Memorial Day Gardening

What a good but tiring day! My normal Memorial Day plans were thrown completely out of the window to help get Libertad Urban Farm, a community garden and would-be later farm in SoBro off the ground in a new location. We dug up the weeds and cleaned out about a third of the farm site. I watched kids part of the time too. Don't know how many more times I'll get to actually help out on-site because of my census work, but I look forward to it and give my full support for this project.

Inspired by Robert

I am completely blown away from a conversation I had with a coworker and friend this morning! He's sort of like a loving dad with a caring and giving heart. Robert inspires me to be very honest! He has endured hardship and supported many friends living with AIDS. I know that I came to The Bronx to connect with TGC folk already up here and my neighbors; more and more though, I'm thinking that my move here was to teach me about justice, to motivate me to keep on being me and pursuing social justice, and to connect with 2010 Census coworkers rather than people in my community and roommates.

Children of Eden ...

Last night I went to see a musical I knew nothing about called Children of Eden with my friend Ann. The production and staging of the musical was brilliant! I can see it being controversial to some since it is based on The Bible but not an accurate retelling. It has me actually rethinking some views on how others perceive God loving them especially non-Christians. I don't have any answers, but I wonder what my neighbors think about God and his love for them. I hope I'll get to meet them and build relationships with them even if we never get that far into learning from and about each other.

Party for Percy and Andy

Tonight I was truly privileged to be a part of a birthday party for my roommates' cats Percy and Andy. I'm glad I was invited and got to spend time with Angela and Gina and celebrate with them. I know they love their cats.

Urban Farm In The News

Click on the article to zoom. This is the urban farm project in the South Bronx that I am a part of. Tanya is an amazing visionary and woman!

Meet Emily and Kyle

Meet Emily and Kyle. I met them about a month after they were married at a picnic in Central Park last year. Tonight, I went over to their house for dinner, and we talked for hours. Our conversation was about our lives, our spiritual journeys, the Bible, and questions on growth. It's been a long time since I've been a part of something like this ... so intimate, so normal, so filled to the brim with fruitful discussion. This is what I would love to see happening here in The Bronx.

Libertad Urban Farm

Last night was wonderful time with a few other women and one guy in SoBro. Finally a chance to connect with social justice minded neighbors in The Bronx! I really look forward to connecting more and seeing this farm and food share get going!

Learning from the snails I passed

Tonight I spent time with friends in Midtown East. When I returned home, the rain had stopped, and just before arriving at my door I passed seven of these little guys. They were so lovely and fascinating to see on the sidewalk next to a neighbor's garden. I didn't want anyone to smush the snails, so I tried to pick one up and move it out of the likely foot path. The snail clung on to the pavement tightly so much so that I gave up trying after a few tugs deciding I might injure it.

As I walked the last few steps to my door I contemplated how the snails were a perfect picture of what God is doing here in The Bronx. I came here wanting to build community and thought it would come fast, but God is not allowing it to happen quickly. In fact things are well, moving at a snail's pace. Yet, there is beauty, struggle, and fight in the snail just being a snail slowly trudging on in life just as it is in my journey towards whatever God has in store for me here.

May Day

My new job is keeping me busy here in The Bronx. It has been a week of growing painfully to be a more patient, merciful, and justice-giving person. My week also provided me more opportunities to experience and pray for nearby Bronx neighborhoods and receive my first EVER promotion!

On a different note, by the end of this month, there will only be three of the original TGC Bronxites left in the borough all of which have either been unresponsive towards or stated they didn’t want to be a part of a TGC Bronx Community. Thus, community here --- unless God should bring others --- is not going to be built in 2010. I myself am unlikely to be living in The Bronx after this year. It makes me sad somewhat because I prayed for so long to get here and truly wanted to see community built, but if God would allow, I will be living in Midtown East serving at the UN for World Vision next January through Mennonite Volunteer Service. This may not happen, but I have great peace to pursue this path for my life. I am also going to keep praying for and/or prayer walking in The Bronx.