DAY 4 - humanity

Ok, so were surrendering our summer to help others. No problem; random acts of kindness, great. But is that it? We even don't have to have info on the people we are serving. Is the who of serving really as important they why? Afterall, we serve our lord by serving our brothers. But if we did know someone, a name or reason it would add to our mutual humanity. Or I guess we could say it is our commanity (if uniy is common unity then commanity is common humanity). So who have we shared our humanity with? Glad you asked.

Meet Phyllis. She has a couple of properties and needed some help with land clearing, scraping and painting and gardening. We ended up helping her with her mom's house.

Meet Keith. He works with an organization called Beacon of Hope (www.lakewoodbeacon.org) and today he helped coordinate almost 200 volunteers to help get a rec center in shape. We helped Kieth clear brush, remve debris, clear weeds, and get the park ready for play.

Meet Connie. She works for St. Pauls Homecoming Center (a divison of St. Pauls Episcopal). We mixed dit and sand to pour and stamp a walkway connecting 2 church buildings.

Meet the volunteer staff of Mount Olivet. Thursday we worked at the church doing some elabrate gardening projects. The returned the favor by fixing us dinner and providing hospitality. Debrah and Marty made thre kinds of jumbalya, Adrian moved to Algeirs from Philly so she could 'live in a place where people sit on porches and wave', The Very Rev. Dr. Jean Alden McCurdy Meade, Rector lead us in evening prayers, Caleb the altar boy, Daniel Fontbleu and his wife Marge White who came to evening prayers and ate jumbalya with us afterwards.

We are a little bit of these people we are all better for the journey, we are going further together, we are commanity.

DAY 3 - stripped

Day Three - DAY 3 - stripped

We understand our mission, we know our dutes, now it time for our toughest day so far - demolition. Its really difficult to get ones mind around the fact that 3 years after hurricane Katrina there are thousands of houses that have not been touched and even more people displaced and nomadic.

Today we demoed an entire house consisting of 2 single family 2 bedroom units. We were in a mostly poor area called the lower ninth ward consisting of mostly section 8 housing, one of the hardest hit in the aftermath of the storm. Before we began our demo project, we walked through the house and found evidence of three activities: a quick move out, looting and a deluge.

There was furniture, clothes, dishoveled medical equipment and even dishes in the sink denoting a expedited exodus. There wasn't probably much to pilfer from the beginning, but the place looked like a crime scene from a movie: things scattered, items shattered and other evidences of meaningless mayhem. Lastly about six feet up and scored into every wall, an undeniable waterline mark. If there was any doubt that the water had come into this house this high for very long, opening the walls and finding evidence of floating debris up to the same point confirmed it.

We stripped the entire house of furniture, junk and sheetrock leaving a literal bare bones structure: exterier wall, studs, floor and a partial roof. We filled a huge garbage bin about 8 X 15 X 8 up to the top. Not bad for a group of 27, mostly students.

Scripture says that unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it cannot produce fruit. So are we. Unless we fall and shatter ourselves and and strip away our hard outter coating. Or demo our own lives we cannot be what the kingdom need us to be.

DAY TWO - fairhaven

Today we are keeping with our theme, surrender. We surrendered our time, plans and perspective; but probably even more than that. We learned that 42 years ago Mr. and Mrs. Brown surrendered $1.47 and the return on that investment keeps yielding astronomical returns for NOLA, Romania and over 400 children at Fairhaven Children's Home.

Since WV does so many trips, the work project cadence is typical: meet the host, hear about the organization, work your butt off, debrief, feel good. This time, things were different. Johnny had the room set up: air conditioned, overhead projector in place and a presentation waiting. He told the story of the Browns who wanted to start a children's home but literally only had $1.47 and a prayer. "Lord, here we are, and here is our home. If You will send the children, we will have a children's home." before they moved out of their three bedroom house, they had 34 children.

Since their humble beginnings in 1966 they have had 400 children through their program (they currently have 12 living on campus and most of them call the director (Johnny, who is the son in law of the founders, dad or papa john) they regularly ship cargo containers to their upstart orphanage in Romania. But the thing that took us most was Johnny's ability to connect those in need to those with abundance. He told story after story of an acquaintance that has 15 tons of beans to donate, or someone who had a million dollars worth of vitamins to donate or he knew of an orphanage who needed an EKG machine and 3 days later someone else had one to give away, incredible. By the way Johnny is looking for a Laringophone (the thing people who have lost their vocal chords use for speech). If you have one, please email us. Find out more about Fairhaven Children's Home at www.hopeforthers.org.

We we able to help FCH in many ways today with our 108 volunteer hours by sorting several hundred bikes, moving cut firewood, sending several tons of scrap metal to the recyclers, grooming horses and goats, playing with the resident children, clearing fields and cleaning lots of stuff. We had more opportunities to match FHC's ongoing surrender projects than we could seize.

Its so great to get so much done but when need overshadows opportunity, it gets frustrating. But its just the way it is in the kingdom, there is always more harvest than workers. C'mon workers.

Drive By

Drive by

We wanted to get focused and give ourselves context, so it made sense that we survey the big easy. We drove through some of the areas most devistated by hurricane Katrina. Some thought, surely three years later Katrinas impact was null or repaired; but we were surprised to find that still her impact continues to shape the city. This week we are determined to also impact the community (but in a different way).

We drove through the lower 9th ward (see pics), Chalmatt and St Bernard parish; some of the areas most devistated. It was a virtual study in demographics, socialiogy and disasterology. Stlll 4 years later things were not even close to 'normal'. There were delapated houses, molded houses, rebuilt houses, houses with no water or electricity, houses scheduled for demoliton, business barely open, businesses partially open, buisnesses that will never re-open.

Our theme this week is surrender, it was interesting to see a city under surrender. Obviously, they had no choice but to surrender to the elements; we have a choice. Scripture teaches us we have a choice to surrender but only for now. Later there will be no choice: every knee WILL bow and every tongue WILL confess or surrender to Christ. This week we choose to surrender and daily we continue to choose to surrender.

What is WVM?

What is WVM?

To the above question, I'm glad you asked. What is Wonder Voyage Missions. As mentioned in a previous entry, I am currently leading a team of 30 from Dallas on a pilgrimage to NOLA.

Our theme is surrender and each day we will do a couple of several possibilities, typically relating to our theme. We will probably do a service project. We will most likely dissect a reason or two of why we did our project and afterwards, what did we learn from our project. We might visit a site of historic or spiritual relevance to the region. We might engage in a WV ritual like an encounter time, moment of wonder or a pilgrimage exercise.

At the end of the day and week we will have served the community by practical, tangible acts of love. We will have partnered with local benevolent organizations and we will all have changed lives!!

This Old House

This old house

Its been 6 years since I first became acquainted with mount olivet episcopal church (www.mountolivet.org). I attended euchaist services today with my friend Molly on the outset of our mission trip to NOLA (New Orleans Lousaina). More about the Wonder Voyage trip in the future.

The unique thing about Mt Olivet is that it is the oldest church with ongoing sevices in NOLA. Not nly that but it is als the second dest church West od the Mississippi (M.O. Is located on the West bank of NOLA across the river frrom th famed Jackson Square and St Louis cathedral).

This church is indicative of the city and my journey here this week: historic, understated, forgotten and filled with the most incredible people.

Mad World: I Want My, "Husband and Wife's Lung Slice"

The following story's caught my eye today. They are probably not related (lol) and i think i'll call them "Mad World" stories. This will also serve as a way for me to classify these type of stories ongoing. Really, it is becoming a Mad World.

Story #1, China goes PC

The following story is about China, putting forth another PC campaign either trying to be more palatable to the West or putting a new face of for this summers Olympics. either way, they are separating with their past for a drab and unseasoned new future. C'mon, when i visit China i want "Husband and wife's lung slice" or "Chicken without sexual life" not "Beef and ox tripe in chili sauce" or "Steamed pullet" respectively.

Story #2, Right Foot, Right Foot, Right Foot, Right Foot, Right Foot, Left Foot

Could be a Dr Seuss story, right? Except this eerie event involves 6 severed feet found on Eastern coast of Canada. How wierd. in the time span of about a year, 6 feet wash up on the shore in the same area? What is going on here? An offshore medical college playing a joke with cadaver parts? Or is China changing its menu again? Right foot soup now becomes mystery meat stew?