highlights and important tidbits

*some content may be disturbing*

This past week has been. Looking back on it, that is about all that can be accurately said. It is scattered so thinly across so many emotions. So many in fact that when I sit down to sort through everything and scrape together all of all the being, I find that there is far more than I can eat in one sitting. So far I haven't had time to ingest it all but here are some highlights.

One moment...let me grab my writings so I can actually remember the important bits.

Orientation. It's like taking your mind, pulling everything out, and putting new and shiny workings in. Also known as realizing just how radical, life-changing, and beautifully shocking the gospel is and how it affects every aspect of what we will be doing this summer and how we will live the rest of our lives. It also involves learning all the hidden rules of the house, the kitchen, and the people. The kitchen has been the most intimidating. "Don't put the onion into the salad just yet because the whole salad will taste like onion..." after putting the onion in.  "The silver fridge. Put it in the silver fridge." after walking into the room filled with four fridges and freezers. And, my personal favorite, "We only use the plastic measuring cups for dry ingredients because of the cracked bottoms" after dripping butter in various and sundry places before noticing.

Spending time with the youth group (6th to 12th graders). It's a group that I have always tended to avoid here on the rez because people my own age intimidate me no matter what situation I'm in and those feelings seem to be exponentially multiplied here.

Getting used to the lovely view of the cascade foothills surrounding us, the sore feeling around your eyes after watching row after row after row of hops go by, and automatically assuming that things are difficult because of spiritual warfare rather than someone else's fault. It is a wonderfully freeing thing to blame the correct person when things go wrong and the devil is most certainly the correct person to blame.

Listened to many sermons by Tim Keller that have blown my mind.

Finding that the cultural rules are coming much more quickly to me now that I've been on the rez for a week and some. Acknowledge presence, don't force it. Don't ask "how are you?" unless you really do want to know. Say "It's good to see you" because that's what you mean anyway. Don't say goodbye, say "see you later." Don't shake hands. Once again, acknowledge presence instead because that's what you mean. Translate through actions.

Witnessed my first out and out bar fight. Driving home, went past the glowing neon tavern sign. One bald man in tan, one tipsy with a baseball cap. His hat came off with the firsts impact. I never saw his body hit the ground. I only saw his shoulders jerk from his head snapping back. His knees buckled, sending his body into an unnaturally slated fall. We didn't hear of any deaths today though so I thank God for that. I still jump at every siren though. Here, when there's a siren, it usually means death. So different than home. At home a siren means that help is on the way. Here it means they're coming to clean up the aftermath.


Next week. First team week. Three interns are leaving to lead a team on the Warm Springs Rezervation. This will leave me as the main food intern here and another girl as the main child's ministry intern. We'll be going through orientation with the teams. They are unpredictable but they usually mean well. Patience and flexibility will be huge this coming week.

The week after this will be prep week. The week after that, I will be the food prep person in Warm Springs and will be leading the team there. Still soaking in that coming responsibility. Feeding those working with me, a whole team, and also anyone from the church or community who show up. Gah! God will give me strength. He's promised to do so. I'm slowly learning to live by miracles.