Check your worries at the door, please

A big part of being a Young Adult Volunteer, is being rather than doing. The phrase was used so much at Discernment week in March, that it became like a hum in the background. It stopped affecting me. But, as the moment approaches rapidly where I bid adieu to the 24 years calling Dallas home, I've began to ponder the what I've come to understand as the motto of YAV- "being not doing"

There have been moments since accepting my call to serve where I have worried about the upcoming year-

What will I be doing?

Will I like Tucson?
Can I get accustomed to riding a bike everywhere?

How will my five roomies and I get along?

What if I can't find good mexican food?

Who will I call when I get lost, since my two go-to people, Greer and Emily, won't know my city?

How do I make my mom's green beans without a pressure cooker?

Will I get arrested?

And more seriously and more importantly- will I get comfortable in the new experience?

Again, Matthew 6:34 rings in my head: "Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough troubles of its own." It was sitting at dinner the other day with a good friend when I felt a sense of calm overwhelm me. All of the sudden "being, not doing," began to make sense. I'd gotten back in town that day from two weeks in Montreat, and to say I was a bit tired would be quite an understatement. While I was excited to spend an evening with Greer and Brandon, I was worried I'd be too tired to be very lively at dinner. However, As soon as I saw them, it was as though I'd hit a second wind. We almost immediately fell into pace catching up on everything, chatting, and choosing the perfect pizza toppings. It was sitting across the table from them, just focusing on the conversation rather than all of my mental to-do lists, that I felt like things were falling into place as they should. I felt like the Big Guy Upstairs had worked through my friends to remind me of Matthew 6:34. To me, enjoying the moment and cultivating relationships is what I anticipate will be the cornerstone of this upcoming year. A year of "being rather than doing." I'll try to check my worries at the door, too.

Back to the Beginning

And no, I don't mean Genesis or dinosaurs.

A few weeks ago I set off with the wonderful youth of PHPC as a sponsor for their annual trip to Montreat, North Carolina, for the senior high youth conference. We all piled into the charter bus to begin the two day trek east. Some may think a two day bus trip with 30 other people is not the best way to spend a Saturday evening, but I found it very much fun. There's really nothing else you can do when on a bus for so long but hang out, relax, put your feet up and literally enjoy the ride. We stopped overnight in Memphis, Tennesee (Now's the perfect place to insert my favorite pick-up line ever--> "are you from Memphis, because you're the only ten-I-see!"), enjoyed some DELICIOUS Corkey's barbeque to the near point of food coma, had some devotionals, and napped on the gym floor before taking off for another day of enjoying the ride. After a much anticipated journey, and a few stops and hang-ups along the way, we arrived safely to one of the most beautiful places in the world- Montreat, NC.

So here's where the title, "Back to the Beginning" comes into play. Throughout highschool and college, I toyed with the idea of longer term mission work, but pretty much just left it as a thought in the back of my mind. Maybe later, I'd tell myself. I'd develop some reason why right now didn't work. My favorite- "Let Oprah do it." (Check out the Maybe Later Campaign at www.youtube.com/watch?v-aYQy-0bz7tI for other awesome reasons to wait 'til later.) But last year, while sponsoring those wonderful youth I mentioned earlier at Montreat, I heard John Fife preach about his work in border ministry. It was sitting in Anderson Auditorium, surrounded by 1200 lost and found youth, that I felt like this preacher was speaking just to me. My trip this year to Montreat really re-grounded me in the push I felt to be a part of something bigger than me. A year has passed since I heard John speak about his work, and time has faded my memories of his specific stories and encounters. The one thing I do remember is his passion about his work. To me, he served as a model of how to love unconditionally, and to really love one's neighbor as oneself.
This year the theme of the conference was "In These Waters." Like the year prior, it was a fantastic conference. The keynoters, worship leaders, and leadership team all were amazing, and I felt like they really had a nack for connecting with their audience. There were metaphors for each day- flowing waters, troubled waters, water of life, calm waters; but for me in my too many years of attending, sponsoring, and small group leading at conferences, it has never been so much about the words said, but the actions they promote, the relationships that are formed, and the overall sense of purpose that is reconfirmed in all of the people attending the conference. That is why I continue to return as an adult sponsor, even if the conference isn't for me.

Recipes

Not only will I be living in a new place, I'll have some new cooking mates!

Here are some recipes that are coming with me/that we have tried as a YAV family:
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Tried September 1, 2010. Somewhat successful

This recipe was developed after a long day, with the few ingredients we had around the house, in an attempt to quickly feed the six of us.

Ingredients
2 bags broccoli cuts (frozen)
lots of olive oil
6 cloves garlic
pasta shells/lasagna noodles (because that's what we had)

Boil water for shells. Cook the 12-14 minutes. While the shells are cooking, sautee the garlic and broccoli in the olive oil. Once the shells are cooked, drain, add your broccoli sauce creation. Enjoy!
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10/4/10
Not sure how this was made, but we had a delicious cous-cous casserole. It combined cous-cous, brocoli, green beans, italian seasonings, and cheddar cheese.

I topped mine with some black beans and chili powder.

Yummy

Donations

Can be made out to Tucson YAVIM, and sent to:
Linda Marshal
716 S Lucinda Dr.
Tucson, AZ 85748

You can also send them, with my name and ECO number in the memo line, to the PCUSA office.

Halfway mark!

So in my experience with anything that is long term, which really just comes from (semi) long distance running and a previous year abroad, its the first half of the effort that is the most difficult. I guess you could say four years in college is a semi-long term adjustment as well. In the first half I find myself figuring out the routine (or in the case of running, the steps and adjusting to the surroundings and elements), growing accustomed to what is occuring, and building up momentum to stay in it for the long haul. In some ways, this has been the case with fundraising. The only other time I've really set out to raise money was selling Girl Scout Cookies and doing Fundraisers to offset the cost of other trips and experiences. I've done some fundraising here or there with other organizations, but never for something directly benefiting me; so, its been a learning experience. I am continually floored by the support and enthusiasm of my peers and people who have heard me speak about my upcoming experience. Its great to know so many people are energized about this upcoming year. I'm over halfway to my fundraising goal for the year already!

Yesterday, a few of my friends hosted a fundraising soiree benefitting me and another friend, Laura, who is going to be a YAV in Guatemala. What started out as a small get together turned into over 50 people coming out- and all to support the two of us! Another friend, Tad, who is going to Chicago, came to the fundraiser as well. It was a neat opportunity to share our stories with friends and acquantances, and to spread the word about what it means (or what we understand it to mean) to be a Young Adult Volunteer).

Check out Laura and Tad's blogs, which in just over a month will be updated with their respective adventures living the Gospel in Guatemala and Chicago, respectively.


Tad, a 2010-2011 YAV to be in Chicago--> http://thopp.blogspot.com/

Laura, a 2010-2011 YAV to be in Guatemala--> http://guatstheword.blogspot.com/

Letter, Flyer, Covenant of Support

charged

Grace Presbytery, in the I think quarterly meeting, officially commissioned the six young adult volunteers in mission for the upcoming calendar year- Tad Hopp (Chicago), Edward Lewis (N Ireland), Lauren Rampy (New Orleans), Laura Amlin (Guatemala), Adrienne Stanley (N Ireland), and me! It was a really neat step on the journey of my upcoming year as a YAV in Tucson. Everyone I spoke to about Tucson was really supportive and excited about my upcoming experience there.

I'm so glad I made the journey to Temple, TX to attend the service and be recognized. It just makes it that much more official and real that the six of us are about to go off onto exciting adventures in being!