New Season, New Changes
On March 1st, I started working in a new position within the Refugee Department. I am now working with the new arrivals, primarily ones from Africa. They have paired me with a caseworker who is originally from Kenya, Juliana. My new job will entail picking up clients from the airport, getting furniture for their apartments, getting children enrolled in school, taking them to health screenings, applying for social security cards, food stamps and medicaid, enrolling them in ESL classes, and helping them acclimate to the culture here.
My new position is going to allow me to have more client interaction and time out of the office. Both of these are things I really needed and wanted. I am familiar with how most of this program works, but I still have a lot to learn. I know at times this job will be more hectic and stressful, but I am ready for a change and am looking forward to everything this job will bring.
This past week we had a family of ten come in from Eritrea. I went with Juliana and the family to several different appointments, one of which was the Social Security Office. This was the day after the family had arrived and they were exhausted! All of the children fell asleep in the lobby while we were waiting. One never woke up when we had to leave and her brother had to carry her out to the car. While I was not able to verbally communicate with them, I enjoyed being around them and watching their reactions. While we were waiting in the lobby, one of the younger girls was thirsty and Juliana took her to the water fountain. She had never seen a water fountain before and thought it was one of the coolest things. She was so amused by how it worked and that it sprayed water all over her face. She went and got several of his siblings and showed them how it worked. They all loved playing with it as well.
In addition to being paired with a caseworker, I was also assigned my own case. A little daunting to be thrown into, but exciting at the same time. It is an asylee from Eritrea who has been here 10 months. Since she is an asylee and has already been here for awhile, there won’t be as much to do with her as with a new refugee arrival. We got her settled into an apartment last week, and next week we will go and get her signed up for ESL classes, apply for a Texas I.D., and try and get a few more staples for her apartment. She is 19 and has a daughter that will be one next month. I am looking forward to getting to know her better and helping her out as much as I can.
Enough about work though. It is hard to believe that I have been here six months. It is strange to think that in six more months I will most likely be living somewhere else, with different people, and doing a completely different job. Sometimes I feel like I am living this weird limbo life where everything in the future is uncertain. I continue to be challenged by my work, faith, house mates, and life in general. I have never had a period in my life where I have been stressed so much or pushed so much. There are times when I get so annoyed by things that I just want to throw my hands up dramatically, say “uhh!”, and walk away. Luckily, I have not had that response to anything yet. Through all these tricky times, I have had to rely more on myself, and God, and focus on what I am capable of doing. At times I am surprised with how much I have grown and matured. Transitioning out of this year will definitely be interesting when the time comes.
Well. I just rambled and hope that it makes some sense to everyone. I wish that everyone could come visit and I could show you around this grand ol’ city. Hope you all are well. Much love.
