Snapshot

When: 5 September 2014 - 31 July 2015

Where: Atlanta for national training, then to Philadelphia (10 Sept.) for a week of local training before officially beginning the year

What: a mixture of administration work, research of local faith leaders, and assistance to the director of the National Programs under Esperanza Inc. http://www.esperanza.us/understanding-esperanza/social-change/ministerios-de-esperanza/

Who else: eight soon-to-be-friends and our church, Grace Christian Fellowship

Why: To love God and people

Curriculum Books

During Mission Year, I'll be reading and discussing books and articles* with my team on a variety of topics, and the list just came in!

1st Tri

Welcoming Justice by John Perkins

The Way of the Heart by Henri Nouwen

Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria by Beverly Tatum

The Invisible by Arloa Sutter

*Community & Growth by Jean Vanier

Practicing the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

2nd Tri

God is in the City by Shawn Casselberry

Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning

The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander

Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman

*A Different Drum by Scott Peck

Code of the Street by Elijah Anderson

3rd Tri

Welcoming the Stranger by Matthew Sorens and Jenny Hwang Yang

*Gospel of John

Translation Nation by Hector Tobar

Simple Spirituality by Chris Hueurtz

Faith Rooted Organizing by Alexia Salvatierra and Peter Heltzel

Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer

Ordinary Life

I wanted to post something on my blog so that when you lovely people came to check it out, it wouldn't be empty, but I haven't had any spectacular adventures to write about. However, I've been trying to discover contentment in the ordinariness of life. We can't all be Beethovens and Einsteins, after all. So here is a thought instead:

In Medieval times, the music for mass was divided into two parts: the Ordinary and the Proper of the mass. The Proper chants were reserved for special seasons in the liturgical year, such as Christmas or Easter, and the Ordinary chants were sung every day. Because of the repetition, it was the Ordinary songs that would become as second-nature and life-sustaining as breath itself. Like faithful friends, the often sung melodies would journey by one's side through love, loss, joy and suffering. Extraordinary may be new, exciting and spontaneous, but ordinary is familiar, mysterious and constant.

I came across this quote: “Do not ask your children to strive for extraordinary lives. Such striving may seem admirable, but it is the way of foolishness. Help them instead to find the wonder and the marvel of an ordinary life. Show them the joy of tasting tomatoes, apples and pears. Show them how to cry when pets and people die. Show them the infinite pleasure in the touch of a hand. And make the ordinary come alive for them. The extraordinary will take care of itself.” 

― William Martin, The Parent's Tao Te Ching: Ancient Advice for Modern Parents

Here's wishing you all a wonderfully ordinary day!