Nashville, TN

After a six month adventure I finally returned back home to the USA. The transition was difficult especially moving back into academic life. I definitely had the travel bug (note: it will never go away) and was thirsty for yet another new experience. In March 2013 I had another new opportunity by having 1 week off for Spring Break. I knew I absolutely had to do something besides just going home. My first spring break in college I spent going on a service trip to Washington D.C. I made some of my best friends through that trip and loved it so much that I decided to plan it for the next year. I feel like each year builds upon the next and I needed to do something that will stretch me a little be further. I love the idea of stretching and expanding! A mentor of mine once told me that you shouldn't step outside of your comfort zone, but you should stretch it. That idea has always resonated with me. So, when I heard about another service trip that was being offered over spring break that was pretty inexpensive, I jumped right on the band wagon. This trip was to Nashville, TN... a place that I had personally never been to.

Thistle

The reason I wanted to go on this trip wasn't purely because of the place, but the purpose of the visit. A year prior to this trip, I attended a lecture at my college that was given by a woman named Rebecca Stevens. Rebecca talked about prostitution and addiction that she has seen in her community in Nashville, TN. She was working to fix these issues through two different programs: Magdalene, a residential treatment program for human who have survived human traffic, prostitution, and addiction, and Thistle Farms, a social enterprise that is run by these woman.I remember leaving that lecture feeling inspired and hopeful. This trip was organized to spend time serving and working besides the women of Magdeline & Thistle Farms to hear their stories and help them spread change.

About Magadeline & Thistle Farms:

Making Paper

For the duration of the trip, we stayed at a small church in Vanderbilt University. The first night we got burgers at Rotiers which certainly did not disappoint. The trip to Nashville was a pretty even mix between service and outings for fun. The majority of the volunteer work we did was with Magdalene & Thistle Farms. The first day that we arrived at Thistle Farms we were invited to take part in their daily morning ritual where all the woman gather in a circle and share how they are doing in that moment. I cannot even begin to express the amount of love, pain, acceptance, and openness that was conveyed within the circle. It was incredible how these women who have endured so much received us with open minds and hearts and allowed us to be apart of their journey, even if only for an hour.
We had a tour of the facility and were able to see the women making the beauty products that Thistle Farms sells. We also had the chance to be put to work for the day. They set us up to make paper for cards and notebooks. The paper is all made from recycled materials such as old t-shirts and other recycled paper. In each piece of paper the thistle plant is also added.

Dinner We Prepared for the Women

Why is the thistle plant so important to the woman of Magadalene? Well the thistle plant serves as a symbol that represents these women's struggles. Thistle is considered as a pesky weed that grows up between the cracks in the sidewalk. These plants root deep making them difficult to get rid of. They have sharp prickles and are unwanted within the city. This is how the women are viewed. However, when thistle blooms there is a beautiful purple flower. The idea is by having these women participate in these two programs they two will bloom and heal through the power of love.

Motivational Cards

We had a blast making the paper and learning about the healing effects of the thistle plant in general. The women were so inspiring to spend time with and had such a positive stance on life as well as hopeful outlooks for the future. Also, during our time we had the opportunity to cook a meal for the women living in Magadelene house. During this experience we gained a further in depth view on the lives of these women. I had the chance to talk to one women in particular who had just arrived to the house 3 days before. She told me her story about being pimped out. living in fear, and turning to drugs to numb herself. She was truly grateful for Magadelene and felt empowered sharing her story to a stranger. I had a very spiritual moment connecting with her.

Working with Children

Country Girl

Besides working with Magadelene & Thistle Farms we worked for another organization called Nashville Cares. Nashville Cares is working to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Tennessee. Through that organization we volunteered and made small care packages accompanied with cards, and worked with low income children at their schools.

On top of all the great volunteer work we did, we still went out to explore Nashville and have a little fun! We went line dancing, saw a show at the Grand Old Opre, walked down the main strip in Downtown Nashville bar hopping to see all of the live music, sang karoke, and of course ate a ton of great food. I must admit, by the end of the trip I started to actually enjoy and grow to appreciate country music! Another highlight was that we actually saw Darius Rucker filming his music video for the song Wagon Wheel. I'll admit before this trip I had no idea who that was, but in the moment it was still pretty cool! All in all it was a great trip in which I not only had fun, but was reminded about the healing power of love.

Darius Rucker! 

xoxo,

Becca