Written by Kateri Dir-Munoz
Routines of QVS
6:15am: Wake up
I’ve always been more of a morning person. I like to have the time to watch the world wake up with me.
Turkey gobbles often echoed through the window as I stretched and put my workout clothes on.
6:30am: Off to the YMCA/Time for a walk
Starting work at 9am every morning and having a consistent schedule is something I greatly appreciated this year. Last year, as a nurse on the inpatient psychiatric crisis unit, I often was working inconsistent days and weekends. It made it difficult to be physically active at the same time everyday, or find a time to fit it in at all. Having this part of my routine was so special and felt like an insane treat.
When I was at the YMCA I would always say my good mornings to the same faces, and find a light-hearted fun podcast to listen to as I woke up my body.
On mornings when I walked along the Neponset River Trail (especially for the first month and a half of QVS) I would listen to Enneagram podcasts and audio books (Drugs for Grown Ups, Carl Hart). But, as soon as I got to the bank of the river my earphones would come out; for 20 or so minutes I would listen to the sound of birds chirping and the rush of the wind. These times grounded me and opened me up to change. I watched as the summer transitioned to fall in the trees, water levels, and temperature fluctuations.
7:30am: Stretching in the living room
What a gift to be able to stretch before you start the day!!
7:40am: Shower/Get ready
8am: Breakfast
In recent years I have tried to stay consistent about sitting down and eating breakfast before I start my day. It is important to me to take the time to stop rushing before I get out the door, and create the space to pause and nourish my body.
Breakfasts that have been important to me this year are: Frozen berries (thawed for a minute in the microwave), then added to greek yoghurt with muesli on top. Also, rice cakes, super crunchy peanut butter, and sliced banana on top.
8:20am: Running/walking to catch the 8:25am bus
I was definitely intimidated by a 45 minute commute this year, but I can safely say that my bus rides on the 21 bus from Ashmont to Forest Hills were my favorite part. Getting on at one of the lines, and coasting until you hit the other end of the line brings a new peacefulness to bus riding. I would often sit in the same seat of the bus, see the same bus drivers, and the same people that were commuting at the same hour of the day. It felt like a sense of community and camaraderie in our little moment of time shooting from Dorchester to Jamaica Plain. Noise canceling headphones go in, and then often a Boston Public Library book gets opened, and the space opens up to 30 minutes of reading as people come and go.
Books that brought me through those bus rides this year were: The Pairing (Casey McQuiston), The Boston Girl (Anita Diamant), Poverty by America (Mathew Desmond), Sharks Don’t Sink: Adventures of a Rogue Shark Scientist (Jasmin Graham), Crying in H Mart (Michelle Zauner), Solito (Javier Zamora), Vicious (V.E Scwab) and Everyone Who is Gone is Here (Jonathan Blitzer)
8:45am (on a good day): Bus arrives at Forest Hills so it’s time to catch the 39 or walk 17-20 minutes to work
These bus rides or walks were very much determined by weather, what time the bus came, or what I was carrying with me to work that day.
But they all started the same: Listening to the podcast UpFirst by NPR. Once I felt grounded in the headlines and stories I wanted to learn more about that day, it would transition into music which would welcome me into the work day.
Some important songs for me this year included: My Ego Dies at the End (Jensen McCrae), Leaving Toronto (Mustafa the Poet), Best Guess (Lucy Dacus), Even (Cat Burns and Rachel Chinouriri), the entire Bad Bunny Album (DeBi TiRAR MaS FOTos), Right Back to It (Waxhatchee), Name of God (Mustafa the Poet), Sherine songs, Everything Else is Just Noise, Mom Song and Late Start (Carol Ades), Nosebleeds (Slim Dan), Never Been Worse, Never Been Better (Ben Abraham, corook), the entire Wicked Soundtrack, How Bad Do U Want Me (Lady Gaga), Keep Walking (Katie Gavin), North Poles (Samia), Elton & John (Annika Bennett, Olivia Barton).
9am-5pm Workday
Southern Jamaica Plain Health Center (SJPHC) was the perfect transition for me from Nursing to attending Nurse Practitioner school (which I start this summer!). It came with an incredibly supportive community that was able to see my true self, even when I was emotional or not perfectly buttoned up. Some of my favorite routines of the Health Promotion Center were making coffee for everyone first thing in the morning, choosing an extra cake from the food distribution to eat on Cake Tuesday, and taking breaks by walking around Jamaica Pond. SJPHC will always be close to my heart as I think about looking at the world through a framework of dismantling structural racism and leading with our hearts because change always happens in the collective.
5pm: Walk to the Bus
Post-work bus walks often consist of This American Life or other learning podcasts. One of those that brought me through walking recently is called a People’s History, focused on collective organizing in housing projects in the Boston-area in the ‘60s and ‘70s. This has allowed me to put together so much of what I learned from work to the context of where I’m living now. A walk down Centre Street or winding through the neighborhood to get to the Southwest Corridor always felt like a fun new learning opportunity. You never know what can happen or what will come up in the next 20 minutes to Forest Hills.
5:30ish: Bus ride home
One can only hope and cross their fingers at this point that the bus will come on time. If not, more listening time and Duolingo (my 824 day streak argues that it was also a big part of my routine).
On the bus = more reading time!
6:00ish: Make it home
When it was my turn to cook dinner, I would often start as soon as I got home since I was known to make a fairly complicated recipe that would take at least an hour. Cooking and following steps in a recipe has always been very meditative for me. Throwing on music, chopping and mixing and being able to taste as I go along to create a product that can nourish me and those around me has always brought me immense joy.
Some of my favorite recipes this year (all from the New York Times cooking section) have been: Chicken Fajitas, Turmeric-Black Pepper Chicken with Asparagus, Taverna Salad, Crispy Gnocchi with Sausage and Broccoli (but made vegetarian with a few variations), Bean and Cheese Burritos, Sheet-Pan Lemony Chicken with Brussel Sprouts, Honey-Habanero Pork Chops with Carrots, and a crowd favorite One-Pot Chicken and Lentils.
7:30ish: Eat Dinner/House Time
On our house dinner days we got into the routine of playing a game or watching a show together. This time allowed us to connect and be silly within the busy week. We also hosted a few game nights throughout the year to share our game loving qualities with the community.
Some of our favorites this year were: Skull King (card game), Tarneeb (card game), Ted Lasso (TV Show), and Blades in the Dark (role playing game)
9:00pm: Brush Teeth/Winding Down
Going to sleep early on a work night is a non-negotiable for me. I was definitely known in the house for my strict bedtime and wind-down process. Having the space to read and be by myself before I fall asleep has always led to me feeling better the next day, and that is something I try not to mess with.
9:30pm-10pm: Fall asleep
Reflecting on this routine I built for myself echoes so deeply what I was looking for and lacking in the previous stage of my life working as an inpatient nurse. Things were intense and chaotic with little structure. It is no surprise that at the point of starting this year I was yearning to create a day in which there was rest, rejuvenation and consistency incorporated into that chaos. QVS created the space for me to discover what structure does for my mental, physical, and spiritual health. I will take this wisdom with me to my next chapter, and always think fondly of the space I was able to create for myself this year.
Kateri Dir-Munoz (she/her)
Southern Jamaica Plain Health Center
Kateri (she/her) is originally from Portland, Oregon, but moved to Denver, Colorado 7 years ago. After graduating from Regis University as a Registered Nurse in 2021, she started working for the past three years as a nurse in an inpatient adolescent crisis stabilization and withdrawal management unit. She learned a lot, but also learned a lot about the systems at play in the inpatient psychiatric environment, and was ready to take a step back from inpatient psychiatry and go back to her roots of community health. Previously she worked with a migrant clinic in the Portland metro area and with a street medicine outreach team in Denver. During her senior year of college, she was part of an intentional living community called Romero House at her Jesuit University and had such an amazing time building community with others who had a passion for social justice and spiritual curiosity. Along with a passion for mental health, she loves music, going for long walks, traveling to see friends and family across the globe, or cooking and baking to her heart’s content!
Why participate in QVS instead of applying for a job directly with a nonprofit?
QVS Fellows are also offered greater wrap-around support in their QVS city (housing and intentional community, training in conflict resolution and anti-oppression work, spiritual accompaniment) to help them engage in service long term and avoid burnout.
One QVS Alum from 2016-2017 shared:
“QVS gave me a sense of direction — I learned at the end of the year that I needed more education, and more critical thinking around the best space for me to make long-term impact in a community. I found out what my strengths and weaknesses were, and gained clarity towards my next steps…
In my year-long position, I did a lot of typical first-job-out-of-college evaluation, but in my community I think I arrived at those conclusions faster because I had folks at home I could talk to about my experiences and feelings. It also unprogrammed the definition of success I maintained for myself before QVS; now, success is more than work, but also about how I am able to care for myself and listen to my feelings. I owe QVS thanks for more holistic visioning.”
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