A Leap of Faith

Tales from a Gap Year

Phoebe Hulbert attended the Emerson Waldorf School for 15 years from Nursery through 12th grade. After graduating in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, she took a gap year to work with AmeriCorps. She returns home this month to prepare for her first year at Haverford College outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The following is a piece she wrote during the latter stages of her gap year.

Phoebe Hulbert, 4th from left

Awkwardly, I walk up to a person sitting in the observation area of a Covid-19 vaccination site in Los Angeles. I hand them my journal and ask them to read the first page—no pressure if they aren’t willing to write in it. I sit at the Check-Out station, bouncing my knee up and down, nervously waiting for their response. They hand the journal back to me as they walk out 15 minutes later. For the rest of the day, I am itching to get home and read what this stranger has decided to share with me. At the front of my journal, I offer some suggestions: a dream they had, the best/worst day of their life, their biggest hopes, their worst fears, a thought they’ve been carrying with them recently, or anything in between. It is always exciting to read someone else’s story and to connect with strangers that I may never see again, even if it is only through a handful of words in a spiral-bound notebook.

Phoebe’s “Stranger Journal”

“It is always exciting to read someone else’s story and to connect with strangers that I may never see again, even if it is only through a handful of words in a spiral-bound notebook.”

My (aptly named) Stranger Journal is just one new, small addition to my life that has come from my AmeriCorps team—and a part I will never forget. AmeriCorps NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps) is a ten-month program for people aged 18-24 to work on projects from building houses to running Covid-19 vaccination sites to doing trail work, all while exploring new places across the U.S. My Stranger Journal is one way I have tried to connect with the communities I enter. It has allowed me to learn intimate, engaging details about the people I am serving and working with throughout my AmeriCorps year and I am honored each time someone shares a piece of their story with me.

Working at a pop-up vaccination site

In the past 10 months, I have worked on six unique projects, each in a different city (wildfire relief in Mckenzie Bridge, OR; contact tracing in Sacramento; Covid-19 vaccination sites in Los Angeles and Dover, DE; Habitat for Humanity in Helena, MT; assisting with a cultural event in Lapwai, ID). While in LA, each day we would drive to a new location in the city, set up a vaccination site (arrange chairs and tables, set up tents, write vaccine cards, configure the actual vaccination station, etc), administer vaccines, and tear it down at the end of the day. We worked alongside FEMA, paramedics, nurses, the National Guard, and many other organizations throughout our time in LA. Although it was sometimes challenging due to poor communication, monotonous workdays, and long hours with minimal time off, I met so many fascinating people and learned a lot about myself in the process.

“Taking a gap year has provided me with experiences I would never have received had I gone straight to college.”

With each person I meet and each conversation I have, I am left with something new to think about. Taking a gap year has provided me with experiences I would never have received had I gone straight to college. It has given me the space to reflect on the first 19 years of my life, my time as a Waldorf student, and process all that happened (missing my graduation and the last couple months of school due to Covid-19) during my senior year. It has allowed me to become more independent and helped me develop an idea of what I’d like to do with my future (although that’s still a work in progress!). It has also helped me question old and new beliefs and think critically to form my own ideas. Overall, it has been the best year of my life.

“As I reflect on the past year, I can’t help but think of how much Emerson Waldorf taught me and helped prepare me to go out into the world.  “

I’m currently sitting on the front porch of my team house in Helena, Montana—the sun is setting behind the Big Belt Mountain Range in layers of orange, gold, and pink, and the birds are chirping around me. As I reflect on the past year, I can’t help but think of how much Emerson Waldorf taught me and helped prepare me to go out into the world. Waldorf taught me to think for myself and to live with the same small group of people, day in and day out. It taught me unique skills—gardening, cooking, woodworking, and construction—that I have used throughout this year. Without the Emerson Waldorf community, I would not be the person I am today...and who knows if I would have had the support and courage to take a leap of faith on a gap year. 

Now that the sun has set, my thoughts can’t help but turn to my next adventure at Haverford College and the unknown people I will meet, challenges I will face, and growth I hope to experience. I feel gratitude for EWS and Americorps and am excited for what is to come.

Phoebe Hulbert, Class of 2020