The following post was written by Global Gap Year Fellow, Amber Grant.
In order to begin writing this entry, I went back to reread my last blog post. To say things have changed since then would be an understatement. In fact, it feels like that November post was written at least a year ago, not just a mere couple of months in the past.
I left off in Eagle Butte, South Dakota on the Cheyenne River Reservation. I mentioned wanting my next placement to be in a warmer climate; that didn’t happen, but I did take a two week trip to Miami in December. Back when I was initially planning this gap year, I was especially looking for placements in Florida, so it was exciting to bring that idea to fruition, though in a different way than I had originally intended. After embarking on a plethora of fun activities, like visiting the Everglades National Park and its numerous alligators, spending afternoons at Biscayne Bay and spotting all kinds of tropical fish (and even an octopus!), I had to leave for North Carolina in anticipation of the upcoming holidays.
I spent about a month at home. It was an interesting period, having no job to occupy my time or even any local friends. The contrast between volunteering over 40 hours a week to an overwhelmingly open and bare schedule was striking. wasn’t sure what I wanted to do next, or what would be the most impactful or beneficial to myself. I just knew I needed more of a balance– a placement not so isolated and with a little more downtime.
I was enlightened with so much firsthand experience and knowledge about the Lakota Sioux culture at my first placement. I wanted to continue this, so I considered staying in South Dakota. South Dakota is built upon Indigenous culture, and it is beautiful. Having lived on the East coast my entire life, I had never directly experienced Indigenous culture besides what I learned through textbooks.
I came back to South Dakota in January. I had connected with the only other volunteer I had met in Eagle Butte, and upon returning, I rented a room in an apartment he shared with students at the University of South Dakota. This was nothing that I could have ever predicted; not only did that chance situation prove the magic of this gap year, but it also demonstrated my own personal growth in creating healthy relationships independently. Even in that last blog post, I mentioned my standoffish and shy inclinations, so it is empowering to see myself morph into a more mature, confident person.
Presently, I am volunteering in the kitchen at an elderly recreation center. I have a background in cooking and food preparation, dating back from my previous jobs to my intensive first placement. I have become quite the chef since September and decided to capitalize upon this newfound hobby. At the recreation center, I prepare meals for a large volume of people, put together bags for Meals on Wheels programs, and serve and assist older citizens. The little oversight and praise I get from the staff is exciting, and has also further shown me that I thrive in fast-paced, more independent environments.
Something noteworthy about this placement is that I work alongside inmates from the nearby prison. I didn’t know this at first, and was a little intimidated by the oversized, orange uniforms they wore, but I kept the same, non-judgemental mindset that is crucial to conducting meaningful service. They have all been genuine, kind people and I probably have too much fun hurrying around the kitchen with them and the other two chefs. In these last six months, I have worked with distinctly different groups of people than myself, but at the end of the day, despite how little we might have in common, we’re all the same.
Spring Break just passed and provided me with another exciting outlet for travel. I embarked on a road trip with the volunteer, Matt, I met in Eagle Butte, given his week off from classes. We packed our stuff and visited Glenwood Springs in Colorado, Zion National Park and Arches National Park in Utah, Las Vegas, Nevada, San Diego and Los Angeles, California, Catalina Island, and finally Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico. I like the format of reserving my travels for my free time and keeping my volunteering in South Dakota; my time away is based on exploration, and I can focus on building my knowledge and growing deep connections in this one place.
Once it gets warmer here in South Dakota, I plan on expanding my service to include more organizations. For now, I am content with whatever happens, because I have learned and accepted just how unpredictable the future can be.