USC, etc.

I discovered Urban Servant Corps while on a retreat with the program I was in last year, Border Servant Corps. While I was in Denver I really fell in love with the city and the USC people seemed wonderful. After thinking it over I decided that another volunteer year didn’t sound so bad, I mean, I’ve done one already so another should be a walk in the park, right? Not quite it turns out, but I’ll get back to that.

USC Logo

The interview process with USC went great and soon I was faced with choosing a job site. Did I want to work at a homeless day shelter, as I did in Las Cruces? Or perhaps running immersion trips for youngsters, teaching them about the facts of homelessness? How about working with people who actively inject drugs such as meth and heroin and supplying them with clean tools to shoot with?

Naturally the last one stood out the most for me. Injection drug users (IDUs) are a population that I had never knowingly interacted with and knew nothing about. Plus kids are terrifying to work with, give me a homeless junkie any day.

I won’t go into further detail about the actual job site and interviewing process there as I cover it fairly well in my last post.

There were moments in between my BSC and USC year, that month of being back in Iowa, where I thought I had gone crazy. Why would I work for free for another year? Why would I put myself through the stresses of living with so many people again? I would go hang out with my friends and see their lives and go home to my parents and sit in the living room watching satellite on the big screen and think to myself, “do I really want to continue being poor on purpose?” My consumerist self was waking out of its slumber and wanting to run wild at a local GameStop or Barnes and Noble.

Yet obviously I did it, I drove to Denver. I admit that there were a few times I almost turned around. Even when I moved into my new room there were more than a few nights where I was on the verge of leaving.

But I’ve learned that roughing the tough part is usually worth it.

And has been, for the most part.

Thanksgiving with fellow USCers who
stayed in Denver for the holiday.

I am still trying to stop myself from trying to make USC a Denver version of BSC. I often catch myself fighting rules or community dates simply because it isn’t what or how BSC would do it. USC is a more religious organization with much more time commitments and I am still learning to adjust and accept that.

My housemates are wonderful but it is tough being in intentional community for a second year. Getting used to a new set of personalities and habits has been a process as well as getting used to a new house atmosphere. This year’s house has been much more laid back and content with just hanging out than last years. Not that it’s a good or bad thing, just an observation. I know many times I would be begging for a quiet weekend in Las Cruces last year.

USC is different that BSC but it could be just what I needed to get out of my rut that I was in last year.

As a reader you have probably noticed by now that I have started to lose track of where this is heading, a weakness of my resistance to outlines.  Hopefully you got something enjoyable out of reading this, if you didn’t you should probably pitch me a few topic ideas.

One final thought.

I got a Denver library card. Therefore I am legit.

Peace,

Travis HP