Journal Entry 14 - Hand on Gulf Coast, Biloxi, Mississippi

I woke up today after a lot of people. It was the first time I woke up that late. The rain, thunder, and lightning started real early. The groups doing morning service waited until later to leave. So, we all did the fundraising and alcohol and AB workshops in a huge group in the Ballroom.

We all went to Voter Registar as the green team! Ali, Kate, and I went in John's car. We stopped at a gas station/convenience store. Not a lot of people came, so we went to 3 trailer parks to canvass. At the first, WLOX, a tv news channel, interviewed us, Alie, Kate, and myself, for the night news. They taped us at the first two locations.

We drove back, and I showered. We then had free time and dinner. At dinner, we did group reflections. This was our most intense reflection yet! We got to talk about our service and what went good, bad, and what was challenging.

I started to talk about the one guy I got to register to vote at the trailer park. Walking up ramps to his house was obvious that he was disabled. When the man answered the door, he was in a wheel chair. He asked me to go into to hold the clipboard down on the table so it wouldn't fall. He said that he was displaced and moved by Katrina and recently had a stroke. He also said he would die soon anyway. Thinking about this, I didn't know how to respond.

I told this to the group, literally tearing up! I don't know why, but then I do, too! People back in California don't register and don't care, and it's much more widespread. It bothers me that its so easy in California for peopel to vote, but people don't exercise that right to register and vote.

After that, we talked about the claim common ground activity to follow-up properly. A lot of great things were said and discussed.

We then had loads of free time. We got to see Meagan's husband and her trip to Brussels, in which she got engaged!

Then, social night began! We all shuttled to the beach for a bonfire, smores, frisbee, or football, talking, and a great game of Mafia! Erica was the puppet master to Marco, and Marco proved the worst player ever!

After that, some of us stayed outside and talked until about 1:45AM. We talked about very random topics until we felt super sleepy.