sooo.. hi :-)

alright all. it is time for me to finally re-introduce myself to the front porch. for those of you who forgot who i am after all this time (or who can't guess from my username), its jenna, the girl who adores you all like woah. it has been SO fun catching up with the blog and getting a sense of what you are all up to this summer. whether its crazy cool and exciting or relaxing and rejuvenating, I think it definitely sounds like you are all having interesting, good experiences, and i think that is really AWESOME.

to start in the very beginning of my summer.. ending the year with the few of you left in durand was really nice, and a great way to transition into camp mode. camp kesem was amazing... people told me that it was "the best thing they've done at stanford" and i can see why and would have to do a lot of reflecting to find something that i consider "better". i gave up a lot to do camp kesem and that worried me a bit, but it was worth every experience i couldnt have because i decided to do it, and i would have given up so much more if i was asked to. it was a really important week for the kids, who are surrounded by other kids who understand them and what they are going through. there is a big range of feelings about cancer, and there are a few kids who have been going for all 7 years and others who i spent the week helping work through homesickness. my job was as counselor of the 6-8 year old "yellow unit" and co-coordinator of arts and crafts. because of the age group i had, camp was less about cancer and more about fun and forgetting and just being a kid. all roles were important, and all the counselors did a great job with the entire week- they are amazing people that i am so glad to have gotten to know- sometimes i forget how many great people there are at stanford that i just havent met yet. ahhh im starting to ramble, and am terrible at writing this down... but, if you cant tell, it was just an all-around fabulous experience: challenging, painful, frustrating, rewarding, enriching, enlightening, empowering, wonderful week.

i finished kesem debriefing, grabbed dinner with val and victor, fell asleep, and woke up to 6 hours of class. woohoo. but in general im LOVING being at stanford over the summer: it is so nice to be enjoying the campus, facilities, surrounding area, and people still around without feeling overwhelmed by commitments- social, academic, extracurricular, etc. the people still here are great (i lovvvve you guys!!!) and im meeting a bunch of other really neat people as well (including my roommates!) and am just feeling overwhelmingly spoiled by having my own room! and a bathroom! and kitchen! it is fabulous. i'm taking three classes and interning 8 or so hours a week at health promotion services. i keep forgetting about the honors thesis and the grant i have to write.... but those will get done at some point too. in between the beach and berkeley and barbeques.

this weekend i surprised my mom by coming home for her birthday.. she had NO clue and was thrilled. we saw spring awakening with jo, who is still in the states- doing rounds at Mt. Sinai- before heading to uganda. by the way, for those of you near new york city, i highly highly recommend going to see spring awakening- i love musicals, and this one is high on my list. i didnt sleep much on the redeye home because they bumped me to first class and i wanted to stay awake and enjoy it. im almost running on empty now, after waking up early for a cooking class this morning with my mom and her best friend. so although my writing is poor and my thoughts scattered, its been worth every moment of this weekend.

wow, so reading back over this, my email sounds giddy and possibly annoyingly happy. and im writing this while in my house, so yeah, im likely to be extra smiley. but really, this has been an awesome three weeks so far. minus the "Kesem Cold" I caught (say that 5x fast) but which is almost gone. i fly back to school late tomorrow (always a mixed bag of feelings for me) and head back to work at 9am monday. but i cant wait to read more of your posts when i get back to school- again, they are all so fun and enjoyable to read! give me a call whenever, or shoot me an email. stay safe all and i love you!