Our Final Day in NYC

Ah, Friday morning in Manhattan. What a lovely way to begin my last day in New York City. This afternoon, we’ll be heading off to Ohio where we’ll spend our last night on the road. We have about an 8 hour car ride ahead of us, so this morning, most people woke up bright and early and headed to Time Square to stand outside for Good Morning America and The Today Show. A few people stayed behind to sleep, but we’re all out and about now.

As I write from this Soho coffee shop in Lower Manhattan, I’m reminded of the lessons we’ve learned this week and the experiences we can learn from. All in all, New York isn’t so different from Cedar Rapids. I mean, sure, it’s a lot larger, generally speaking has more to offer, and is more diverse, but in the end, I see a city that offers learning experiences. And while for most of us we see opportunities around every corner because everything is so new to us, to a New Yorker, life might seem mundane as we see life in Cedar Rapids.

I think it’s important for us to take the lessons we’ve learned here and apply them to life in Cedar Rapids. Most of us enjoyed volunteering at the Help One, a daycare in Brooklyn. A lot of us loved working at food banks, knowing that we were feeding people who really need to be fed. Some prefer working at food pantries and soup kitchens. We often overlook the opportunities we have in Cedar Rapids. Yes, we have time now and are dedicating our week to serving in another part of the country, but when we go home, those opportunities are still available.

Food banks, food pantries, working with children, and soup kitchens (among countless other volunteer experiences) are available right in Cedar Rapids, and many of those organizations desperately need volunteers. So remember, readers, that just because we’ve had this incredible experience in New York City does not mean that we can’t have equally meaningful experiences at home in Cedar Rapids, or anywhere else for that matter.