Life is Beautiful...

I recently heard this quote, and it really rang true for me: 

Life is beautiful not because of the things we see or do, it is beautiful because of the people we meet.

I got to babysit my nephew and play with him at Gymboree!

Sweet college friends, celebrating John's birthday!

My roommates on Halloween

My roommates took a road trip to Albuquerque for the Hot Air Balloon Festival

Closest friends from high school help my nephew celebrate his first birthday!

• I constantly encounter people on a daily basis with my job. I am blessed by the kids I get to work with and my colleagues. There are so many people in this world that really want the best for kids and people, and I need to remember that. Those people make life beautiful.
• I recently started volunteering with a group of woman who are refugees from Somalia. They have taught me more about culture, overcoming adversity, and beauty more than I could ever teach them.
• I have been energized by conversations with really good friends and my roommates. I am so blessed to have friends that I can live life with. I have friends that listen, dialogue, hug, pray, laugh, and share meals with. 
• I had the opportunity to travel with 6 of my close friends for a girls weekend in Seattle. It was so nice to get away for the weekend and see such beautiful landscape- but also share it with such great friends!
• I worked my other job with older adults last week. I got to work with man who had a stroke, and was having difficulty writing due to right sided weakness from his stroke. I was able to make him a pen with a built up handle to make it easier to write for him. He looked at me, and said "You really helped me today! Thank you so much." He made my day/week/month by saying that. I need to be reminded why I do what I do more often.
• A good friend of mine has recently befriended a blind man. Hearing her stories and how much her friend has overcome has been amazing. It reminds me of how much I take for granted everyday. People who have overcome such obstacles, and still stay strong and positive are so inspiring!



Girls trip to Seattle with some of my closest pals

• I get the whole week of Thanksgiving off of work, and so I have been able to spend time with family, my sweet nephew, and some good childhood friends. I am so blessed by these relationships because these people have known me so long, and we have such roots and loyalty to each other.  

Let it Shine

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
-Marianne Williamson (later said by Nelson Mandela)

Season of life

It's been awhile since I had a day of catching up on me. I'm realizing how hard it is to be still and reflect on the past few months of life. Our society keeps us moving... interacting.. and gives us endless opportunities that I find myself wanting to take part in. But it seems like when we do have a chance to stop.. breathe.. think... is when all that hard stuff comes up- the stuff we've been neglecting because it's just easier to go on living our busy lives sometimes.
After trying to process through the past few months of my life, I am quickly reminded how life is actually not about me at all. I am energized by the lives of the people I get to live life with. Recently, I've gotten to share great celebrations with these people like passing an exam, having a birthday, getting a new job, getting married, having an anniversary, living in the same house for a year, etc. All these events have given me great joy because it gives us an excuse to get together, catch up, share stories, be real. It also gives us reasons to feel blessed and loved and happy. I am realizing the importance of having people in my life to share these moments with. Life should be about celebrating all these things.. as little or big as they may seem.
And even though I tend to be an internal processor, I am thankful for people in my life to process through things with. This week, I was reminded of a quote by one of my roommates, that I really enjoy. The quote was brought up after discussing together many questions we have in life. Instead of being bogged down by unanswered questions, instead of struggling with the why's and how's of life, I think it's important to love the questions.. and live out those questions together.. with people who know you and love you well. So here it is:
"I would like to beg you, as well as I can, to have patience with
everything unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions
themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very
foreign language. Don't search for the answers, which could not be
given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the
point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then,
some day far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing
it, live your way into the answers."  ---Rainer Maria Rilke

So in this season of life that I'm in.. with the colors starting to change, and the weather starting to cool down, I hope that we can live the questions now with those we're living life with... and before we know it, another season will change, and our answers will gradually show up without us even noticing.

Ultimo semana en Peru

With Erin, Jessye and Jill at Machu Picchu

My last day at the school with Nancy, Luz, two students, and a caregiver

With my precious host family

Out with Sandra & Maite, friends from Spain

Summit of Machu Picchu Mountain

With Simi on our Sacred Valley tour

This week I spent the majority of time being a tourist! I spent monday, tuesday and wednesday at the school. I feel like I have finally developed relationships with the students and the teachers there! I made a list in spanish (with a little help) of various fine motor activities that are culturally relevant and helpful for their students. On tuesday night, i went out with my spanish friends and got to try a pisco sour, which is the drink of peru and was quite delicious. On wednesday after working at the school, one of the teachers took me to experience a peruvian wedding. I sat through a traditional catholic mass in spanish at one of cusco's beautiful cathedrals. I even went to the reception for a bit and had tasty treats and drinks. At every table there was a bottle of rum, whiskey, champagne, and wine. I left at 10:30pm before the liquor was even opened! I met celeste (one of the directors of Manos Unidas) out to listen to some typical music from lima and go dancing for a bit. So many people were out to celebrate Dia de Peru, which was actually the following day. I spent my day off relaxing and doing my laundry. I also went out to a big lunch with my host family. My friends came on Friday morning and I took them on a walking city tour of cusco. On Saturday we continued the city tour in the morning and walked up to cristo blanco and sacsayhuaman in the afternoon. It was a difficult trek up for people who are not acclimated to cusco's altitude if 10,000+ ft, but they did great! On Sunday we did an all day tour of the sacred valley. We visited 3 different ruins, a market, and a demonstration of Incan culture. It was super informative and beautiful to see. Then on Monday we headed out in the first train to Aguascalientes so we can spend the day at machu picchu on Tuesday. This experience was really great to end my month in Peru on. There were definitely some frustrations and miscommunications with the whole tour which is very typical, but we did get an entire day in such a beautiful creation and I got to share it with friends. This experience was an entire metaphor on life and that it is certainly not easy and often will be injustice but if you look for it - there is so much beauty and there are so many people around you to share it with you!
I was able to return the school on my final day in cusco. The kids and teachers presented me with a gift and showered me with nice words. It was really good to get a little more time with them before I left. The smiles on the kids faces are truly a joy to see and I am continually encouraged by the compassion and dedication the teachers have for the kids. My sweet host mom took me out for lunch before I left and walked me to the airport and waited for me while I stood in line for an hour to check my bags. It was hard to say goodbye to her because she has very much been my family this month. She has been so patient with me as my Spanish has developed and was so hospitable to me in her home. These experiences always leave me feeling so incredibly blessed to have this opportunity and also to have been given so many comforts living in the USA. I leave with an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the people I have met in cusco and welcomed me with open arms as well as my friends who flew to another continent to travel and tour incan ruins with me.

tres semanas en Cusco

The Therapy room at Manos Unidas

Asiya & I at Sacsayhuaman

Out with Maite & Asiya

3 of the students in the younger autism classroom at Camino Nuevo

At Wachuma reggae bar with Maite, Asiya, and Sandra

Universal cuffs I made for the classroom with children with Cerebral Palsy

Hola y buena tardes de Cusco. My time here has been very satisfying and interesting. Traveling alone really forces me to branch out and meet people and get to know people who are different from me. It´s been so encouraging and rewarding to meet people from all over the world with various different backgrounds, while learning the culture and getting to know many Cusquenians and Peruvians. I had to say goodbye to my volunteer buddy, Asiya last night. She is a physical therapist in Baltimore, Maryland. She taught me a new appreciation for Reggae music and was my travel buddy around Cusco. I´ve also been spending time with two girls from Spain who are doing a education psychology practicum at the school I am volunteering at. They are very patient with me and help me with my Spanish.. and it actually forces me to speak in Spanish if I want to converse with them! My Spanish is certainly getting better- but their seem to be misunderstandings everyday. I´m able to communicate a lot of what I need to, and I am understanding more and more.. but people sure do speak fast.. and I don´t always speak with the best grammar or pronunciation. This experience has certainly been good for my learning though. Above is a photo of my volunteer friends at Wachuma, a Reggae bar in Cusco.

This week, I had the opportunity to visit, help out, and consult at a public school in Cusco for children with disabilities. Kids with disabilities in Cusco are very much separated from their typical peers still. Inclusion is a new concept that they are beginning to adapt. The teachers were very welcoming, and many had questions for me about specific students. There doesn´t seem to quite enough help or teachers aides in the classrooms with the younger kids, so it seemed more like teachers were running around trying to do everything- while kids were getting into things they weren´t supposed to be. But they are providing a structure for them and free education. The children are also very much loved as well.

At Camino Nuevo, the school I am volunteering at, teachers are being trained and given tools constantly by the directors. It is always a work in progress though. In the past couple of weeks, they have had two meetings for parents to set up a support group for them and give them more training with their kids. It´s encouraging to hear that the parents are really taking this on, and using each other for support. It´s sure not easy being a parent of a child with a disability.  I only have 3 more days at the school next week because it is Peru´s independence day next Thursday & Friday, so we get the days off. They like to celebrate everything here in Peru, which is fun! Below is a picture with some of the students with Cerebral Palsy with the teacher, and their caregivers and parents, as well as one of the volunteers from Spain. We were celebrating her birthday. I was able to make some universal cuffs for those kiddos this week with some of the donated supplies I brought to help them with writing, painting and drawing. I will add a picture of those later!

I am getting excited for my friends, Erin, Matt, Jessye, and Jill to come visit next Friday and go to Machu Picchu. I spent this weekend going to a couple of ruins and museums, but it will be great to do more when they get here! Cusco is certainly a beautiful place to visit.
Ciao friends and family! I am missing you guys and look forward to seeing everyone when I return in 10 days or so. I´m also looking forward to warm showers, being able to speak the same language as everyone, and water pressure :)!

Semana dos en Cusco

My Dove dark chocolate wrapper told me this week: "you are exactly where you are supposed to be." I agree with this for right now because this experience has allowed me to share my resources and expertise while learning to speak Spanish and being out of my comfort Zone without some of the amenities I'm used to in the US. It has also forced me to have friendships and form bonds with people very different than me and often don't even speak my native language.
Today I had the opportunity to run a workshop for teachers on strategiEs
and activities in their classroom to help with fine motor development, sensory processing, and whole brain learning. They were very receptive and engaged and I so appreciated their time. Many of them are already doing well with the resources available. Last night at the school they held a meeting/ support group for the parents of the students. When you work with kids with disabilities, you don't just take on the kids, but you take on their families and all the baggage that might come with it. I'm seeing how important it is to address all the parts of the issue and the person. For example, alcoholism, poverty, and abuse are huge problems here and definitely play a role in disability. Therefore addressing those issues could help in further prevention and awareness of disability.
There are many needs to be addressed here.... And everywhere. And it encourages me to meet so many people involved in the cause.
I'm currently reading Henry Nouwen's "Life of the Beloved" and in that book he encourages a newspaper journalist who is discontent in his job to quit his job to do the thing he loves.. Which was to write a novel, but the journalist replied he didn't have the time or money to do that. Henry Nouwen replied, "you are free to do what you want - if that is you really want it." My hope is that I can continue to seek out experiences and people that continue to give me perspective on life and help to create an awareness and love for all people. I recently finished the book The Help, and was also inspired by the women in the book who jeopardized her social status to create an awareness of the inequality and mistreatment of black Americans in the 1960s. It's hard for me to believe that such injustice was occurring in our country just 50 years ago. I am thankful for my teachers and parents teaching me to have intolerance for such racism, prejudices, and mistreatment.
Yesterday, I went on a community outing with a group of young adults at the school with disabilities. Part of the purpose of these outings are to teach the students some functional skills, while also exposing the community to people with disabilities. We went to a sports complex with playing fields and courts. The place was full of athletes and we engaged in some basketball and futbol of our own. When we were there, and even out walking out in the town .. And on the public bus, many people were staring. I'm not sure if it was because there was a group of young adults with disabilities or if it was because there was a white girl with a group of peruvians. I think it was most likely the first reason because peruvians are used to having tourists here all the time. Regardless, being around people with disabilities is still a new uncomfortable thing for a lot of people and by exposing them to the outside world, we are bettering society and allowing people to become more comfortable with these beautiful people.
Overall progress is happening here, and I am encouraged by it. I look forward to what this next week will bring.
Ciao!

Un semana en Cusco

It's hard to believe it's already been a week here in Cusco. I feel like there is still so much to learn and do during my month here! I'm really enjoying my host family. Margot is a single mom of two girls (4 & 17yrs) who is also a teacher at the school, Camino Nuevo, in which I am volunteering at. Camino Nuevo is the first private school for kids with special needs in cusco. I have spent the week observing all of the classrooms and helping out with their therapy. I've been taking notes and will be running a training for the teachers next Saturday on how to incorporate more OT strategies in their classes. It's kind of perfect because that is very similar to what I do in the US. The teachers are all really sweet and I had a chance to get to know them a little better on Thursday when we all went out for Lunch and cerveza to celebrate national teachers day. All i know is peruvians love to celebrate anything. My homestay is close to downtown where there has been music and events this week to celebrate 100 years of machu picchu. It's nice to have so much within walking distance. I did learn to take the bus and taxis by myself to get to the school which is a little further. My time here has certainly been busy thus far! With spending 8 hrs at the school with a 2 hr break in the middle of the day to go home for a big lunch, and orienting myself around.. While trying to speak Spanish and learn more- I'm definitely wiped out by the end of the day! Its a beautiful and neat town though with lots of history. It is colder than I thought without the sun at night it's about 30 degrees and the homes don't have heat, so I layer up to sleep! When the sun is shining during the day it's beautiful and perfect - but definitely cold when you're not in the sun! I'm finding that because of the cold weather the kids with physical disabilities tend to get sick more because they are spending too much time on their backs which could lead to pneumonia. More on my time with the kiddos later. I'm going to a town about an hour away tomorrow (Sunday) with some of the other volunteers and workers at the school to check out an artisan market. Overall my time here has been great so far, and I am looking forward to more to come!

My Incredible Grandpa who left a legacy

My dear grandpa, Robert Beil, passed away Thursday, February 17, 2011, at the age of 80. Words cannot describe the joy this man brought to our family. He will be missed so very much. I started preparing a speech for my Grandparents' 60th wedding Anniversary that is next month, and since my grandpa's passing, have decided to tweak it a little bit for myself and my cousins to share at his memorial service. I decided to document it on this blog for a way to savor the memories and share with others how much my grandfather meant to me. This is a collaborated work with my 5 cousins.

Grandpa was a man who wore his emotions on his sleeves and wasn't ashamed of it - he was proud of it.  He spoke his mind and was genuinely interested in hearing the opinions of those who spoke their minds as well.  He cried.  A lot.  Mostly out of passion and a true abundance of love for his family.  One of the first questions Cheryl asked after Grandpa's passing was, "Who's going to cry at all the prayers?"  At any family dinner or gathering, Grandpa always lead us in prayer and his words were always centered around his love for his family and how he blessed he felt.  There were so many things that made Grandpa such an admirable person.  In celebration of his life, we've put together a Top 10 list of sorts - the things we'll most remember about Grandpa as we look back on his life and all the ways he has influenced us.

The top 10 things our Grandpa has taught us.........

10. It's 5 o'clock somewhere - Grandpa was an entertainer, and enjoyed cocktail hour at the Beil household. As long as we were all together, it was 5 o'clock somewhere.

9. Jokes get funnier when you repeat them -  I think this has been passed down to his kids too, but we'll often hear the same jokes over and over again when we all get together. An example would be "Do you think that green stuff in your nose is funny, well it's snot."  He was also quite the magician.  We could never figure out how that quarter got behind our ears!  His jokes and his humor never got old!  

8. Spend time outside, preferably by a pool - Some of our fondest memories were spent at Grandma & Grandpa's pool every year. He always played a mean game of water volleyball, and even played 3 games last Father's Day.  He loved soaking up the sun while visiting with family and friends.    

7. How to drive with style - Grandpa always kept a clean car. I think the people at the carwash knew him personally. He always looked good driving his convertible too, and mastered the secret of how to drive a convertible without messing up his hair!  There has always been a longstanding competition amongst the cousins about who would get the convertible when Gramps was ready to get rid of it.   

6. Generosity - Grandpa really enjoyed taking us out to dinner or lunch. He really cherished the time we shared meals together, and was often stubborn and insisted on footing the bill. 

5. Be cultured! Grandpa had really enjoyed good jazz music, art, and various Chicago architecture. He really enjoyed going to Jazz Vespers at church, and reading about Frank Lloyd Wright. He also loved getting to see some shows and musicals in the city.  

4. Don't believe everything you hear.  Grandpa taught us to be a skeptic and question things. He was always reading up on current events, and was quite a progressive thinker. The fact that he donated his body to science shows just how progressive he was.

3. Accept anyone no matter what! We've had the privilege of welcoming new people into our family through marriage. Our grandpa has always been so warm to anyone new coming into our family. He makes them feel welcome and treats them as they are part of his family. 

2. Don't take yourself too seriously.  Who else has a grandpa who willingly enters a hairiest chest contest on family cruise, sports a speedo and renames himself "Lance" for the duration of the trip? .

1. Always tell people how you feel about them. Even though he would tell us how proud he was of us each and every time he saw us, it never got old and always meant so much.  We feel so blessed to have the grandfather that we did.  We've learned so much about how to live life abundantly through him. So Grandpa, now it's our turn to say "We are so proud of you and we love you. Thank you for everything you have taught us."

Enjoying this season of Winter

Being in my LATE 20's, single without kids, and having a stable career for the past few years has allowed me to be able to afford some fun activities- and having friends to partake in these activities has been great! During Martin Luther King, JR day weekend in January, I had a chance to meet some old college friends and a high school friend in Utah for a ski trip. The snow wasn't great for skiing, but we got to ski some really fun runs, and I got to get used to my new (slightly used) skis that my friends got my for my birthday last year. The company was the best part. We laughed so hard we cried all 3 days. We shared meals together, drank good beer and boxed wine (ha), spent hours talking in the hot tub, and made ridiculous jokes. You can only really experience things like this with people you have history with. People you have known for awhile, spent lots of time together, and know you so well! Laughter and being surrounded with friends is just great medicine for the soul.

Augustana Swimmers reunite for a ski trip!

Love getting to spend time with my old friend Nick!

3rd year in a row that we've taken a ski trip together! Love this tradition with my best buddy from high school!

The ski group, which consisted of Notre friends, Augie buds, and BGHS friends who flew in from Chicago, Denver & DC

Getting to hang out with these characters was so fun!

And then a couple of weeks ago, I went on a snowshoeing trip with some great Denver friends. We could not have asked for BETTER weather. It was a GORGEOUS day. The sky was blue, the sun was out, and the snow was deep and fluffy! We snowshoed up Tennessee Pass in Leadville to a yurt, where we ate lunch at a cookhouse. We had so much fun playing the snow together. It was a 2hr drive, and it was just nice to get away from the city and be together.

Gorgeous day in Leadville, CO

Posing for a photo with Cal & Anna

The whole snowshoe Denver group

Las chicas y mi amigas

Fluffy fun snow for snow angels

Taking a break on the trail

Eating a nice meal at the Tennessee Cookhouse

Almost approaching our lunch spot

Last week, I had the opportunity to go skiing with my students in Winter Park at the National Sports Center for the Disabled. It's always so great to see the joy in their faces when they get to go skiing. I've never been a winter weather girl, but this winter has given me many reasons to enjoy the season.

Memories and thoughts of Haiti.

I was am feeling especially nostalgic and emotional today as it marks the one year anniversary of the horrific earthquake that struck Haiti taking over 200,000 lives and the homes of millions. As I was listening to the stories covering the anniversary on NPR this morning and this evening, it was good that we were able to stop our day-to-day lives and remember those people and that country that has had it so hard. Some of the words shared were hopeful and helping to inspire the Haitian people by helping to take their lives into their own hands, and not to put their faith in the very corrupt government- But it was also frustrating that so many are still homeless and living in tents. Most of the buildings and houses still lay in rubble- just like they were 6 months ago when I was there, and 1 year ago when the earthquake struck. Certainly mourning needs to happen because of the tragedy and everyone in the country was some how affected. However, people from the outside have come to help and bring resources- and I do think that it has helped a good number of people and have seen the fruit of that. But my hope is that the Haitian people would be empowered in this process to change this country for the better to improve education, medical care, and life. I hope that they would become a country not driven by greed- but improved quality of life for everyone.
I am so inspired by Haiti Medical Missions of Memphis and other organizations that have been in Haiti before the earthquake and are there afterwards. In my month in Haiti, I experienced extreme emotions of being overwhelmed, frustrated, and tired. But I was also overcome with such joy and gratitude from my experience and the people I met and got to work with. I could not imagine what it would be like to be there for the long haul- living life there forever.. And there are people and organizations devoted to doing that. So I am especially grateful for that. My hope is that I continue to keep Haiti in my daily thoughts and prayers. That my life here would never get to hectic and busy that I forget the month I spent there, and that people continue to live life there. I pray that the people of Haiti can see the light and shine it on the nation. That the Haitian people can be empowered to take their lives and their country into their own hands to make it better for their children. I know it's going to take time, effort, energy, etc. But they can't give up- not now- not ever. I will end with this poem by Langston Hughes, that was very special to me from my time in Haiti:

The night is beautiful

So are the faces of my people.

The stars are beautiful,

So are the eyes of my people,

Beautiful also is the sun.

Beautiful, also are the souls of my people.

I saw such beauty in the people and the nation of Haiti when I was there, but it was masked by rubble, hopelessness, trauma, and mourning. May your beauty shine through, Haiti.