New things.
So here I am, 6 weeks from the end of my internship at Salem. I'm sad. That's the main feeling right now. I'm sad to be leaving such a terrific congregation, such terrific people, and a wonderful supervisor. I'm comfortable in my duties, enjoy the challenges, and love Minneapolis. It's going to be sad to begin to say goodbye, and to move back to philly for my last year.
I guess this is a learning as well, how to gracefully and greatfully leave a place that you have so much invested in. *sigh*
I think it would be great to do ministry in the cities again one day. We'll see what happens. :)
In other news, I got a new tattoo on saturday, and I love it. I've been planning out tattoos for three years now, practically the minute after I got my last one, so it was definitely time. I'm pleased with the colors and the design, and can't wait for the next, hopefully it won't be in three years. :)
Blessings and Peace!
Labels: internship, life, new, tattoo
Ah ha!
So this time it was only like two and a half weeks between entries. Not so bad! haha.
So life is progressing well, I'm at the 8 month mark of internship, and am still deeply in love with it. I began hardcore work on my project. I had a meeting last night with a lot of young adults, and they all expressed so much interest and offered all their help and ideas. So on May 17th, Salem Lutheran Church in North Minneapolis, will hold it's first ever, Hip-hop worship service. The theme is: "The Notorious G.O.D., the original gangsta."
No joke, we voted on it and everything. It sounded catchy, and let's face it God is the original gangsta. I'm excited. I think this is going to turn out really well, and I think I can get enough people involved, that it has the possibility of lasting beyond me. If nothing else, this will help me see what it takes to create a new thing in the church, implement it, collect feedback, and maybe hopefully even approve upon for use in my future ministry. Doing ministry in the inner city and creating something new is really what I feel called to do. Currently the ELCA only has one musical group (Agape) that is a hip-hop group that they support. I hope that I have the ability to connect the Lutheran concepts of grace and the gospel into hip-hop culture, in order to spread the news of the gospel, in ways people can connect to it.
As that is going well, and I've gotten opportunities to talk with many different pastors who are great resources, I'm looking into a lot of work for myself, but I'm game.
These next few weeks are going to be difficult though. Sadly but with hopefully some joy in the future for her, my roommate will be moving out on Monday. She got a job in Baltimore (which is the good part) and will be going there soon. It will be sad to part from each other, as we get along really well, and compliment each other in many ways. It will be weird to not hear her around the house, or know that she will be there when I get home, to not have someone to directly vent to when something is going on, and to not have someone to crack silly jokes with. We understand each other well I think, and have fallen into a groove that allows us to comfort each other, or provide what each other need in the support area. I'm going to miss her a lot. And I truly truly wish that she finds great joy in Baltimore and in her ministry there. She has so many gifts to offer, and I know she will shine brightly. I also hope that she finds a her there. She was my first friend here, she introduced me to all the people I now call friends, gave me a social life again, and got me out into the culture of the twin cities. I can never thank her enough for that. My whole year here would have been lonely, had I not met her. She's truly become a loving sister of mine. I would keep going, but I'm starting to get weepy, and I need to consolidate my crying, and try to be as supportive as I can of her for the next few days. She has a very special place in my heart, and all my love.
Besides, I'm totally coming to Baltimore to visit and eat lot's of crab! And then she and I can visit more of the places from the food network.
Well....that's all I got for now. I'm preaching this Sunday, on a text I preached last year, and had an awesome sermon for, so I'm going to go back and alter that one, and see how I like it.
Labels: anita, hip-hop, life, preaching
When loss happens...
Tragedy is part of the human condition, I realize this, but why so much?
Yeah, I'm being philosophical at the moment, but it truly is related to events in my own life. Here I am at a crux in my training to become a pastor, and yet, I'm surrounded by tragedy. This week one of my classmates died of cancer, he was a friend of mine, a kind soul, and destined to be an amazing pastor, and yet he wasn't given that opportunity. Why? I know everyone questions why someone dies, but I can't help it. I know in my soul that God has reasons, that there is nothing done out of a plan, that this was meant for a bigger purpose, but why now? Why have him start seminary, be so ready and right for the job of spreading the Gospel, and take that away from him? Was sending him to seminary so that he could get closer to you? and be ready for this step? or was it for me? So that I and the people that had an opportunity to meet him and grow with him, were able to be with him, even if only for a short time? Or was it both? or none? I'm sure there could be many answers to these questions, and I trust in God's plan. Jerry, you were a joyful gracious presence in my life, and I thank you. May the grace and comfort of God's loving touch be with you, and touch all your family that is suffering.
So not only did a classmate pass away, but a classmate's mother died suddenly. We as humans don't fully understand the reasoning behind tragedy, and we deal with it differently. Some of us get bitter, taking it out on those that we love that still surround us, others take to doing reckless things, some pretend it didn't happen, but we all suffer. We suffer together as a human race, at the pain that is with us. We are one body, and we suffer together. This is important to me at this moment. To know that we are in this together, that I am with all their family as the grieve, knowing that however brief the encounter, or even never having met someone, everyone on this planet has affected my life. We are in a never-ending cycle, and that is something we need to remember.
I wonder if one day, instead of destroying each other, we can stand together to weather the storm that is human tragedy. To stand and support one another, in and through the Grace of God.
Memories will survive, although the body will not. Legacies are passed throughout the generations, and so none of us shall ever be forgotten, or unimportant, but rather we all effect the future and have been changed by the present and past.
Labels: death, grace, life, loss, love, pain
Books, Trips, Life.
So first of all I need to gush about a series of books, which I have fallen in love with, and have been fulfilling my Harry Potter needs. It's a series by Stephanie Meyer, about vampires, werewolves, love, high schoolers and the rainy west coast. It is Ah-mazing, and the next book is coming out soon, and then the first movie is coming out in August! I can't wait! So go out and read these books, I highly recommend them, although be prepared for some heart thumping, because they can be quite romantic and sad.
So read them!
Next thing, So Mpls, is treating me well, I've been busy with work, organizing VBS, preparing for a retreat trip with the HS kids and a few other churches in the area, as well as running a wed. night program. All in all, things are great, I'm having a lot of fun, getting to know the staff, doing a lot of things that I've only observed before, so it's nice to get that hands on experience, and also getting to hang out with kids, which we all know is a blast! It really reminds me of camp a lot, and it's nice to be in that director role again. So this weekend is our retreat to St. Olaf college, where we will be joined by two other urban churches. The focus is on sacred places, and we will be doing a lot with spoken word and rap. I'm really excited about it, the kids are going to have a blast, and they are already excited that there is a pool that they get to go in. :) Good times.
As life goes, things are good. I haven't had much time to explore more of the city, still kinda settling, getting used to the flow of life. It's been good though. I do miss all my friends and family though. Good news though, I'll be home in August for a week! So you all will have to arrange with me some time to see each other, because I miss you!
That's all for now, I'm going to try to keep this updated more regularly, and with more of the events that I actually organize and do. I'm sure there will be stories from this weekend. Blessings!
Labels: books, friends, life, mpls, people i love, st. olaf
Life Update.
So I realized that I haven't actually updated on the millions (of course that is an exaggeration) of things that have gone on in my life over the past few months. I am going to list them here, and then tackle one each day for the next couple of days. Hopefully that will help me to reorganize my blog, and create a more functional view of everything that is going on in my life.
Here goes nothing...
1. China (done in three parts, one dedicated to each city)
2. Internship
3. Advocacy stuff
4. New Orleans planning/past
5. Summer plans
6. The Vagina Monologues and Week of Domestic Violence Awareness
Guess I should start today. :)
Labels: advocacy, china, internship, life, nola, summer, update
New and Improved.
So finally I have returned to my blog. I took a hiatus for awhile because school and life got a little too stressful and busy. Needless to say a lot has happened since I last made a post. But here is to new beginnings.
Since November, I have gone to China, finished a semester, preached several times, received a prestigous internship site, gone to visit that internship site in Minneapolis, and have accepted the position as the intern for next year. Along with that I continued on to a new semester, got the food bank back up and running, began to help plan a production of the vagina monologues, am headed to the UN to sit in on some conferences on the status of women around the world, signed up and organized a trip to Washington D.C. for
Ecumenical Advocacy Days, and begun to organize a trip down to New Orleans to do relief work. Whew, it seemed like less before I typed it all out.
Anywho, so now I would like to get back into the posting swing of things, and plan on posting and including pictures from China, then detailing events in my life as they go along.
Peace all!
Labels: advocacy, intern, life, new, vagina
For all my ladies....
Men are manipulators, since birth I think. I find it fascinating how many of them seem to find their way into my life, they pop in claim that ‘your so pretty’ and then another girl walks by and you were last weeks sandwich. Men claim to want witty intelligent women, then find them, seem interested, and then follow the nearest girl that they can get some ass from.
Being used becomes a form of oppression for women, oppression which we seem to handle with poise. How many women have been cheated on? Or been lead on thinking they were going to be asked out, just to hear, “well we’re friends right? Because I met this girl tonight and I’m going to pursue her for awhile, but hopefully you will still stick around.”
No ladies. We need to stand up and demand back our ovaries. We are much better then this shit that men dish out. They play with our emotions, emotions that are easily swayed when we are pmsing and craving some affection. Ultimately girls, I don’t think men ever grow up, they take a little bit of responsibility when they finally decide that they want to leave a ‘small piece of themselves’ on this earth.
Let’s stand together, support each other, and tell men that we are worth far more then being the back up if they get shot down by that girl parading herself. Funny part is, the reason that she is parading is because she was in our position once. So really ladies, let’s all work together. No more showing off for men, no more teasing and flirting or giving yourself up so that a man will decide to spend some time with you, no more lamenting that guy that hasn’t called in a few days. Honey, we all deserve to be pursued, let’s give them the emotional roller coaster for once.
When a man treats me like the divine creation I am, and isn’t just trying to be nice to me so he can get in my pants, and holds a real conversation with me, cares about me as a person, then maybe Ill give him a call back a week later. But for now, I’m off limits...
... and all men are second best.
Labels: cheaters, life, love, ovaries, women
