Mental Illness Fair

Okay I'm gonna try being a blogger again ;) I wanna keep track of my life somehow!

Yesterday I went to the mental illness fair at the St. James Cathedral for my fellowship (I got a scholarship from SPU's Psychology department last year). Beth came with me and it turned out to be an amazing experience. We arrived and parked at O'dea high school then headed in. Our booth we were representing was NAMI, wish is the National Alliance on Mental Illness. It helps with support groups, advocacy, and information about mental illness for the general public.
One of the really interesting experiences we had was speaking with a man who has been hopping from shelter to shelter, but attends mass at the cathedral every Sunday. He told us about his diagnosis of bi-polar disorder a long time ago before he was homeless. He's only been in shelters for about 6 weeks, but has been staying optimistic. He was very intelligent and conversational. He just needed someone to talk to. It is so moving to see people that have lost everything, but are pushing through and still taking their medication. I gave him information about our support groups and hopefully he will take advantage of them to get back on his feet.
Another man stayed at our booth for over an hour talking to one of the other Dickinson fellows about everything from dolphins to the atmosphere to politics. He had been homeless for awhile, but is very intelligent and wanted some company. I would love to advocate for the homeless someday. This is so out of my field of interest, but I am soo glad to be expanding to the community of Seattle.

Inspiration

So I have been thinking about starting a blog for a very long time. Tonight, about fifteen minutes ago I felt very guided and inspired to actually begin! This was originally going to be some kind of coffeeshop review blog or seattle-lite guide by a college student, but now I think it might just be about me. Maybe that could be interesting? Or maybe it will just be my out, my way to keep track of my thoughts and adventures.

This inspiration came to me tonight as I was writing notes to my friends thanking them for what they've done for me lately, wishing them luck on finals to come, and just expressing my thoughts (of course they were given in the form of Hallmark cards-- I snatched a bunch before I left working there to come to SPU). It made me think about all of the people in my life. Each person plays a different role and I believe I am here at SPU, on first west, for a reason.