What inspires you? What leads you to think you can conquer the world? I think we all have moments where we just let ourselves enter a place beyond ourselves. I am admittedly a big-time dreamer, and I have many moments where I am in “dream mode.” These dreams usually lead to ideas and projects. I am also a starter, so dreaming is only the beginning – implementation is also something I have come to enjoy. What, then, is the difference …
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We are cursed with language, of course, paralyzed with words, and that is part of the trouble. Somebody points to the window and says, “What’s that?” And I look to where he is pointing, and I say, “Why that’s the sky. It’s just the sky.” I give it a name. I label it. I reduce it to a word that vaguely suggests all the characteristics that it has in common with other skies at other times but leaves out all …
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Only 4 months to go before I begin my year long Houston adventure. Even the fundraising has been a big leap for me. I have done many fundraisers, but it was not usually me doing all of the organizing. God has been blessing me though, and I have already raised over $4,000! Here are some of my fundraising activities to date ( to those who need to do fundraising for themselves, feel free to steal ideas…) Poinsettia selling through a …
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Today while sitting at my favorite coffee shop in Houston, I started to write about what I have learned since being in here! I am learning A TON but these are some serious, and funny, things I have learned! Enjoy! I have learned some amazing lessons in love that I will never forget. I have learned that sitting with a person is loving them. I have learned that dancing in the living room and laughing can be the best thing …
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I and another girl named tiffany who is from Oakland both could not afford to fly to the west coast for spring break so we ended up staying in Georgia. We took a day trip to Athens, Georgia and to Chatenooga, Tennessee. We also toured the Art museum saw a show at the Fox Theatre and ate at this famous fast food restaurant called the Varsity. All of this was under $10 thanks to several deals we found online. Spring …
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My whole life has been a series of beginnings and endings. One of my first “endings” was when I was 6 months old. My mother, father and I moved to Brunswick, Georgia, and so I had my second beginning Shortly thereafter, my next ending came-the end of being an only child-and beginning came-the beginning of being an older sister and having a younger brother. But it seems as though with almost every end, there is also a beginning close at …
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Last weekend I was taking a walk down to a neighbor’s house and I saw a patch of boysenberries. I was able to come back each day last week and pick some berries. By Friday I had enough berries to bake 3-dozen muffins and on my Sabbath I made up trays of muffins to take to some of our neighbors who can really use an extra meal. The lady across the street is named Betty. She and her husband stopped …
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A few years ago, Donna and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary with a trip to Italy. It was the trip of a lifetime, and so inspirational. The part of the trip that remains strongest in my memory is our time in Florence where we got to see Michelangelo’s David. I had a decent appreciation for art up to that point, but this experience took me over the top. It was an awakening. I stood there in awe as I …
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I had the privilege of attending a 3-day science camp with some of our students from Oakland just recently and was blown away by the kids. The first time going I was a chaperone for Prescott 5th graders from West Oakland. We only had a total of 16 students and only 4 of those were girls. The first night I was in the girls’ room trying to hurry them through their showers and getting them ready for bed when I …
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Currently I am undergoing a bachelors in Religious Educations where I will be majoring in Global Studies. This year’s experience relates in direct correlation to the course of study that God has put me in. Recently, I finished a refreshing one-on one meeting with our city director about some major events that have taken place so far. Without consciously realizing my exact word selection I said something along the lines of, “This year has truly been the cross cultural …
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One neighbor that I am extremely thankful for is a young man named Don. Don’s love for life and positive spirit has truly shined on our team like a bright and radiant beam of light. As I have gone through the relationship process with Don, I now consider him more than just a mere acquaintance but a true friend. Recently Don has come over quite often and has expressed his thanksgiving for our hospitality, warmth and friendship. I don’t know …
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I am truly thankful that God decided to place six white college aged students in an all African American traditional church. Through this experience, our team has received an overwhelming dose of love as our church has continually praised us for being a light in the community. During this year, we have experienced what it is like to be a part of a grassroots movement that is just beginning to start out fresh. His Gospel Christian fellowship is a new …
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Recently I had a conversation I had with one of the students at the school I serve at. He told me that every time I saw him I would say, “Good morning Chris”, and how he wished his own father would take notice of him the same way. After hearing these words, they truly have etched themselves a greater appreciation in me for what God has called us to this year. I am overwhelmingly grateful for the multitude of daily …
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October 2010 There I was, pacing back and forth like an anxious man waiting in anticipation for his wife to deliver his first born baby. “Hey jay, everything alright with you…you seem a little off?” a voice echoed from the distance. “Alright? Oh ha, yeah yeah, everything is alright… I am just waiting until they call me in”. It was up until that point in my journey that most of my major life decisions imparted themselves as one divine appointment …
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This past Sunday morning I was reminded of the simplicity of community and the unity that can come from it. Within the Episcopal tradition communion is provided every Sunday. In our church, we leave our pews and line up to receive the bread and the wine, the body and the blood of Christ, at the altar. You stand or kneel, shoulder to shoulder, with your fellow church members in prayer and reflection as you wait to receive communion. While some …
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Never did I think that seeing all the Twilight movies and reading the books would come to my advantage when building relationships with people in our neighborhood. In January a girl in middle school that I have gotten to know had come over to our place, and we sat there playing games silently with a few words shared between the two of us. When it was time for me to walk her home it had become extremely foggy outside, and …
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I met C last month. It definitely wasn’t a coincidence that I met her because I had left the house for a totally different reason. And then I ran into a friend from work and we talked for 45 minutes and I assume I would have never met C if the conversation with my coworker didn’t last exactly that long because right when I was walking away, C asked me if I was lost. I guess I still don’t fit …
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Beloved Supporters, Thank you for your continual encouragement and involvement in my Mission Year. You help to make this experience possible and worthwhile. I am excited to share some of what has been going on in my life this past trimester. It has been a difficult, but rewarding time for me. For many Mission Year participants, second trimester is the hardest time of the year. This is due to many factors, including the reality of returning to a taxing schedule …
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Our team recently had the honor of meeting and getting to hear Dr. John M. Perkins preach at 1st Presbyterian Church of Berkley. This was a special honor for me, because I have always admired Dr. Perkins, and seen him as a personal hero of mine. Dr. Perkins was a civil rights leader in the 1960’s and really has been a father and groundbreaker in the modern social justice and racial reconciliation movements in the church today. I have also …
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It has been a while since I wrote my last blog. At first unintentionally and as the time passed over the past month and half, I began to purposefully ignore my blog. I needed some time off. I needed time to figure out life, figure out what I’m thinking, figure out what I am feeling. Numbness and stagnation are some of the best words I have to describe how I have felt over the past several weeks. Life has been …
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