Highlights From Idaho

Today marked the last of my Idaho filming days! I wasn't planning on doing much blogging about it and figured I would post more in New York, but tonight as I was reflecting on my experience so far I realized that part of this project isn't just discovering new parts of New York – it's also having adventures and making discoveries in my own little town that, to be honest, I don't know as well as I think I do. Even though Sun Valley is a part of my normal life, there's no reason why I shouldn't be able to find something special in the every day.

Sooooo I figured I would post some highlights from my filming time here! The first awesome surprise that came with this project was when, during Monica's interview, she mentioned to me that she wrote a song about being a DACA recipient. I asked her to play it for me and you guys. I was BLOWN. AWAY. It really made me realize how much talent and diversity there is in my own little valley that I don't even know about. I would post it here, but I think I want to save it for you all to see when my project is done. It's really lovely.

ran into some buddies on my way home from Wood River

After that surprise came my first mini adventure! On Friday, I went to Wood River High School and attended Monica's meeting for "Nosotros United," which is a student-run club meant to support Hispanic and Latinx students. Two women came in as guest speakers and talked to the kids about their legal rights, how to avoid deportation if arrested, and getting assistance with DACA renewal (the organization they worked for offered to pay for half of the renewal costs). I actually didn't end up getting as much footage as I wanted to there because I became pretty invested in listening to the meeting and what everyone had to say. I'm glad that Hispanic/Latinx kids at Wood River have that support system in place. Also, a lot of the club faculty members were white, and it was nice to see that these students have teachers who care about supporting them in their identities even if they don't share those identities.

the author feeling fly in Sam's bathroom during a filming break

Another adventure I had was meeting the family of the second girl I filmed, Sariah, and listening in on her "family home evening," which is essentially a mix of Bible study and family bonding time. The parents and their five kids are Mormon, which is a religion that I don't know much about (I actually don't know much about any religion, in general). It was really interesting to listen to them all talk about lessons in the Book of Mormon and what the lessons mean to them, and to watch a few of the LDS videos they showed as part of their family home evening (I even got a little teary-eyed at one point). The family was also incredibly sweet as a whole, and I was glad that I opened myself up to that new experience.

Even driving up to Galena with Sam on Saturday was a fun little adventure that made me happy...regardless of the fact that we left after five minutes because we were both wearing sneakers in the snow.

Sam being a lil cutie

Here's to getting out of my comfort zone, wrapping up the first half of my project, and hoping the adventures continue!!