september eleventh.

i remember this day, eleven years ago, almost like it was yesterday. i was five years old (almost six!), and i was getting ready for another day of kindergarten. my five year old self was excited about what the day held. both my parents were awake that morning, and i walked out of my room in my school uniform and i turned to the television. they were both watching it, eyes fixed on the images before them. i remember sitting down to see what they were so focused on; i remember seeing the twin towers, clouds of smoke, and my mother crying. my mother turned to me and told me that i would not be going to school that day. she told me that she had no idea what was going on and that today was just going to be a fun day with her and my little sister.

i remember excitement about they day at home, but also wondering what had happened to cause this impromptu day home. my parents were talking in hushed tones, 'what if they do it to schools? how do we know for a fact that she'll be safe?'. they finally told me what had happened, and my naive five year old self wondered how anyone could be so mean. 

as the years went by and many anniversaries of that fateful day occurred, i began to learn more and more about that day. history classes taught and taught about what had happened. as i grew older, i also grew wiser and less naive. i began to realize what hate was and how hate causes actions like the ones on september 11th, 2001.

this morning i watched president obama's beautiful anniversary speech. even today, tears form in my eyes when i think about what happened and how many lives were lost. 

i think it is safe to say that i will remember that morning in 2001 forever. it is a day i will tell and educate my children, my grandchildren, and hopefully my great-grandchildren about.






i will forever remember september 11,2001 and all those whose lives were lost and who bravely fought for our country. thank you. thank you.

as the sun rose this morning, so did my love for you.

january.

rang in the new year with my best friend. discovering the truth. lots and lots of boy's high school soccer games. met new people. got even closer with my cousin. music. music. my beloved cell phone decided not to work (and then decided to work again). new laptop. midterms. school. discovered spotify and oh my, i love it. girl scout drama. officially a gold award recipient! started yoga. cupcakes. rainy days. scheduled "ditch days" by my mother. online shopping. promises. received my first piggy back ride from the silly boy. holding hands. oranges. walks on sunny days. kisses. cuddling. watched inception for the second time. sweet text messages. him. him. him. him. finished driver's ed. got closer to a friend in dance class. tumblr began to consume my life. hit 4,000 tweets on twitter. cute birthday parties. visited a college campus (and fell in love with it). the most amazing month in a while.

and i swear,

in that moment we were infinite.

wrap up: my girl scout gold award project.

for the last three months, i've been working on my girl scout gold award. the gold award is the highest honor in girl scouting and i was so excited i was able to work on this project.

for my project, i made a set of birthing kits. i made fifty kits that held essential materials to help a pregnant woman give birth in more sanitary conditions. i found an organization that takes yearly trips to zimbabwe, where they deliver the birthing kits and schooling kits. the organization's name is journeypartners and they are seriously the best. i absolutely loved working with them and i can honestly say they made my gold award project so much easier.

one part that the girl scout council focuses on is making your gold award project sustainable. for this part of my project, i spoke with another girl scout troop in my area and they agreed to take on my project.

here's where you all come in though! i was wondering if any of you might be interested in making a set of birthing kits and sending them to journeypartners yourself. it is very easy to make these kits, the hard part is just collecting all of the materials. (you can see a list of what goes into a birthing kit here.)

in no way am i asking for a commitment or a contract signed in blood, but i am just throwing this project out there for anyone looking for a way to give back!

if you do end up making a set and sending them to journeyparnters, let me know! i'd love to hear about how it went for you!