Last night I had my first overnighter with a bunch of my 02 middle school girls. Can I be honest? It didn't rank as the thing I was most looking forward to this week. Right beforehand I stared at the list of the 20 plus projects I'm navigating my way through thinking there is no time for this. Turns out, it was the highlight of my week and the MOST IMPORTANT thing I could do this week.
The realization came to me on my way into church this morning with a car load of girls how important it is to push your chair out from your desk and go jump in the trench. While good, in my opinion jumping into the trench is NOT giving a message, writing a discussion guide, creating some cool media or anthing else that involves you, your desk and no one else ... that's just work done in preparation for time in the trench. If you do all that and never actually jump into the trench, it's not all in vain but it falls short of the finish line.
Last night was when I first heard the story of Diana. Diana is from Cali (most of girls are from somewhere else and somehow landed in the ATL). Diana described herself as a "bad, bad girl" when she was in Cali. Her mom sent her to live with aunt in an attempt to keep her from tanking her life. While she finds the ATL boring, she longs to be in church on Wednesday night and admits she's doing much better here. Had I not stopped to just hang out, I probably would of never heard Diana's story and our conversations would never have a chance to move beyond the surface.
At our overnighter, all the girls were either black, Mexican, Puerto Rican or from some other country with cool accents. Honestly, the color of a person's skin makes no difference to me, but there are new things to learn, new challenges to overcome and new respect to be gained. All I know is that they are fun and funny, just like the white kids in Indiana. Desi, one of our leaders, keeps educating me on some things like "the weave." She says, "you'll learn, Judy, you'll learn."
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Sounds like you have an opportunity to get a real education from another perspective. That's always a good thing. I think it's worth more than you even realize at this point.
I used to sit in meetings and wonder what I brought to the table. As I looked around, everyone else had college degrees and professional credentials. I really felt pretty lost and vulnerable at times until I figured out what I brought to the table. What I bring is usually the most diverse, unique perspective at the table and (hopefully) the words to communicate that perspective. I also have the opportunity to act as a bridge between people who often misunderstand each other. I think I force people to re-evaluate the stereotypes they believe. It's really quite cool and I'm happy that you're getting the opportunity to experience it.
Rhonda
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