"What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it."

The green carpet of that humid library rubbed against my calves as I sat on the floor, laughing so hard it brought tears to my eyes. There I sat, surrounded by my LITES who were strumming guitars, re-writing song lyrics, painting banners, and cutting construction paper. I felt myself mentally retreat from that moment, realizing the impact it was having on me as it happened. Seeing their smiling faces, watching them radiate with God's beauty, it once again hit me how painful it is going to be when August third rolls around.

There have been multiple LITES that I've grown close with through the course of the last four weeks. One of whom that I met last summer through other interns said something to me that caught me off guard. He had grown up with Project Transformation and is very familiar with the program and how things should be. Although he has been to Oak Cliff to volunteer in the past, he is a regular at a different church that hosts the Project Transformation day camp. We were talking one day about his thoughts and perceptions of this summer when he commented on the way I run the LITE program at Oak Cliff. He was trying to describe the difference he'd seen so far, and mid-sentence he looked at me and said, "You make it feel like home." I was completely speechless as all I could do was smile.

The kids I've met this summer, the people I spend my days with, have become exactly that... a family to me. I love them endlessly, whether they're texting while I'm giving instructions, or cracking jokes at the way my Michigan accent sounds, these kids have accepted me and welcomed me into their lives, and for that I will be forever grateful. Each and every one of them has a story, whether it's full of hardship and oppression or love and opportunity, these kids are nothing but beautiful, capable, real fighters, who will do whatever it takes to make their mark.

Here's a video of what they're saying about their experiences and a little glimpse into the passionate kids they really are.

From knowing them, spending time with them, and talking to them, I have learned so much about who God is and what our purpose as people needs to be. Although they may only be L.I.T.E.S now, these kids are destined for so much greatness in their future and I am already beginning to see how they light the dark of this troubled world.

Listen to this --> You Love Me Anyway by Sidewalk Prophets