Saturday (n): The last day we are in DC

Greetings again! Today's the last day for being in the good ol' District of Columbia. (Washington D.C.) We started off by going to the National Archives as soon as we could. It was pretty sweet because the gang skipped the entire line and snuck in through the exit. Amazing? Yeah, I thought so too. I figured a security guard would stop us, but luckily he just ignored us walk past him. After we finished at the Archives, we got lunch again at Union Station at a place called, Pizzeria Uno, which was pretty tasty. The sad part is coming up next, grab some tissues. We had to say goodbye to Josh after lunch as he went back to Columbia, poor Josh... 

I bought a book! It's called, "World War Z." I'm glad I finally found a book that I might be able to read, except there are big words like, I'm not sure off the top of my head, but there are some pretty long words in there. 

We left Union Station, and rode the Old Town Trolley again to the Air and Space Museum, as well as the Castle Smithsonian. (Air and Space is a Smithsonian also.... Just thought you should know) Then, we got ice cream at Ben and Jerry's inside of the Old Post Office Pavilion and rode to the top of the tower and saw DC in its wholeness from what we could see. 

WAIT ONE MINUTE, I FORGOT TO TELL YOU SOMETHING IMPORTANT

During the journey at the Pavilion, Kim, Alison, John, and I noticed this squirrel. He was a cute little booger just minding his own business kinda checking us out. Thankfull

y, a security guard nearby gave us a couple of peanuts to give the squirrel. WE ACTUALLY FED A SQUIRREL! I know, but please contain yourself as I continue. I thought I would try and pet the squirrel which turned out to be a good idea because he didn't bite me! Ok, I have to stop talking about that because people are looking at me in an odd fashion due to my jumping around talking about this squirrel that I named, Chip Chip (Chip for short). 

Well, we ate ate the Irish Pub which was the hotel's restaurant which served some crazy good pasta. It was probably the best meal on the trip in my opinion. Then for the rest of the night, we just chilled around Chinatown saying our goodbyes to our favorite places.

We are about to embark on our way home on the airplane, so I shall see you all soon as we get back to Chillville today. Bonjour!

Josh's Last Full Day

Greetings! Today was yet another good day indeed. We started this morning by going to Ford's Theatre. You know, the place where Lincoln was shot? Yeah, that place. We listened to a presentation a park ranger gave about the assassination. After that, we all traveled on the Old Town Trolley, a tour trolley that takes you to many places. Like Missouri! (just kidding) Seriously though, we saw places like the FDR Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial before we ate lunch at QDoba. It's a place where hungry people go to fill themselves up with burritos and such. 

After lunch, the team hopped back on the trolley and headed to Arlington. John, Josh, and I all went walking around the cemetery and saw JFK's (John F. Kennedy's) eternal flame, which was really moving. But perhaps my favorite part was seeing the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and scoping out the exchanging of the guard. I was moved to see all of that happen that even I was at a loss for words. (no one saw that coming) After we came back from Arlington, we rode a different trolley from the same company around to a different part of the city and saw places like Georgetown, the National Cathedral, and went by all the embassies and theaters. 

For dinner, we went to a Chinese place. Yuck! (obviously I'm not a fan of Chinese) We took about half an hour to make a decision on where we were going to eat, but thankfully we ended up on a consensus. An interesting event happened while we were eating. I ordered a Kung Pao chikcen, and John ordered a General Tso's chicken. We decided to ordered the most interesting sounding entrees. Knowing my luck, everybody's food looked pretty good except for mine. I tried it and I was correct by assuming it was not tasty. So John, the nice guy he is, traded plates with me and his wasn't as bad as mine. After thinking I lost some "man-points," I was dared to eat this pepper that Melissa said that's used for making pepper spray. I ate it. And let me tell you, it was as hot as a beach on the sun with some lava being poured down your throat. Kendra said I earned an extreme, 1,000 man points! Very nice! 

Well, I'm sorry this one isn't very comical/interesting. Well, maybe it was!? You should probably post some comments..... Bye!

Thursday's probably gone when you have read this

Greetings! Today was a wonderous day! (I think I made that up. Wonderous. It kinda has a neat sound to it).  8:20, DC time. We wake up and hit the Metro (we travel) to the seminar. That part is not important. 

However, when we arrived, we discussed some strategies on how to discuss topics that are important to Missouri. Our lineup goes as follows; Josh introduced us, Melissa talked about helping small family farms, Alison discussed healthcare as a human right, John mentioned some topics concerning education, and I did a follow up/closing. When I say "follow up," sometimes people get confused that I say "fruit roll up." But I'm not. The reason we had this lineup is so that we could effectively present these problems to Kit Bond! (he's a senator). Well, we got there and discussed these issues, which was incredible to....... Josh.... (one of Kit's staff. Not Mr. Bond himself, or Josh, that's in our group). Still, it was cool beans to present our ideas and concerns to a political power.

After our power outing at the Senate's office, we ended our seminar and had to say "bye bye bye" to Susan and Int. Kara. (Int. stands for "Intern"). Awesome! Hmmmm.... Then, we came back to the room and we pretty much just took naps and watched a movie befor

e we

 went to this hippie place, Busboys and Poets, that has a lot of vegetarian food that Josh likes so much.

John, Josh, and yours truly saw some of  Vice President Biden's secret service at Burger King! The girls were being girls and went back to the room while we men got some iced coffee. We even saw where the Vice President was... It was okay, nothing spectacular. 

Well, time for me to hit the hay and make like a mouse and sleep!

Yours truly,

Westin. Just kidding!!! It's "Weston"

Wed-Nes-Day: Very Important, kind of.

Greetings, friends! Okay, the first thing I have to mention is that I have now met four other interns. Kara, Brittany, Katie, and Simeon! I'm pretty stoked that there are more interns here other than me! Maybe it's not that exciting? I don't know.

 Well, today we had yet another seminar, even though this was just our second one. Today we heard three stories of people who were homeless. Every individual story was powerful in a different way. It makes me feel fortunate for what I have and how blessed we are back in Chillicothe. Then, this lady talked to us about HIV/AIDS. I found it interesting how easy it is to prevent the spread. Next, we talked about Bread for the World. Honestly, I almost fell asleep, but the girls were very passionate about the cause and had many good points. At lunch time, we ate out on the steps to the Supreme Court building. 

I hope I wasn't judged for eating on the steps!!!!! 

John, Josh and I played frisbee on a patch of grass, which was very entertaining before our last speaker. The last guy talked to us about men being allies to women. We talked about rape and how men can prevent rape, and how certain things affect women, whether or not it hurt women (not particularly rape... other things too). This presentation was by far my favorite so far, and the most interesting. 

We traveled to Union Station and ate at a place called Thunder Grill. Not bad, had a Native American feel to it. Oh! which reminds me- I guess the restaurant we ate at earlier this week was called "PotBelly's" according to Alison. Well, I'm off to devotion. 

Keep it cool!

So, yesterday was Memorial Day...

Greetings! Welcome to Tuesday's blog! Today we traveled along to our seminar! We even got to sleep in again... About 8:00 (d.c. time) I was being sarcastic if you couldn't guess.... About sleeping in... Susan and Kara are the seminar leader people, even though Kara is an intern. Kinda like me! We talked forever, and she made us feel like dirt. Susan that is. However, she made up for it because it ended up being a joke, so it's all good. We also listened to this guy who talked about the U.S. Federal Budget. It was actually not as boring as you'd expect. After we ate lunch in Union Station, we took a tour with the Reverend named Jim around Duke Ellington's neighborhood where we learned a lot about inner city culture. He reminded us that we should not stereotype people/areas just because of their location. 

Perhaps the most interesting part to our trip was going to Ben's Chili Bowl. Bill Cosby's favorite place? (I think that's debatable). It reminded me of Armour Chili, that we used to get in Hy-Vee... I miss that stuff. Then we went grocery shopping and had a devotion (where we're at right now)...  

Well, we're getting tired, so I'll talk to you tomorrow!

P.S. PLEASE COMMENT TO THESE POST-ITS! (Kendra wanted me to say something of that respect).

MONDAY MONDAY MONDAY

Greetings friends! I know it's Tuesday, but I must tell you what we did Monday. I apologize for the late arrival... Anyways (jk, it's only "anyway")... We got to sleep in which was nice, well... until 10:20ish? 

We ended up going to the Holocaust museum. It was amazing. The museum had these little booklets with stories of Jews who were involved with the Holocaust. It really touched me to read about this individual that not everybody will ever know about. It makes the experience extremely personal. My favorite part of the museum was the collection of shoes. Each shoe in this gigantic pile was original from the collection of shoes the Nazis seized. Another exciting part of the museum, some of us ran in to Trenton, MO's high school band! I'm not really sure how I noticed, except the kid I played tennis against....I won...

 

We noticed the Memorial Day Parade going on at Constitution, a street, and the best part was that we saw Lieutenant Dan from Forrest Gump!!! After that, we

 ate at this place called Pot Bellies. It was good. Not as good as Quizno's, but it was still very delic

ious. I mean good. Then some of us went to Ben and Jerry's and got some ice cream before going back to the Natural History Museum. I SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM! At the Natural History Museum, we 

watched Night At the Museum 2. It was a nice movie. Everything a family would enjoy! :) ...I didn't put a nose on that face!

Well, I think it's about time to tell you about Tuesday! Adios!

Day 2 (Sunday) ---D.C.

Greetings again! If you didn't catch the hint, we're staying in Chinatown! It's crazy how much diversity is here. Kind of a culture shock... Anyway, today we went to Asbury United Methodist Church. When we arrived, we helped serve and feed around 100 homeless people in the church's fellowship hall! It was very amazing to see how everyone interacted with the homeless and we all did a wonderful job helping. After that, we attended worship with Asbury's congregation. It was really neat because it was a fresh blend of very traditional church, with a LOT of singing. Honestly, I'm not very surprised since it was an African-American church.

 Oh, Melissa's feeling much better! 

Anywho, the church service threw us all off since we didn't get out until close to 1:00. After the service, we ate at Fudruckers (sp) and it was delicious. After we ate, John and I saw a Red Bull car and some ladies handed us some free Red Bull! Very Nice!!! 

Later, we journeyed to the Museum of American History until dinner time. I really had trouble getting in to the museum, just because not much interested me.... Except the C-3PO costume from Star Wars. Here's some random letters... AQRTCZHJ

Well, it's about time to hit the hay... Have a wonderful day!!!

Weston,

Out!

Hello, Washington!!! (D.C. That is...)

Greetings! Well, today has been pretty interesting even though it's only 2:30 (d.c. time). We left the church at 4:49 this morning, and yes.... It was very hard to wake up. We arrived in D.C. at about 11:00 (d.c. time). Unfortunately, Melissa isn't feeling well, but she is starting to get better already! Anyway, we are heading to Maddame "something's" Wax Museum where we will get to see many popular figures in..... WAX! Well, we're heading out so I will keep you posted tomorrow. Good-Bye! (in Chinese).

The Believers Share Their Possessions

Acts 4:32-35 (New Living Translation)
The Believers Share Their Possessions 32 All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had. 33 The apostles testified powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing was upon them all. 34 There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them 35 and bring the money to the apostles to give to those in need.

Wouldn't it be amazing if our society was similar to this one? There were no needy people because the people with land and homes sold them, so that the disciples can share the wealth to the under privlieged. If we all become half as neighborly as the people described in the passage above, I believe we would become much closer and life would become much more simple because we wouldn't have the struggle of the "survival of the fittest."

The Most Important Commandment

Luke 10:25-37 (New Living Translation)
The Most Important Commandment 25 One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?”
27 The man answered, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”[a]
28 “Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!”
29 The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
Parable of the Good Samaritan 30 Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling on a trip from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road.
31 “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32 A Temple assistant[b] walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side.
33 “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. 34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. 35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins,[c] telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’
36 “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.
37 The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.”
Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”

The most important commandment.... Love the Lord with all your heart, all your soul, all your strenghth, and all your mind. Or is it "love thy neighbor as yourself? I don't think it's fair to place one at higher importance than the other. Because if you love the Lord with all your heart, loving your neighbor will come along with it. But a man asked, "who's my neighbor?"

This is when we get into the story of the good Samaritan. I find it boggling how a temple assisstant, and a PRIEST could not show compassion for the fallen man. It took a Samaritan to show love for the battered man. Not only did the Samaritan show compassion, but he cared for the man, providing a place to sleep and restore strength. As I read this passage this morning, I got a call to action, that I need to show compassion for those less fortunate than I am. Perhaps we all can benefit if we all become eachother's neighbors.

First Day

I am Weston "the" Baker, youth intern at Chillicothe United Methodist Church. Kendra told me to start a blog, so here it is.

I'll begin by introducing myself. You know my name is Weston Baker (or I hope you got that far into that sentence...). I graduated from Chillicothe High School in Chillicothe, Missouri in 2008. I am currently attending Missouri Western State University and majoring in English education. I am a member here at Chillicothe United Methodist Church, and have been attending regularly since my freshman year in high school. 

I am very excited for the mission trips I will be going on and learning about the youth. Here are some dates that you will be able to keep up on if you wish to follow Christ 4 Life's journey:

May 23-31 - Washington D.C. (college)

July 4-11 - Tokio, North Dakota (high school)

July21-25 - Perryville, Arkansas (middle school)

Have a great day and God Bless!

Weston Baker