Our first week out and about was full and exciting. It began with a little end-of-quarantine celebration on Sunday. Each week, we have "one-on-one" partners, which is a structure for encouraging us to connect with each other. My partner and I decided that we should bake a cake for the team for our one-on-one this week, so we spent Sunday afternoon baking a cake to celebrate making it through the end of our two-week quarantine. We ate it together on Sunday evening, and it was a great way to celebrate our first two weeks together and the beginning of our life outside of our house.
On Monday, we started our routine of morning prayer together before we headed off to our different service sites. Two team members are working at medical clinics, one is working at a thrift store operated by a local church, and three of us are working at schools. Since my work is virtual, I headed to the office of The Simple Way, which is only a few blocks away. It was great to be in a different space. My work this week was pretty minimal. My service site is still figuring out exactly what my role will look like, and the challenge of navigating virtual school has led to a chaotic start to the school year. For this week, my work primarily consisted of calling families whose children did not show up to school (i.e. their virtual classes). It was not very exciting, but I was thankful for the opportunity to show care for the students at KIPP by communicating the importance of their attendance.
I also finally had the chance to go for a few runs in the city. People do not tend to run on the streets here, so I have been taking the El (the trolley) to Center City and running along the Schuylkill River Trail, which follows the river. My runs have been really refreshing opportunities to be outside, enjoy the sun, and have space to process all that I am experiencing here. However, it takes a much larger time commitment to run here due to the time it takes to get to and from the trail.
One of the blessings of the Mission Year program is a four-day work week. This allows us to set aside Fridays as team days. We start Fridays by having breakfast together and then talking through any logistics, concerns, etc. Afterwards, we plan our meals for the week ahead (we cook with partners, and each pair cooks twice a week) and make a grocery list. In the afternoon, some of us go grocery shopping while others clean the house. Then, after having dinner together, we have "Family Night," where one of us plans an activity for us to do together. This week, I was in charge of Family Night, and I planned for us to play disc golf together in a park in the city. It was good to be outside together, though there was quite a variety of disc golf abilities within the team, which meant some people enjoyed it much more than others...
The week concluded with Neighborhood Day. Saturdays are invitations for us to be intentionally present in our neighborhood, however we may choose. For me, this looked like going to The Simple Way gardens with Deb, where we weeded together. I really enjoyed gardening, and we were even rewarded for our efforts by getting to take home some of the fruits and vegetables we harvested. I also appreciated the chance to connect with Deb as we weeded together. I hope to continue spending my Neighborhood Days in the garden. On Saturday evenings, we have Team Worship, where one of the team members plans a time of worship for us. This week, Deb led us in singing Spanish worship songs together.
Thus, it was a packed week of beginning to become acquainted with our neighborhood, starting our work at our service sites, and entering into the rhythms of our year together. One of the ideas that has challenged me this week is seeing the humanity in every single person I encounter. As I walk to work in the mornings, I want to see each of the people on the streets as I pass by and see the humanity and dignity in each and every one of them. I am challenged by how Jesus saw people and associated with the outcasts of society. What does it look like for me, for you, to see each person we encounter and turn to wonder about their story? To not make judgments about them, but rather, to see them as children of God, made in God's image?
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