Day two is done! So far this trip so far has been filled with peppered shrimp and Pelicans basketball. If you know me you know that I’m living my best life with those two things. However; the best part of this trip hasn’t been the food or Anthony Davis dropping 31 and 14 on the Hornets. I have been entrapped by the culture in NOLA. Let me tell you how this city has taught me to love, and how I hope it can teach you the same thing.

Diversity:

No matter where you are you most likely experience diversity but I can promise you don’t experience it like NOLA. Tonight we drove by a house with a beat up car in the driveway. I’m talking 1989 Chevy with cardboard on the windows, no bumpers, and I think it was missing a tire. 4 doors down there was a 2017 Chevy Silverado and an Infinity in the driveway. You can walk past 3 tax brackets in 10 minutes. Why is this cool? It’s because they live in unity. NOLA is not only extremely diverse ethnically but its diverse by class. That inclusion is an opportunity to show genuine love to people who are different from you and speaks to the culture of NOLA. One love.

Revitalization:

Back in 2007 this town experienced heartbreak and destruction. Today they’ve made changes to their way of life to not just get themselves back but to make themselves better than ever, and it was a team effort. We’ve worked with groups that are focused on preventing this future heartbreak for others. Whether it’s through sustainable lights or water pumping systems this culture is all about making things better than they were for others. That’s selfless love. I’ve been reflecting on how I can take my experiences and failures to make things better for those around me in an effort to support them. That’s a question I hope you can ask yourself. What suffering have you experienced and how can you use that to teach others about success? I hope you find your answer, but maybe you’ll have to travel to NOLA for it.

-Cameron Jordan