You know what I did last summer...?

Sorry for the radio silence for the past couple weeks. I've been just a little unmotivated. Actually, that's not the right word, I've been a bit lazy lately. It's cold outside, I haven't started any projects, and I just want to stay home bundled up in warm sweaters sipping hot cocoa and eating any junk food I can find. Honestly, that doesn't exactly inspire very interesting posts. But, the break is over, because even if there isn't currently anything super interesting to write about right now, there is some photos waiting in the wings to be shared.

Last July, I went on a missions trip to Brooklyn, NY with some members of my church, and had a blast. There's a church in Brooklyn that the trip coordinators used to attend that hosts a summer program for the kids in the area. About five blocks from where we were staying is the largest Chinatown in the U.S., and a lot of the children in these families spend their summers mostly unsupervised. Their parents usually work one or two full time jobs to pay their bills, as well as their emigration costs, and when the children aren't in school, they don't usually have a lot of supervision. So, this church hosts a program that teaches the children about the Bible (the whole thing!), as well as tutoring in English and Math, over the course of the summer. Outside groups, such as the one I traveled with, help to present the lessons. We taught a great little group of first graders.

Because of privacy issues, I'm not allowed to post any pictures of the kids we had the privilege of teaching, but I did get to do a lot of touristy stuff during that week as well. The city of New York is usually described as inspiring, beautiful, vibrant, and busy, and after exploring a small portion of the city, I'd have to agree with all those adjectives. My favorite memory? Getting high-fived by a little old man with a butterfly painted on his face riding a bicycle just outside Central Park. It's a great example that anything can happen when you're in New York! Some other favorite memories: