I have learned so much through the DCBRP– not just about Detroit, but also about myself. I have grown so much in so many ways. This was my first full-time job, I’ve never had to wake up so earlier every day of the week prior to this experience. I was terrified of not being able to wake up on time. I surprised myself, as I found myself looking forward to going to work.
Detroit has it’s own personality that no one could explain unless you lived there for many, many years. I can’t seem to put a word to it, it’s just unique. Yesterday I met a graduate student at Wayne State, and even though she grew up in Detroit, she moved away for her undergraduate, and she didn’t consider herself a “Detroiter.” Not because she wasn’t proud of her city, but because no one can truly call themselves a Detroiter until you breathe and live Detroit to a point where it affects every single part of you. Sometimes it’s love, sometimes it’s hate, but no matter what word a Detroiter would use to describe their city they would feel that word with more passion than words can describe. I feel like I understand that now, I don’t understand their passion because I haven’t been here long enough but I understand that they do have deep passion.
This passion I believe will be what the city will use to continue to “rebuild” the city. Many people don’t believe that the city just started being “rebuilt” recently and I agree, it has been a long process that has began a very long time ago, and I understand that now as I work next to members of the community who have been working on making a difference all their lives.
I appreciate these people. I have never seen people word so hard for a cause that they love so much, and even though I am leaving, for now, this experience and this city will always have a place in my heart. This experience was something I would have not gotten anywhere else, and I want to thank everyone for all the support, love, and just in general believing in me because at the end of the day if we can all do those things for someone, anyone, we could truly make a difference that will last a lifetime.
