Braids

I spent the last week in San Francisco with my high school youth doing mission work for Homeless and Low Income Folk. I had never been to San Francisco before, and it is actually a great city. I don't think I was paying attention when it happened, but somehow I was placed in charge of six Youth, one Adult, Myself, AND a 15-passenger Van. I had to follow the other van through tunnels, parking garages, one-way streets, and poorly-restroomed gas stations, so it was a bit like Crazy Taxi, only REAL. Let me tell you my friends, when you have successfully piloted (and parked) a 17 foot-long Land Yacht blasting rap music through the narrow, hilly streets of San Francisco and managed to get away with injuring only three small children, you can do anything.


During one part of the trip, my team went on a type of scavenger hunt designed to briefly immerse us in a certain area of the city. Our area was Chinatown. It was phenomenal. We visited a fortune cookie "factory," and after eating about 763 cookies (I am going to find at least 328 new opportunities, and will be touched by around 76 strangers...I stopped reading the fortunes at number 521) we chased a small Chinese man for a couple of blocks, hoping for a story, some directions, or at least more cookies. In order to make the most of our cultural experience and really understand the Chinese presence in San Francisco, we ended the day sipping Frappuccinos at Starbucks. Sweet sweet caffiene.


We slept in a church while we were there, and there were approximately twenty five girls (some high schoolers, some junior highers, and not nearly enough Adults) sharing a single large room and two ridiculously tiny showers. There was hardly enough room to sleep let alone break dance, french braid, cartwheel, or other normal everyday things. Also, I am pretty sure that the girls with whom we shared the room had a Red Bull and five Speed tablets each every night before going to bed. Needless to say, it was a long week. I'm in for a week of rest before things start moving yet again. Hooray for soft beds that aren't air mattresses.