Emily found visiting placement sites very rewarding

Orientation has been a whirlwind. In less than two weeks I have experienced entirely new cultures, cuisine, histories, and environments. While my friends and family were back home preparing for snowfall I was touring vineyards and tasting wines. The beauty of the environment and people around me is still unfathomable but I think as my comfort in this place grows I will become more accustomed to not stopping to stare at every sight that catches my eye.

Over the course of the past three days we have visited everyone student’s internship and received a brief talk/tour of most of the facilities. Originally, I figured these days were going to be the hardest to get through but in retrospect they have been some of the most rewarding. It was very interesting and moving to get to learn about the many missions of the organizations that students are to be placed at. Aside from my own internship I found myself most interested in the multiple schools we visited as well as Molo Songololo, an organization dedicated to protecting children’s rights in the country. Ironically, I think this primary interest in projects revolving children has evolved from my parent’s interests since my mother is an elementary school teacher and my father runs an organization that also works on advocacy for children. I did not expect these interests to arise, though I am more than happy to carry on the work of two parents who have given a lot of time and money to those causes. I hope to embody some of that work at my own internship and potentially in my activist project.

As to my internship, our talk at the Rape Crisis Centre indicated to me that a lot of my work their will be surrounded around the projects that I have the most interest in. Having thought about those interests a lot in the past few days, I think I would be best suited for doing more hands on work with survivors, their families, and in the communities most affected by rape and sexual assault. Hopefully that will be possible for me, although I know that any work I do with the organization will be worthwhile.