I've been really conscious about making memories, lately. Stepping outside a moment, briefly, and capturing those feelings and people and places. I'm not sure why.

This weekend, J and I flew south to see our families for a bit—most importantly, to celebrate his grandmother's 90th birthday! At her birthday party, there were four generations, reaching from her to the two-year-old red-headed rascal. (There seems to be at least one red-headed in each generation, actually.)

There was an excellent scene in the afternoon where her beautiful birthday cake was paraded out, we sang, and she blew out the candles. Then, aforementioned red-headed rascal stuck his adorable little hand into the frosting—then offered it to GG for a taste, which she laughingly obliged. What a sweet, sweet moment. It's one of those little things that I think I'll remember about this family, always.

It's small things like this—along with Sunday morning cups of coffee and snuggles with pups and late-night politics discussions and third glasses of wine—that I catalog so carefully, and recall so joyfully when we're months and miles apart. 

To the well-organized mind...

(The rest of that Dumbledore quotation is "death is but the next great adventure," but that is def not the theme of this post. It just hopped into my head, as the words of Dumbledore often do.)

Last week was orientation for the new LEVN program year, and hot damn and hallelujah am I exhausted. 

It was pointed out during the week that, by its end, I'd have worked 13 days straight. That's fairly unusual for my 3/4-time job. But these two weeks were not your average two weeks! It was prep-prep-prep and go-go-go! (Don't worry, fellow self-care advocates! I'm taking some comp time this week.)

In preparation for all the paperwork and liturgy of a week of orientation, I put nearly two reams of paper through our office printer. Sorry about that, trees, but the U.S. government and banks and stuff still demand hard copies of important things, and our budget for this year did not include a tablet for each of our corps members, from which to read the daily office. So! Pages on pages on pages it was.

To my deep existential satisfaction, all the paperwork was ready when it was needed (though errors in filling out required additional copies), all the liturgies had accompanying scripture, all the handbooks were bound and ready to be shoved on a bookshelf somewhere. 

I had a to-do list of to-do lists (not a joke) and everything was crossed off and everything was done. 

As an enneagram 6 and an ESFJ, this place just may qualify as mine and happy.

When everything that is within my control is as it should be, I am, occasionally, able to step back and allow the rest of the world to happen.

Since the music was selected and bulletins were printed well in advance, and our superb guitarist was able to practice with me, we closed out the commissioning service on Friday with my all-time favorite hymn, Let Streams of Living Justice. 

By the time we hit the rousing third verse, someone near me was singing an ad-lib harmony (none is written) and I could scarcely sing for grinning:

"Your city’s built for music: we are the stones you seek.
Your harmony is language. We are the words you speak.
Our faith we find in service, our hope in other’s dreams,
our love in hand of neighbor - Our homeland brightly gleams!
Inscribe our hearts with justice, your way – the path untried:
Your truth – the heart of stranger, your life – the Crucified!"

This is what we do here. This is what I work for. This is what happens when I've quit worrying and begun to sing. Welcome, 2015-2016 program year. We have work to do. 

A case of the Mondays, or something.

Like all good blog things I ever do, what I'm about to commit to is inspired by Anne.

You see, Anne is a math teacher. She has 180 days of instruction, and so recently she posed the challenge to herself to post something on her blog each of those 180 days. I am really excited to read so many words from Anne, and also to let it go when she forgets, because, friends!

I am not a math teacher.

But!

My LEVN corps members write weekly blog posts (one of the eight of them, on a rotating basis) that post to our website each Monday. We have them do this because it's an excellent opportunity for (forced) reflection about their work, their house, and their spirituality. Check 'em out via this shameless plug.

Since I do not have a weekly preaching gig here, I have fallen out of the habit of theologizing my experience. I'm not holding my Bible in one hand and my newspaper in the other with the goal of producing written reflection. I am, though, holding my Bible in one hand and twitter in the other, which is an interesting glimpse into what shapes my worldview.

I bet you can guess where this is headed.

Each Monday of the 2015-2016 LEVN Program Year, expect to see words here about what's up with me and God and the gang. Since you, too, are part of the gang, dear reader, you'll likely see something of yourself in this experiment, since you and I are probably engaging in other media.

Cool. Maybe I will fail. Maybe even next Monday. But I certainly cannot achieve this goal if I do not set it!

Word.