March 26

Today we talked about concerns that we had about going into the field.
I'm not a huge worrysome person, and I just go with the flow, and I'm just flexible like that! All this planning before-hand for I'm supposed to be doing for the next 5 months is way hard because I have no idea what I'm doing in the next 5 days!
So, whenever they ask a question about "what would you do if..." I just roll my eyes and think "I'll figure it out when I get there!" Additionally, all these "what ifs" are completely situation and dependent on the circumstances.
But then Ashley asked us a question about how would we notice the needs of others and be able to respond to them. How will we know when we see a need that needs fufilling? Do you ever notice the needs of others? Do you ever notice what kinds of things you never notice?
After she asked us that the whole group kind of went silent and I knew I didn't have an answer and I don't think anyone else did. I guess I never notice what I don't try to notice.
So, for the next week I want to try to notice the things that I never notice. I want to see if I can pick up on other people's needs and anything else I would never pick up on. I know that if I am keeping a watchful eye out for specific things I would normally ignore, then I can get a good feel and practice what it's like and be able to do it in the field.
This will be good for my field study, in that I will be able to better see the needs of others, be able to serve more, and be able to reciprocate appropriately for my host family and that way I don't look like a total jerk in Tonga! I will report how I improve/notice more things next week!