVa after 6 years, and Charlottesville after 24. I'll miss you all so much that it can't be put in words.

Of course, I suppose there is the chance that my trip could be abbreviated. I still don't have my visa, but hopefully something can be worked out to get it to me there. Clearly though, WorldBridge, the company that runs some of the visa process, does not want to be helpful.

"Dear Applicant,

Thank you for contacting WorldBridge Service, The UK Border Agency's Commercial Partner. We appreciate your patience regarding the response to your enquiry as WorldBridge strives to provide the most accurate responses to all enquiries. Below you will find the response to that enquiry.

You should submit a fresh entry clearance application. This means new form, new photograph, new biometrics and new fee.

Please note that you will not be able to respond to this email. If you have additional questions submit a new enquiry via email free of charge by visiting the WorldBridge website at www.worldbridgeservice.com.

When submitting a new enquiry, please reference the case number from this particular email to ensure thorough processing. Note the case number can be found in the subject line of this email, EX: Reply from WorldBridge Service for CaseNumber :00000123.

Thank you again for contacting WorldBridge.

Very sincerely yours,

WorldBridge Service

WorldBridge Service is happy to provide you with this information. Please note, however, that the decision to issue or refuse an entry clearance is made solely by Entry Clearance Officers at the British embassy. WorldBridge staff has no power or influence over the success of applications. WorldBridge staff may offer application information but may not offer immigration advice."

That is the email I received just a few minutes ago. I am feeling some slightly un-christian feelings toward them right now. Seriously, I leave in a week. It took three weeks for my first application just to get there. So now they want me to pay them ANOTHER $212? I say thee NAY Worldbridge, there has to be a better way. Like having the people renting my parents house overnight it for me if I have to, it's expensive, but it's a lot cheaper than the WorldBridge bombing bridges out from under their customers method, and doesn't involve restarting what was a multi-week process.

I'm tired, it's early, and I didn't sleep last night, so I feel like that email has gotten more attention than I meant to pay it. This was supposed to be a nice, touching goodbye post from the terminal, but they took that away from me.

VISA: I can't leave the country without it

So, problems with my visa. Apparently they have my passport, but not the rest of my application. Ok, I put them in separate packages, my fault. What really gets me is the fact that I sent both priority mail, which is supposed to be 2-3 days, but in my case took 12. This on top of all the other pre-leaving stress is not making me a happy person. A few people have tried to reassure me, rightly pointing out that God is more powerful than the British Consulate, but I'm starting to wonder if this is happening because I am not meant to go.

I know I shouldn't have so much doubt, but it seems like just as I've gotten over my fear OF going, now I get to be afraid that I'm NOT going.

In the interest of com batting my fear by facing it, here is a rundown of what the Visa application process is:

First, under new U.K. law, I have to be "sponsored" by an organization within the U.K. This was a small problem in that I am being sent and funded by PC(USA), and American organization as the name would imply. Conveniently, this was not MY problem, except that I couldn't begin applying until Doug (the site coordinator, hi Doug!) had secured this for all of us, which was something new for him since I don't think he had to do this last year.

So, sponsorship has now been arranged, so I get an email with my sponsor and sponsorship number, allowing the visa office to verify it. This means I can start the application process.

The first part of it is to fill out this online form/questionnaire that is rather thorough (my parents dates and places of birth, every trip outside of the U.S. I have taken in the last 10 years...). Once that is done I print that out, and make an appointment to go to an immigration center where they take my picture and fingerprints. The closest one to me is 3 hours away with traffic, or 3 and a half hours away without. I pick the one with traffic since it is also close to someone I wanted to see before I left, we had a lovely lunch. Or would have if I hadn't been so nervous.

So, that done, picture and fingerprints taken, plus a stamp on a form indicating that I had done that, put that form, the printed form from online, a letter indicating that pretty much that I will have enough money to house, feed and clothe myself, and various other supporting documents indicating that I am who I say I am, and, of course, my passport (oops) in the mail to California.

Most of that went smoothly, but with the slow mail delivery combined with my being an idiot and mailing things separately...

OK, well, that didn't really help, but the three people who read this will now be more educated. Or something.

OK, well, I'm going to go back to laundry, packing and cleaning.

Update 7:40 PM

I threw the pants I was wearing into the last load of laundry. I forgot to take my phone out of the pocket. I caught it before the agitator started, so hopefully it just encountered water and not soapy water, but I may not have a phone.

Presumably, the people in the visa office work normal hours...in which case they close in 20 minutes. They have my home number, but I won't be here on Monday when they reopen.

Let's hope they have my email address.

Update 8:00 PM

Just got an email, they have everything together, so that's good. Promises to make a decision within 10 business days, so let's just hope that they decide a bit quicker than that...

Update 9:00 PM

This may well be my longest post ever with all these updates, but I think I saved my phone. Vacuum cleaner/hair dryer combo for the win!

Dates

So I just received my ticket information to Belfast, completing my travel arrangements (minus my entry visa). I fly out of Charlottesville a little after 10 AM Monday, the 24th. I'll spend a week in Stony Point, New York for orientation with all the other YAVs from every site, both national and international, then, at 9:20 PM on the 31st the Belfast nine will fly out of Newark, landing in Belfast at 9 AM, so it's a 7 hour flight with a 5 hour time difference...I imagine we will all be very tired the first few days of September.

The only uncertain element left is my visa, which is applied for, so we'll see what happens with that. I am really starting to freak out though, it's only 2 weeks until I leave for orientation, and in three weeks and a day I will be in Belfast, an exciting, but scary thought for me; it's really starting to hit me how much I'll miss you all.

OK, enough musing, time to get back on the beach.

Beach

So I know it's been a while since I've posted, but there hasn't been a whole lot to report. I've applied for my Visa, and as far as I know everything is right on that front/in the mail on the way to them to be checked, a little late in the game, I know, and I'm a bit worried about that, but I couldn't send anything in until after getting my fingerprints and picture taken at an Immigration Center (oddly enough a U.S. run one), and I didn't get that appointment until the 31st of July. All in all, things are well, though I am beginning to freak out that I'll be leaving so soon...so many things I want to get done, and so little time left. Here's hoping a week at the beach with the family (and all three of my nephews, yay!). I may even post some pictures...we'll see.