Spring Break Nostalgia

Spring Break Nostalgia

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Spring break was last week, and for the first time ever, I made the decision to travel away from home and do something productive and meaningful during that time. With everything that has happened throughout my life, I desperately needed a break to let loose and reflect- something I rarely have time to do. For some people at Loyola, they go on community service retreat centers throughout the U.S; I went in a different direction and went to Texas for training for the Vietnamese Eucharistic Youth Movement (VEYM) (mentioned in previous posts).

I have only joined this movement for seven months, and what a journey it has been. Besides being a part of Loyola’s VSA, I did not have many opportunities to interact with other Vietnamese people. Until I joined VEYM last August, things changed. I finally found people who shared same values, people who came from similar backgrounds, and people who could completely empathize (not just simply sympathize).

To be leaders of VEYM, I had to attend training- a four day religious camping event composed of lectures, singing, and learning about each other (similar to a retreat). Pre-camp homework was tedious, but I was assigned into a group of people, and we all were able to keep in contact frequently and manage to make the homework less stressful. Some of the things we had to do include: teach a lesson, learn the morse code, learn semaphore, memorize prayers, know formations, read biblical passages, essay writing, and more.

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Everyone in my team is an essential member with a personality unlike any other. We have people who are so outgoing, spirited, and energetic, and we have those who are compassionate, prepared, and so heart-felt. Despite that I came late (my flight got delayed), being the last person to meet all of them was not so intimidating as I initially assumed. Through time (a couple hours), I felt like I found myself a second family I could genuinely comfortable around.

One of my better qualities are my writing skills, and so that compensated for my shyness when they met me in-person. I may be introverted, but through these people and VEYM, I believe I can transform into a better image of myself and carry on the qualities of my team as a whole. Things will get better.

Going to Texas and attending this training session last week was memorable. Reflecting back, I wish I could have done more for the team and be more open. Either way, I have grown in faith and I am honored and blessed to have made the decision to go down this route. My journey with VEYM has only begun, and possibly, there will be other things to look forward to in the future.

I may be over my head in regards to this topic, but since this happened so recently, I still remember everything clearly.

I digress, it is good to do something meaningful and productive over spring break. It is the only full week where you have off from school during the semester. Do something that is fun. Do something that makes you happy. Do something that will make a difference. Sitting at home and “doing nothing” can be good and relaxing, however there are more things you can do with your free time such as community service, camps, visiting family, etc.

Be like these amazing people you see in this picture. Get active. Be compassionate. Be kind. Learn to work together and it won’t take long to realize that there are so many things to do during break and meet people you may consider life-long companions.

Trust me, it is worth it.

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