There is a house in our neighborhood in South Park that has a tree with a clothesline of poems that neighbors are encouraged to take and enjoy. I first stumbled upon it while walking around the neighborhood in my first couple of days here in San Diego. The owners call it the “Poetree.” Whether in...
During the month of January, St. Augustine High School takes a break from traditional academics. The students partake in elective courses that are designed to create well-rounded young men with a passion for learning. Some of these courses take them all around San Diego for activities like cycling, deep-sea fishing, and cooking. Even though the...
Service is a part of who I am and makes me feel whole. It makes my heart beat, and I love allowing people to feel seen and heard. Even though service is my passion, I really feel so grateful for the quality time that I get to spend with my community members. After a long...
“I solemnly pledge myself before God and in the presence of this assembly, to pass my life in purity and to practice my profession faithfully”. This is the beginning of The Florence Nightingale Pledge, one that many nurses undertake as they begin their path in healthcare. Among other nurses I took this pledge and began...
It’s in the midst of a global pandemic and stay at home orders that I find myself working as a Campus Minister at St. Augustine High School, an all-boys school in San Diego. Despite the world being more connected than ever through revolutionary technology, people find themselves longing for deeper relationships and plagued by a...
A tenet of Augustinian spirituality is sharing meals in fellowship. As soon as we arrived, my community adopted this rhythm and it’s now one of my favorites. Every night, we begin dinner by sharing our daily “highs and lows” (or “sunshine and rain clouds”, “flowers and weeds” etc.). This almost always takes us awhile to...
To say this year has been unique is a definite understatement. It is nothing I have ever experienced before. From August to March, I was living with three other people, sharing time and resources, in a new city. Together, Jacob, Claire, Keara and I grew as we experienced this new life. My favorite moments, outside...
One thing that is unique to this experience thus far that I was not anticipating… I laughed when I saw this prompt in the midst of this pandemic. I volunteer as a Registered Nurse at St. Vincent de Paul Village Health Center in San Diego, CA. We serve people at risk of or experiencing homelessness....
Waking up at 4:10 each morning, I begin my morning routine to the local YMCA pool where I swim a few laps followed by running a few miles outside in shorts. It’s a funny feeling that I can do both of these things in the winter, but that is one of the many things I...
As I prepared to begin my year of service with the Augustinian Volunteers, I met up with an AV alumni to ask her some last minute questions and talk about the year to come. We talked about many things but one thing she said that stuck out to me was, “you learn that you are...
