EXPERIENCing Chicago.

I know I've been jumping around recently with my blogs, but this one is long overdue... and maybe writing about something of beauty and adventure (two of my favorite things) will inspire me to look for the answers to the questions in my previous blog.

The Thursday before the start of Labor Day weekend, I posed the idea of traveling to my friend, Tevela's home city, Chicago.  I'd never been before, and have heard it's not like any other city... so why not?  My roommate, Jenny and I started packing, and on Friday night, we picked up Teez and headed North.

We arrived in Chicago Saturday morning (after taking a four hour nap in the Ramada Inn parking lot and grabbing Denny's for extra energy), and we were quick to begin the adventure.  We drove past the city, and into Englewood.  Tall, glass buildings turned into aging bungalows.  Busy streets morphed into graffitied bridges.  We pulled up to Teez's house, and upon entering the rickety doorway, we were welcomed (Mom-style) with huge hugs and smiles.  After being frustrated with driving around to expensive hotels, Teez finally let us explore her city.  

We started with the Bean, saw Sears Tower, checked out a Jazz festival downtown, visited Navy Pier, stopped to listen to the bucket boys perform, and even came across a psychic who had the gaul to tell me I'm going to have twins (let's just not think about it...).  I loved every minute of that evening, walking around downtown with two of my best friends, exploring the big city, walking through the hustle and bustle of the tourist-packed streets.  But it's the memories that weren't caught on camera that are forever engraved in my mind, in my heart. 

Mama Teez spent an entire day cooking, and BBQ-ing for us.  She made ribs, spaghetti covered in cheese, baked beans with ground beef, hot links, potato salad...  I met friends and family at the cookout.  I sat on a porch just shooting the breeze, showing my new family a glimpse into my world, and being entranced in theirs.  I bobbed, japped, and pool palaced* in the dining room for hours on end.  I taught Teez and her sisters how to headbang.  I went to Sweet Holy Spirit Church, and did a victory lap when I caught the inspiration.  I hopped my first fence.  I slept on a fold out bed in the living room.  I washed my hands in a bathtub.  I adapted an entire new vocabulary.  I opened my mind, and my heart.. and welcomed the love that was so generously given.  I loved back.  

That weekend, I did more than just eat my body weight in Dunkin Donuts.  I let myself be engulfed in a world that was nothing like my own.  I watched as skin color faded, and language barriers broke down.  I watched as two completely different worlds meshed, rather than collided.. and I tied those worlds together with a pretty friendship bracelet. 

That weekend, I was the minority.  And I loved every second of it.  When Tevela talks of her home, you can hear the pride radiating out of her, but when Tevela took me to her home, you could see the disappointment in her face.  She wanted Jenny and I to stay in a fancy hotel, and spend the little money we came with, on tours of Sears Tower rather than buying souvenir hemp bracelets.  She saw the bathroom sink as broken, the fold out bed as old and dirty, the time spent sitting on the front porch as wasted daylight.  But it wasn't wasted at all.  It was comforting to just be in the presence of people willing to share their lives with me.  The fold out bed allowed me to sleep peacefully in the home of people who love me.  The bathroom sink provided me with a fun story.  

That weekend taught me more than I could ever learn in a classroom.  It showed me more beauty than I can see in a perfect sunset.  It introduced me to new friends, put a new adventure in my fairy tale, and showed me more love and acceptance than I've seen in a long time.  My weekend in Chicago was inspiring.  I didn't just watch those two worlds mesh, I lived it... and that memory will never die. 

I love you Teez, Sena, Lana, JB, and Mama Teez.  

BEAN!

Teez, Jenny, and I

Sena and her "27 piece" HA.

Dunkin.

friendship bracelets. :)

*Bobbing

headbanging lessons. 

"The first time I went to Chicago, I visited it... this time, I experienced it." -Jenny

p.s. Make sure to check out Tevela's take on the weekend at:  

http://tevela-yatrice.blogspot.com/