Staying connecting. Keeping our distance.

We enjoyed the last few hours prior to the Stay at Home Order outside, with each other, at a safe distance.

What a wild strange world we are currently living in!

COMMUNITY KNOWS NO SPACE NOR BOUNDS

#StayConnected

We are in this together. We will protect our brother and sister while we are absent from one another. Apart we remain united. United we remain separate...

Until the day when we shall meet again face to face. And we will remember how good it is to touch one another's hands and feel another's embrace.

How good that day will be...until then, stay home, stay connected, and know you are not alone. We are in this together.

Round Table

Turns out worshipping together doesn't work on Zoom. Ha! I played guitar but there was a slight delay and Zoom picks up different voices one at a time (which is great most of the time but not when you are all trying to sing together) - if anyone has a work around let me know!

It was a disaster. But we had a good laugh.

My stand up Zoom meeting space

We are definitely getting our money's worth out of Zoom. We're averaging at least five hours a day.

After the worship debacle, we went around and did announcements and shared how everyone was doing and how we could pray for each other.

I shared this poem that my friend Fil shared with me...I really like it.

Pandemic

What if you thought of it
as the Jews consider the Sabbath—
the most sacred of times?
Cease from travel.
Cease from buying and selling.
Give up, just for now,
on trying to make the world
different than it is.
Sing. Pray. Touch only those
to whom you commit your life.
Center down.

And when your body has become still,
reach out with your heart.
Know that we are connected
in ways that are terrifying and beautiful.
(You could hardly deny it now.)
Know that our lives
are in one another’s hands.
(Surely, that has come clear.)
Do not reach out your hands.
Reach out your heart.
Reach out your words.
Reach out all the tendrils
of compassion that move, invisibly,
where we cannot touch.

Promise this world your love–
for better or for worse,
in sickness and in health,
so long as we all shall live.

–Lynn Ungar 3/11/20

We talked about how during crisis that art often springs out of it. I'm excited to see what beauty comes from this current one.

Several of my musically inclined friends are posting on Instagram. So thankful for those little jolts of joy throughout the day.

Speaking of Jolt of Joy

Anna Rose decided to cook a chocolate cake from scratch (including the icing). It was amazing!

Giving herself a round of applause

This girl shines

On Wednesday we had Leader Lunch with Chris Perry. Virginia and the grandkids were kind enough to lend him to us for an hour.

Chris is in the bottom right

Chris lived through 9/11 and shared some parallels that he has noticed. He also gave us four really strong bullet points to help us think through how to address this current crisis well.

They are:

- Serve where you are

- Fear not

- Work the problem

- Stay connected

Thanks Chris! I've been using those all week.

Bible Study was also sweet.

THURSDAY

I checked in with Nigel. I was planning a simply drop in. It turned into a fierce conversation!

I had the chance to serve with the Food Distribution Network set up by Love Out Loud and the Black Minister Alliance.

Me and Juliet

A sweet time with Deacon Durham and others

TRIVIA NIGHT

We had some light hearted time Thursday night...

I did my best Hef impersonation

FRIDAY

We just had one class this morning. It was with Nigel.

Nigel and the gang

We shared our Leadership Styles.

then, we had to create a t-shirt design that reflected it. Here's Haley's

Mountains and a trail

Here is mine.

Light Bulb springing forth

Then we each sang our theme songs...oh boy.

The weather turned and Friday, Saturday and Sunday were soooo beautiful!

We played non-contact tennis

Feasted in the driveway

David led us on a social distance hike

Celebrated Jackson on the front porch - it was his birthday Saturday

We caught salamanders in the creek

Gross

David and I wiped ourselves out with another ridiculous Crazy Running Workout

We harvested our first asparagus

Cara was a great sport and wore antlers during family Bingo Night

Brianne had host family fire pit time

All in all - we are getting through...

David has decided to grow out his hair during his time apart...

RECRUITMENT

Welcome Michelle!

We are thrilled to welcome another superstar into our 20-21 cohort. Michelle Howard is a Winston-Salem native. She went to Furman University and this last year has worked at Wake Forest in their Boston Thurmond Project as an Americorps.

She is poised to launch! I cannot wait to see work with her next year and see where she goes!

We keep chugging along with Recruitment. We have two more we hope to hear back from this week.

We continue to be a bit thin on the guy front. I'm praying hard for three to four men to surface in the next month. Will you join me?

If you know a great candidate, please connect them with us soon.

Thanks!

THIS WEEK