Today was the first day of training to become a better human being, and help others do the same. Half the day was spent getting to know our new team members for the next month, followed by some intense clean up efforts of a kids playground on the west side of Philly. I wanted to break into the fresh prince of bel-air theme song, but figured there were probably hundreds before me that have done the same thing, so I quietly kept it to myself. The playground itself didn't stand a snowballs chance in hell against 200 some odd workers, spirited workers at that. It took just under 3 hours to completely clear out a playground and football/baseball field, two basketball courts and an open lot of a forest of weeds, broken glass and various contraband. It really is quite remarkable how much a huge difference a group of people can make in such a short amount of time. I can only hope for the same results for the youth of Philadelphia, and America for that matter. It took literally one day for me to be fully in line with the ideologies of City Year, and can only hope everyone else subscribes to the same thing. Unfortunately it will be another month before I can put this positive energy to use in the classrooms and lives of children. But I know it will be worth it.
On a different note, I had the song Empire State of Mind from The Blueprint III on repeat today, both riding the train to work, on the walk to the City Year office, and again on the train back and the walk home. Its looking to become the anthem for anything positive in life, especially changing others. Alicia Keys should be deified or at the very least made a saint for the hook on this one. So without further adieu.
Jay-Z ft Alicia Keys "Empire State of Mind" The Blueprint III
big ups my brother
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