i wish.

i wish i had some thought provoking, thoughtful, energizing, engaging discussion to present. alas, i have nothing for you except an up-date. we continue to be truly thankful for all of the love we have been given throughout the past summer season. times with friends both near & far, family both close & distant. it has been a joy to get to know some of you all over again as well as continue in our life's journey with you. thank you all for your conversations, meals, laughter, couches, tears & time.



today, and for the last two days, i have been saying goodbye. this, of all things, presents to be a consistent theme of my life doesn't it? September 11th will be my last day with my current employment. September 15th will be my first day as Director of the Glen Ellyn Community Resource Center. yup, that's right, Director. I asked them at the final board meeting (where jake & i were introduced to the entire board & community members) if they knew who they were hiring. they said they did so i'll have to rest in their trust that this a position i will thrive in. i look forward to engaging in a more creative practice of program development (literacy & life skills education primarily), community outreach, inter-agency organization, fostering of volunteers and cultivating love within refugee families. i'm excited!


jake continues to work with Chicago Commons teaching english and is presently taking Organic Chemistry. yeah - i believe it's as scary of a class as it sounds.

speaking of jake - i try not to talk too much about us/him on this public forum. i like having secrets with him and moments of him just for me/us. recently though i have just been so grateful for his presence & spirit in my life. daily i hear stories of sadness, often within a relationship that was preceived as trustworthy, honest, truthful, lovely. still - jealousy, envy, and pride slip and permeate through the sacred text & touch of two promised to each other. it crushes my soul & sends me into a spiral of questions & thankfulness for that which i receive and enjoy with jake.

all of that to say: last weekend we took a four day vacation to be with friends, this weekend we have some dear friends coming in and next weekend we're headed to play deep in the woods. postings may continue to be quite infrequent but we'll do our best to pass on the good news of love, forgiveness, deep contemplation, peace, and grace as we receive them.



p.s. our camera is consistently in a game of work/don't work. it's forced us to take a break from thinking often, "this would be such a great picture!" and has moved us into a thought process of, "this is such a great moment that i hope will not completely unhappen in my mind but create a chapter in the literature series of our story." therefore, the images above are stolen. thanks rachel, mai & rebecca!