Mission Trip Narrative

Straight Outta Compton? Or Straight Outta Gratefulness?
Back in 2012, I went on a trip that put my life in danger. Who would have guessed that I would be going to Compton, California, one of America’s most dangerous cities, for a mission trip. My experiences and interactions there changed my view on life completely. The trip to Compton changed my lifestyle actions and made me realize what life in poverty is like and how grateful I should be to have the life I have.
On July 17, 2012 I woke up to my alarm buzzing letting me know today is the day I go to Compton, California for a mission trip. I was full of emotions because it was my first mission trip, my first time away from my parents, but I was also going to one of America’s most dangerous cities. I went to church to meet up with the other students, and eventually we were off to

the airport to hop on our four-hour flight to LAX.
I hopped off the plane at LAX with a sore back and my carry-on bag. Our group proceeded to pick up our rental Dodge vans to head to our final destination. Looking out the window I saw large billboards, traffic jams, and pedestrians everywhere. As the time we drove got longer, the more the view slowly turned to a scene with a very clear picture that there was not much money in the area. Billboards, traffic, and pedestrians became less and less. The view out the back window provided a scene with poverty written all over it, for abandoned and graffitied buildings, barred up windows, and a couple of homeless Joes sleeping on bus benches welcomed us to our hometown for the next week.
As I watched the neighborhood change to a poverty scene, I realized how grateful I should be to have the neighborhood I live in. I get the opportunity to live in an area where all the houses are neat and well taken care of, the grass is always green, and the town is safe to walk around. I learned that not everyone can have a nice and neat neighborhood to walk around in like I can, so living in Oostburg is a blessing for me now.
Since most houses in the neighborhood are not like one’s back home in Oostburg, our group had the opportunity to change one of those houses.

Each morning of the trip I stepped onto the worksite where we were repainting and cleaning a pink colored house. I was assigned to work on cleaning out the backyard. When I walked back there, I saw not a neat and manicured lawn like the ones back home in Oostburg, Wisconsin, but a small, yellow, dry, and patchy yard littered with garbage. There was everything ranging from old McDonalds bags to molded wood crawling with spiders that can make a grown man scream like a girl. Once we finished cleaning the yard, our group helped with painting. Throughout the workdays I saw the progression of the house turn from a faded pink to a new light tan.
Once the whole house was tan with no pink in sight, the owner of the home came out. She was overwhelmed with joy and gratefulness because of the work we did for her house. She said how her ninety-year-old mother was struggling with depression because her son had just died a couple weeks ago. Watching us teenagers work together and have fun made her so much

happier.
Listening to the woman’s story made me conscience of how a small action can dramatically change a person’s mood and that I should do more small actions for others. All we were doing as a group was talking and having fun with each other, but little did we know that changed an old woman that was watching us. That experience led me to doing small favors, such as holding a door open for a stranger, more often. A small gesture like that has the potential to brighten someone’s day.
Once we heard the woman’s story, we headed back to the church where we were greeted by a number of neighborhood children waiting for us to come home. Every single one of them wanted to play with us, whether it was a game of basketball or playing with dolls. As we spent the night with the kids, all of us were having a lot of fun spending time with the cherry children of Compton. Later in the week we found out how grateful the kids were to have teenagers playing with them. Everyone in Compton lives an individualistic lifestyle, so the kids do not get much attention. The kids looked up to us as role models because they have none.
Hearing how the kids looked up to us opened my eyes about how I should appreciate my role models more. I grew up with many role models in Oostburg because everyone cares for each other there. I had adults to look up to because they were there for me, but the kids in Compton do not have many people to look up to. This observation taught me not to take my role models for granted and that I should be an example for younger children so they have someone to look up to.
Compared to people in Compton, I have many changes that are better for which I am grateful. I am now more grateful for the town and neighborhood I live in because I can walk around Oostburg and see nice lawns and stable houses. I can also live in a nice house where I do not need security systems and barred windows because the neighborhood is not safe. My trip also changed me by reminding me to do small favors for others. A small gesture of politeness can easily change someone’s mood. Compton also taught me not to take my role models for granted and to be an example for younger children. Not everyone gets the opportunity to have role models like I do, so I now appreciate them more. Overall, Compton taught me live more gratefully for everything I have in my life. From now on and into the future, I will have a more positive outlook on every blessing I have because I know that for someone, it can be a lot worse.