Jamaican Me Crazy!

Hello Everyone!!

So I have just gotten back from my mission trip in Jamaica, and it was completely amazing! I seriously am so bless to have spent my spring break with this awesome group of people doing such great things.  While on this trip I learned so much about myself, and how much the Lord loves me! So I am going to share a little bit about trip so you guys can see all that happened!

Saturday, Day 1: So I spent Friday night at my friend Katie Fosse's house, and her family was so nice! Her mom made us dinner and some really tasty juice, but we actually went to bed kinda early because we had to wake up super early to drive to the airport in the morning.  I woke up around 3:30 and Katie's dad drove us to the airport to meet our group at 5:00.  We were all kind of groggy but I mean we were so excited too! Going into this trip I was really only friends with one girl on my trip, Danielle, and she wasn't on my flight so I was kinda going into an unfamiliar group of people. We had meetings before every sunday night, so I got to meet most of the people on my trip there, but it was still kinda scary! This is a picture of Courtney, Kaleb, and I on the plane (Courtney was in my small group and we became really good friends, and Kaleb is Katie Fosse's Cousin and he went on another Jamaica trip with Freshly)!

So this is a picture of the hotel we stayed at; it was really small and we were pretty much the only guests all week. The people at Hunny Bay cooked all of our meals and they were so good to us!

Sunday, Day 2: We got up and ate breakfast, and then we went to a local church! The one I went to was called Family Church on the Rock, and it was a 3 hour long service! The people there were so happy to see us, and the preacher actually came later on in the week to speak to us at worship one night. On the left side are my roommates and I! The one on the left is Olivia, and the one in the middle is Morgan (awesome girls fo sho)!

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Day 3, 4, 5: So on Monday we started our mission work! I went to The Golden Grove All Age School which had kids from Grade 1-Grade 6, and it was definitely one of the higher class schools in Jamaica. We got there and we could hear all the Jamaican kids talking, and it was so much louder than an American school!  My team painted the outside of the school and built a cement foundation for a new wall.  We worked on these projects all of Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. However, Monday was probably the hardest day because it was raining while we worked, and all the kids had tests so there were kids in and out of class all day, so it was really hard to focus while they were talking to us the whole time!

This is my girl Whitney! I met her the first day and she gave me flowers and wrote me little notes all week! 

This is the outside of the school that we painted, it was just three walls with a courtyard, and we were helping them build the fourth  wall. You can tell its about to storm on us here! 

These are some of the school kids! The girl in the middle was super sassy haha. She always wanted to play "beauty shop", which consisted of braiding and pulling my hair until I had none left.

So after we finished up at our worksites for the day we would hop back in the coaster and go back to Hunny Bay.  The drive home was about  an hour so there was some really good sight seeing!

 

After we got back we would have some time to chill out before dinner (most of us would shower all the nasty off of us, but the showers were always really cold!). Then following dinner we would have small group which was my favorite time of the day! In small group I met with Kasey, Christin, Callie, Courtney, Katie Fosse, and Katie Nipp (try remembering all those names...mmhmm). But at this time we would just talk about our day, and we would talk about pretty much just anything on our minds. These girls became my best friends on the trip! Left to right: Katie Nipp, Courtney, Me!, Christen, Kasey, Callie, and Kaite Fosse!

 

So after small group we would have worship, and this was always just a great time to be close with God. Every night I would look up at the stars and it truly was magical. This time was always really special because each night we would grow closer to each other, and it was so awesome to experience worship together by the end of the week. After worship we would ALWAYS have snack, and most of the time it was some seriously good junk food that I simply could not deny.  I am sure I gained like 10 pounds from all those late night snacks haha. But it was soooooo worth it my friends.

Thursday, Day 6: So by Thursday we finished all of our mission projects, and instead of going to our mission site we went to a place for mentally handicapped adults.  This place was mind-blowing.  After mentally handicapped people turn 18 the government no longer provides provision for them, so this place was formed by a very special lady (who I sadly cannot remember the name of!). She has made it so this facility is self-sustaining with animals, and gardens, and solar power energy. It was so incredible, and their church was so beautiful! But the thing that blew my mind was that it was all done by missionaries! While we were there all we did was sing songs with them, and just kinda hang out, but they were so grateful still.

 The whole week we were singing Whitney Houston, and one of the patients said that she was his favorite, so that is why we chose to sing this song with them haha!

Friday, Day 7: This was one of the most tiring days of the week! Since this was our last day in Jamaica we went to the markets and did some serious haggling, and then we went to Dunns River Falls and climbed up the water falls! This day was pretty much filled with all of the touristy things in Jamaica, and it was really weird seeing white people again! There were a bunch of cruise ships docked here, and it was like being in America again.  This was just so different than what we had been exposed to all week that it was weird seeing people come to Jamaica but not even see what really goes on behind the shoreline.

 Yes, we did rock the mission trip one pieces with style.

 

Saturday, Day 8: We got up bright and early to head to the airport, and of course it was hectic, but we eventually made it home around 7:00 pm.  We had some good American Atlanta Bread Co. in the airport and then headed back to Katie's house.  By this time Katie and I were extremely pooped, and we pretty much went straight to bed. 

      All in all, this trip was so amazing, and it has greatly affected my college experience already because I have people who I can really trust.  Each and every person I went on this trip has such special qualities, and I can't wait to spend the rest of my semester with these awesome people to support me!  

      I also want to thank all of you that gave me money and prayers for this trip. This whole process turned out to be so rewarding, and I am just floored to see how much you all care.  I hope this little synopsis gives you a just a peak at how life altering this trip was for me! I love each of you so much!

Peace and Pineapples,

Mason :)

PS: I am just going to throw on these pictures too!

Flowers and Superpowers

Greetings Wonderful People,

So this has been a really tough week for the Burril family. We lost our dog Tulip this past Friday. She went outside around 4 in the morning, as she always does, and she got into it with some kind of animal. Dad said he heard Gadget barking differently than usual, so he went outside to see what was going on. When he got outside he found her about 30 feet from the house, with all of her ribs broken and her lungs filled with blood. Dad said when he picked her up it took all the strength she had to slightly give into his arms. She died in his arms shortly after.

In order to tell me the news my Dad flew through the rain on Friday morning down to Athens. Mom and Callen came shortly after because we were all so torn up. We spend the weekend reminiscing on all of our sweet memories and comforting one another. I cannot believe how much we were all affected by this. It is honestly like losing a member of your family, and this is the first death I have really experienced where I am mature enough to understand it all.

Tulip Burril was a very important part of my growing up, we got her when I was 9 years old. I was the happiest kid in the world when we picked her up from Wilson, NC on Febuary 12, 2003. Ever since then she has always been involved in our lives. She put us on the school bus in elementary school, went on our RV trips, flew with Dad almost every time he went, and she was always there to remind us how loved we all are. God blessed our family with a loving companion, and lifelong reminder of compassion.

We will all miss her dearly. She was our baby. We will never forget you Tulip.

Love,

Mason

This is the last picture of Tulip,
she was stowed away in my suitcase when I was packing :(

Chocolate and Chapstick!

So I'm Jamaica we all get "warm and fuzzies", and it's where we give a gift to someone's name that we have randomly drawn on our trip! I told everyone I liked chocolate and Chapstick, and someone left me a little treatie tonight!

All over the place.

Greetings All!

So how is everyone doing on this glorious day? I have to say that I am doing quite swell!  Last week was crazy stressful from all my tests, but this week is free and easy.  So...lets see, where should I start? I assume that you all might be getting bored hearing about classes, so lets shoot for some exciting stuff!

I'm not sure if I have mentioned this yet, but next year I am going to be studying abroad in Europe!!! I cannot tell you how pumped I am to live in another county, absorbing another culture, all while getting college credit.  How much better does it get? I went to a study abroad meeting, and I can basically go wherever I want to, I just have to choose what I want to study and where I want to go.  I have a couple cities in mind: Rome, Italy; Madrid, Spain; London, England; and Paris, France.  I know I want to go to a big city, so I just have to find the place that has some classes I want to take.  If you guys have any advice lemme hear it!

By studying abroad, I have set myself up for a lot of preparation.  I have to completely rethink my housing situation next year because I am only going to be here for four months.  So, instead of getting an apartment with my friends, I am going to have to live on campus with some rando people.  But I mean I am not going to give up studying abroad to live with my friends, so it's all good.

So you know how I am going to Jamaica for Spring Break?! Well the countdown has officially begun, and it is a mere 26 days away! I had no idea it was so close, and now I am kinda freaking out about how I am going to pay for it! So, you guys might be getting a little treat in the mail in the next couple of days :)  Going on this trip will honestly be so amazing, and I feel like I am truly being called to join these people to change some lives in Jamaica.  We have set up some awesome mission projects, and I promise to journal everyday so I can tell you guys all about it when I get back!

In other exciting news, this summer I am officially going to be interning with Penske Racing!  I have been chatting it up with Jonathan Gibson who is a VP for Penske (big stuff I know), and he is getting me all set up for this coming summer!  I think I told you guys a while ago that I was also applying for an internship with Seventeen Magazine. Well anyway, I ended up getting the internship there too, which was super exciting for me! Interning for Seventeen is a huge deal, but sadly I had to turn it down because of my Penske gig.  But the good thing is I have started a relationship with them, and hopefully they will keep me in mind for next year!  I just feel so blessed to be pursued by two awesome organizations. As my Public Relations professor says, "any experience is good experience".

Life down here is going pretty well, but I am going to be coming home this weekend and I am so excited!! I have missed the ole fam so much.  Shout out to Callen for going to state for pole vault!! My sister is a total pole vaulting champ.  Also, I want you guys to keep praying for all my friends in school because college is pretty tough on peeps, and also pray for Lily who is in Thailand (keep up with her blog on http://lilymcclureclarke.blogspot.com/)!!

I hope all of you have an out of this world Valentine's Day tomorrow! I will be going to see "The Vow" with a bunch of girls, then going swing dancing!

Holla at yo girl,

Mason :)

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

Ello Folks!

So some exciting things are going on in Athens today.   First off, it is finally getting back to the beautiful weather that it should be! Today it is 70 degrees outside and students have ditched the winter jackets for shorts and sunscreen.  Secondly, today all of the dining halls are having a special dinner dedicated to the Chinese New Year and we are going to indulge in wontons and egg rolls tonight! Yes, I know it is ridiculous to be this excited about dining hall food, but it's been a while since I have eaten a good fortune cookie.

Sorry for writing so late, I have been waiting to hear back from Jonathan Gibson at Penske Racing about my internship for the summer.  I was going to try and share all the exciting details with you guys, but I will just have to write about it next week! I could not be more excited.  Getting an internship as a freshman is not something that happens everyday, and I cannot wait to get real experience with such an awesome company.  I was actually talking with my advisor, and she says that it will be really good to write about in my statement of interest for when I apply to Grady School of Journalism.

In other news, I have started doing UGA Newsource again (which is the UGA news show)! This past week I was the floor director, and I got to direct the anchors during the show.  It was pretty busy because there are a lot of new people that are volunteering, but eventually they stop coming and it will get back to normal haha.  Areshia has actually started working at the show too, and she seems to really like it! TV Production is actually her major, so she actually has a reason for being there, but I'm just doing it for fun.

In Freshman Forum (Student Government) we all chose what service project we are going to work on this semester, and I chose to do Human Trafficking Awareness.  Human Trafficking is a huge problem all over the world, but especially in Atlanta, GA.  Atlanta is one of the top cities that is affected by Human Trafficking, and most people have no idea.  My project group is working on a couple events to raise awareness, and hopefully make some motion with this issue.  I am really excited about this, and I think some of our ideas will really make an impact on this campus. I'll keep you guys updated!

My classes are really picking up down here, I turned in two papers this week, and next week I have THREE tests!!! Its crazy stuff, and I am going to be a stress out maniac for a couple of days.  My tests are in Spanish, Interpersonal Communication, and Intro to Public Relations.  So please keep me in your prayers!

So I just want to write about my friends down here for a little while.  When I first got to UGA, I was completely alone, and I was hesitant to completely open myself up to random people.  But I now look around, and I constantly see people who I have grown to care about, and people that care about me.  Forming relationships down here has been so rewarding, and I have gotten to have some awesome experiences by taking this leap of faith.  One of my really good friends down here, Jennifer is also a PR major and we really just get along so well. The other night Me , Jennifer, and her roommate Kathryn were all doing Pilates  on their dorm room floor at like 11:00 at night...so hilarious haha.  I want to mention Meredith- she is an art major, she is soooo talented! She teaches sunday school with me, and we always have a good time together, you can always find us with coffee in our hands haha.  I also want to talk about Ashton! She is just about the sweetest person I have ever met in my life, and she is actually getting married this May! Ashton has the cutest country accent, and we like to unite on the fact that we are both the blondes, and we definitely have more fun.  I will be sure to mention some others later, but I don't want you guys to get to bored haha.

I love you all so so so so so much!! Please write back and tell me how everything is going, because I miss you guys!

Audios,

Mason :)

Bien Venito!

Hello Again All My Fellow Friends!

So its official. School has actually started again because I am now swamped with homework, and I am studying for class.  The hustle and bustle of college life gets to be exhausting at times!  So this past week I have gotten into some exciting things that I thought I might share with you guys.

So as I told you last time, I applied to be a tour guide at the UGA Visitors Center.  So this past Tuesday I went to go interview, and it was really fun! We were interviewed in a group format, so there were people there that you could freak out with beforehand haha.  Throughout the week 280 people interviewed for the 15 spots that were available, so you can tell this is a very competitive job to get.  It was sad, but I did not end up getting called back.  So, I wrote the director a hand-written note thanking him for interviewing me haha (suck up move I know, but hey, it works).

Aside from getting my dreams crushed from rejection, I actually had a very exciting weekend after that! On Friday night I went to a Titanic dance at Westley Church, and it was a total blast! I went with Meredith, Areshia, and a couple of guys that we have met from Freshley, and we were definitely looking fresh. It was supposed to be a dance for people to relive their bad high school homecoming dance, so everyone dressed up in semi-formal.  We pretty much did line dances the whole time, and it was just so fun. When the dance ended around 10:30 we headed to Phi Slam, which is the Christian frat on campus that has awesome dry dance parties.  We stayed there until around 12:30, and by the time we got back to the dorm I literally felt like my legs were going to fall off.  We straight up boogied down from 7:30-12:30. Talk about a serious workout.

On Saturday I went out to lunch with my friend Jack and one of his friends Andrew to his dad's country club.  I munched on a delicious turkey burger, and we talked all about our lives.  Andrew was actually in Legally Blonde and he was the UPS guy!  After lunch we went to my first basketball game as a student! We played Ole Miss and we ended up losing, but the end was awesome and I was on tv!!!!!! So it was a win in my book for sure haha.

Sunday I went to church, and along with Meredith and Areshia, my friend Brandon came! He had visited the week before, and I was so happy that he came back!  I am going to offically start teaching sunday school this sunday, and I am so excited. I am going to be teaching kids K-5th grade, and I couldn't be more excited!

As you can see things down here are chuggin right along, and I am trying to do as much as I can! (sometimes too much haha) This semester is going to be action-packed, and I cannot wait to see how it all unfolds.  Please keep me updated with all of your lives because I love hearing from you!

I love all of you guys,

Mason :)


mvb184@gmail.com

(828)231-0995

Best semester yet.

!Hola Mi Familia!

I am so glad to be back at school, and to get back to the everyday grind of life! So this is my first blogging of the new year, and I am proud to say that I have a lot to tell you guys already!  

Over the break I saw so many friends, and I was constantly bombarded with family and it was nothing short of exciting.  The moment I got home my life picked right back up where I left it, and I had to go to the dentist, run errands, and I even got to return to Reynolds and bring Callen lunch!  Being back home was so nice, and I have really grown to appriciate being in my hometown.  It is so comforting to see random people on the street who you know, and they know you.  This first semester I have had to meet all new people, and it was nice to finally just have people already know who you are.

During the break I drove to Mooresville, NC to interview for an internship for Penske Racing.  This was the first time I would ever go on a road trip alone, and stay in a hotel by myself.  I was so excited that I was finally becoming independent, and traveling for a job interview.  The road trip down was completely awesome because I just jammed out the whole way, and threw in the occasional Delilah.  Once I got to the hotel, I checked in with the man at the front desk and he was so nice and helpful, and it was just great haha.  Then I got to the room and jumped on the bed a couple times for old times sake.  The next morning I spent in Starbucks looking over all kinds of Penske news and information so I would be well caught up with the current events in the company.  After I finished my Grande Skinny Peppermint Mocha, I drove on over to the racing facility to face the music.  When I got inside I had to wait for my interviewer, Jonathan Gibson, so I checked out all the old racing memorabilia in the office and it was so awesome! Finally Jonathan arrived, and we went into the conference room and talked all about UGA (he is a dawg too!!) and about what the internship involved.  I am going to have to move to Mooresville for the summer, but it is going to be completely worth it.  I am going to experience some amazing things, and I feel like my career life is officially starting.

Anyway, now I am back at school and I have finally settled into my new classes.  This semester I am taking some really fun classes, and I actually got to take some classes with my friends!  Here are all of my classes:

English Composition
Intro to Public Relations
Accelerated Spanish
Aerobic Dance (oh my gosh so fun!!)
Interpersonal Communications

There is not one class that I don't like! I have some really great professors, and I can't wait to get to know them this year.  My biggest class is my public relations class, but I sit right up front so it still seems like I am right in the action.

There are many things that I am getting involved with this semester.  I am going to start teaching 1st grade sunday school at Athens Church (where I have been going all year), I am still doing Freshman Forum (Student Government), I am trying to get involved with PRSSA (Public Relations Student Association), and I am applying to be a tour guide for the Visitors Center.  Being a tour guide is super competitive, and I am going to an interview on Tuesday so wish me luck!

Also, we are starting to have meetings for my mission trip to Jamaica! We met for the first time last sunday night, and I am so excited to see what God has in store for our team and for the people of St. Ann's.  I had to make a huge payment, and I am couldn't be happier to spend my money on this trip because I know it is going to be special.  There is going to be a lot more money to raise for this trip, but I have been praying and hopefully I will be able to get some work to make some more mulah.

Another thing that I have been doing since I have been back is apartment hunting!! Next year I am going to be living off campus with a couple friends, and I didn't realize how stressful house hunting was! But it is all really exciting, and I really can't wait to not live in a closet anymore.

I am so glad to be back at school! This semester is already starting off to be amazing, and I can't wait to see what my future has in store.  Thank you all for being so supportive of what I am doing.

I would love to hear from you guys!! Please email me, or write me!

My email is:
mvb184@gmail.com

My address is:
0712B Creswell Hall
University of Georgia
Athens, GA 30609

Also, one of my best friends, Lily Clarke is in Thailand right now and she is writing a blog as well! You can read all about her at lilymcclureclarke.blogspot.com!!