The Journey: Reflections From an AFSC Intern

The Journey: Reflections From an AFSC Intern
By: Megan Fair

Almost two years ago I arrived in the Queen Alia International airport in Amman, Jordan filled with trepidation, anxiety, and, what at the time, felt like the beginnings of ulcers from all the stress. I was turning the page on a new chapter in my life, stretching my comfort zone more than I ever had before and imagining disaster at every turn. After finally finagling my way through security and somehow locating my luggage after four connections, three countries, and two continents, I was ready for a nervous breakdown. But just as I could feel the corners of my eyes falling into the crazy twitches I saw this quote painted in three foot letters across the wall of the arrivals area: “Success is not a place you reach but the spirit with which one sets out on and continues the journey”. Instantly, my mindset was changed, when I met my program director a few minutes later there was no sign of the mortified girl that had been, only a warm smile and the confidence of one with a  spirit ready for whatever journey was in store.

And so it is with this memory and this mindset that I am preparing for my last few days with the American Friends Service Committee: Area Office of the Carolinas. My “success” while here at AFSC was not measured by any project I finished but by the spirit in which I set off to complete the work. The time that I have spent here has shown me that such a spirit is what truly matters in any part of your life. As I set out on the next part of my journey I am leaving this office, these people, this work, with a nourished, vibrant spirit; my experiences at the AFSC have set me up for a future of success.

I have had a variety of experiences in the year that I have been interning with the AFSC. Throughout all of these different projects and tasks the passion of those around me has always been the same. Whether I was designing flyers, planning events, lobbying local congressional leaders, or making copies, there was always a sense that what I was doing mattered, that I was an important part of this organization. This is one of the many aspects of the AFSC that makes it unique and a true pleasure to work with.

The AFSC has taught me more than I could even begin to list here. I have mastered all of those silly software do-dads that my technologically challenged self had previously written off as a lost cause. I can turn any three page document into one page with just the slightest of adjustments of the margins. I can write reports, newsletters, and blog entries. I can design posters, have them printed and post them in the span of days. I can plan events that people actually attend and are impacted by. I can develop relationships between organizations and strengthen grassroots movements working on a variety of issues. The copy machine is now my friend and the word “budget” no longer sends chills down my spine. I also now know that if you bring food they will come and you should save your work often.

I could go on for days, and I am not exaggerating I am known for being wordy, about what I have learned while here at the AFSC. But all of those new or honed skills pale in comparison to the many amazing people I have met and the strong relationships that I have formed over the past year. My fellow interns have taught me more than I can share; I will always admire their passion and zest for changing the world while juggling the instabilities of being young. The AFSC staff have guided, challenged and supported me more than I thought was humanely possible. They have dealt with my many mistakes with poise, pushed me to do more than I thought I was capable of, laughed with me (and sometimes at me), confirmed my strengths and abilities, and provided me with the perfect role models.

These are trying times, outlooks often look grim and results seem slim, but I must reiterate that one of the best things the AFSC has left me with is the spirit to set out and continue on my journey. I am thankful for everyone that I have encountered through this organization. I recognize that no one person or group of people knows the best route on the journey, but if we remember that it is not about the destination but rather the spirit in which we travel we will find success.

Hope on Foot

AFSC intern, Kelsey McNicholas, shares her experience working on the U.S-Mexico border

Peace and Economic Justice Newsletter

NC Peace and Economic Justice
April/May 2011 E-NEWSLETTER

The Peace and Economic Justice E-NEWSLETTER serves as a source of information on AFSC actions and activities for those in our community interested in peace work.
*Find AFSC online*
www.afsc.org/greensboro | http://afscnc.blogspot.com| www.facebook.com/afscnc

1. Windows and Mirrors: Reflections on the War in Afghanistan

2. Pilgrimage for Justice and Peace

3. Greensboro Plans for Participatory Budget

4. Action Alerts

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1. Windows and Mirrors: Reflections on the War in Afghanistan

Windows and Mirrors is a traveling exhibit that provides an opportunity to see ourselves in depictions of the war in Afghanistan through the eyes of artists and children. The exhibit includes 45 unique 4-foot by 6-foot panels created by artists memorializing Afghan civilian casualties, alongside images about living with war collected from Afghan schoolchildren.
The Windows and Mirrors Exhibit was in Greensboro from March 25- May 8. Megan Fair, AFSC intern and lead coordinator of the Exhibit shares her final reflections of Windows and Mirrors.
Window and Mirrors might have left Greensboro but this is definitely a situation in which the old adage “gone but not forgotten” applies. Yes the lingering posters and pending reports is a constant reminder that those murals were hanging on those now bare walls. But what has really kept the exhibition in the forefront of my mind are the reflections in the guest book and the conversations with community members, the knowledge that my mind is not the only one in which these images remain.
But what do we do with these impressions loitering in our consciousness? Do we write a line of poetry here, wipe a tear away there and go about our lives, moved but not moving? Does being content with only signing our names to a postcard cheapen what we experienced in front of each piece of art? These are tough questions that only lead into another question, what else can we do?
Windows and Mirrors was never intended as a onetime event, it was not meant to come and go leaving minimal effects like a mouse in the pantry. This exhibition was more like the metaphorically bull in the china shop, shattering preconceived notions and challenging mindsets of ignorance and unawareness. These pieces should not be put back together but can they be part of a new puzzle?
And that is what I am struggling with in the aftermath of Windows and Mirrors. The quote that has been traveling with the murals reads “Windows on a war torn country are also mirrors reflecting back on our own identity as a nation at war”. I’ve looked through these windows and seen myself in the mirror that they become. I ‘m ashamed to say I see myself complacent, saying that I have done enough to amplify the voices of the suffering. But as any recovering addict will tell you, the first step is admitting your problems. So in a way Windows and Mirrors has put me on the path to recovery, to recovering knowledge of latent injustices, to recovering a desire to make the sacrifices necessary to challenge those injustices, to recovering a love for all humanity over myself and the advantages of my life.
So I didn’t actually answer the question of what we do after Windows and Mirrors, what do we do once we’ve had our eyes and hearts opened to the plight of so many. I didn’t answer this question because that is a question that can only be answered by one person: you.

You can view Megan Fair’s final reflections on the Windows and Mirrors exhibition through digital story click here

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2. Pilgrimage for Justice and Peace

Every year during the Holy week several social justice organizations come together and participate in the Pilgrimage for Peace and Justice. Core walkers and other participants walk to highlight issues of justice happening around the world and in our state. This year the pilgrimage took place during the week of April 17th- 25th. There were eight core walkers, including AFSC intern Starlet Tetteh. The pilgrimage convened in Goldsboro and core walkers stopped in Burlington, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Charlotte, Cary, Chapel Hill, Garner, and Raleigh. Focal points of the pilgrimage were jobs, education, justice for immigrants and the human cost of war.
AFSC intern Starlet, documented her experience as a core walker and made a digital story about the Pilgrimage for Justice and Peace. You can view her story here.

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3. *Engaging People through Participatory Budgeting*
The economic reality faced by the nonprofit sector today may be the most difficult in decades. As funding sources erode, nonprofit directors and fund developers need to build stronger relationships with existing donors and the communities they work within. A new tool called “participatory budgeting” could help. In over 1,000 cities around the world, organizations have used it to attract more resources and support for their activities. Participatory budgeting engages community members in directly deciding how to spend budget money in cities, schools, housing authorities, and organizations.
On May 5, the Fund4Democratic Communities provided an open forum to discuss participatory budgeting. An AFSC intern attended the forum and found ways to use participatory budgeting to build community trust in our organization, stabilize our funding, and engage more people. This event was free and opens to anyone with a stake in a local nonprofit.

For more information on Participatory Budgeting, please contact:
Dave Reed
pbproject@f4dc.org

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4.* Action Alerts*
Time to end the war on terror
This is the time for a speedy withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan as a first step in bringing this decade-long tragedy to an end. Sadly, right now some legislators are trying to expand the war on terror.
Please write your member of Congress now to insist they oppose H.R. 968 and to say that now is the time to end — not expand — the wars.
Write Congress Now


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Windows and Mirrors: Reflections on the War in Afghanistan

By: Megan Fair

Windows and Mirrors is a traveling exhibit that provides an opportunity to see ourselves in depictions of the war in Afghanistan through the eyes of artists and children. The exhibit includes 45 unique 4-foot by 6-foot panels created by artists memorializing Afghan civilian casualties, alongside images about living with war collected from Afghan schoolchildren.
The Windows and Mirrors Exhibit was in Greensboro from March 25- May 8. Megan Fair, AFSC intern and lead coordinator of the Exhibit shares her final reflections of Windows and Mirrors.

Window and Mirrors might have left Greensboro but this is definitely a situation in which the old adage “gone but not forgotten” applies. Yes the lingering posters and pending reports is a constant reminder that those murals were hanging on those now bare walls. But what has really kept the exhibition in the forefront of my mind are the reflections in the guest book and the conversations with community members, the knowledge that my mind is not the only one in which these images remain.
But what do we do with these impressions loitering in our consciousness? Do we write a line of poetry here, wipe a tear away there and go about our lives, moved but not moving? Does being content with only signing our names to a postcard cheapen what we experienced in front of each piece of art? These are tough questions that only lead into another question, what else can we do?

Windows and Mirrors was never intended as a onetime event, it was not meant to come and go leaving minimal effects like a mouse in the pantry. This exhibition was more like the metaphorically bull in the china shop, shattering preconceived notions and challenging mindsets of ignorance and unawareness. These pieces should not be put back together but can they be part of a new puzzle?

And that is what I am struggling with in the aftermath of Windows and Mirrors. The quote that has been traveling with the murals reads “Windows on a war torn country are also mirrors reflecting back on our own identity as a nation at war”. I’ve looked through these windows and seen myself in the mirror that they become. I ‘m ashamed to say I see myself complacent, saying that I have done enough to amplify the voices of the suffering. But as any recovering addict will tell you, the first step is admitting your problems. So in a way Windows and Mirrors has put me on the path to recovery, to recovering knowledge of latent injustices, to recovering a desire to make the sacrifices necessary to challenge those injustices, to recovering a love for all humanity over myself and the advantages of my life.

So I didn’t actually answer the question of what we do after Windows and Mirrors, what do we do once we’ve had our eyes and hearts opened to the plight of so many. I didn’t answer this question because that is a question that can only be answered by one person: you.

You can view Megan Fair’s final reflections on the Windows and Mirrors exhibition here