day by day.

Rich Mullins once said " each day we must find opportunities to be reborn."

Each day the spectrum of joy and pain is present in our lives.

Something so incredibly beautiful happened this week to a family I know. They moved up here from Chicago in the fall with the intent of building a new life for themselves. They have been living in a homeless shelter for the past 7 months. One of my friends has been advocating for them for quite awhile, and has built an amazing relationship with them. Just yesterday, they got to move into a home! A mom, and her 5 children now have a place to call home with a yard to play in and a kitchen to make meals...

Love > Fear

In the past week I have been asked the question "do you ever feel afraid?" more than usual. The question is usually asked by a friend or family member who means well, but doesn't completely understand where I live.

People often fear what they do not know. They make assumptions about what they think they know.. Our news channels are often slanted, and depict the city as a crime ridden place where no sane person would raise a family. That is absolutely bogus.

I cannot change people.. I did not come to the city to do so.. If that were my intent, I should have left on the first day.

I can acknowledge daily that where I live is a beautiful place... My liberation is bound up with those around me. We all have a story, we all belong to each other.

Yes, it isn't always clean. Yes, I do hear gunshots on occasion. Yes, my neighbor did get arrested for dealing drugs... I am not blind to these things.

Yet, the richness of life that surrounds me each day is something I see most often.. My neighborhood has an amazing marketplace where almost every culture is representing selling clothes, jewelry, food, and other goods. I live within walking distance of an amazing park where a community parade will take place this weekend. This park is a place where I can walk with the neighborhood kids, and they have the freedom to play in a wide open space. I live two blocks from one of the many Youth Farms that exist in the city. The youth farm provides jobs for kids, and shows kids where food comes from, how to grow it, and the impact they can have on the local food system. Many of the people who live on my street are friends, families that I've broken bread together with. Families that I've gone to birthday parties for, or have seen their first child enter the world. Our doorbell rings on a daily basis with kids wanting to hang out.. Many of these kids are now teenagers, and I've seen them grow up . I work 4 blocks from home, and am within biking distance of so many places. Their are several bus lines close to my house that can connect to anywhere in Minneapolis. I could write an endless list of reasons I love where I live...

At first when people were making comments like "aren't you afraid," or "why would you choose to live there," I felt like I needed to defend myself, defend my neighbors, and set people straight. Typically as this question was presented, I ended up having some amazing conversations... It was strange getting so many comments in the past week, when I have lived here for 5 years.

I am grateful to live in such an incredible place. It's not always comfortable. Our lives inevitably collide. Yet, it is a place where beauty can be found in the most remarkable ways.

St. Martin's table.

Last Wednesday I volunteered as a waitress at St. Martin's table in Minneapolis.
This was honestly one of the most life giving experiences I have had in months.
The overall presence of this oasis in the city reminded me so much of my time at the Schloss retreat center when I studied abroad in college. People from all life stations coming together over a shared meal.


St. Martin's Table serves vegetarian meals with and emphasis on locally grown and organic food.

All of the tips at St. Martin's go towards program organizations working towards alleviating hunger in the global community.

The restaurant/bookstore was named for five Martins who have been models of change, truth and resistance in the Christian faith:

-Martin Luther, the 16th century reformer who taught the theology of the cross
-Martin Luther King, Jr., for his leadership in nonviolent protest to end racism and injustice
-Martin of Tours, a fourth century Roman soldier turned pacifist
-Martin de Porres, a Spanish-Indian healer who served the poor of Peru in the 1600s
-Martin Niemoeller, a German pastor imprisoned for his nonviolent resistance to the Nazis during World War II

I am planning to volunteer at St. Martin's twice per month. I just happened to bike to this unassuming place last week with a friend for lunch. It is a place where justice is sought and individuals come together of all ages to share life.

The day that I volunteered I couldn't get the African-American spiritual out of my mind; Let us break bread together on our knees, (on our knees)
Let us break bread together on our knees. (on our knees)
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.

Let us drink wine together on our knees, (on our knees)
Let us drink wine together on our knees. (on our knees)
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.

Let us praise God together on our knees, (on our knees)
Let us praise God together on our knees. (on our knees)
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me

10

One of my favorite parts about being in this neighborhood is living life alongside kids while they grow up. I met some of the kids from our block while in college. Many of them were 8-10 years old, and are now in high school!




On Sunday Kathy turned 10. I remember meeting her when she was 8 and in the second grade. I began tutoring with DinoMights, and moved into an apartment 3 blocks from her house. I remember taking her to the park with two of her sisters and having them over to play UNO. Over time Kathy has become a consistent part of my life. She has an amazing support network that surrounds her. She is so bright, and full of irrepressible life. In the past few months some life circumstances have become more difficult for her. I have been in awe of her ability to grasp what is happening in a healthy way. She is the youngest of 5 and is the family organizer. All of her siblings have been in the DinoMights program. As the youngest she has had to learn a great deal of patience. Kathy has watched each of her siblings go to camp, or have different experiences and she continually has had to wait until she is "old enough." This summer she finally got to go to an overnight camp that all of her sisters and her one brother have been to. She loved it so much...




I have confidence that I will see her graduate from college in 10-11 years and become some type of event planner. Happy Birthday Kathy! I wish you well. I am beyond grateful you are in my life...

nature.

Let children walk with Nature, let them see the beautiful blendings and communions of death and life, their joyous inseparable unity, as taught in woods and meadows, plains and mountains and streams . John Muir

Their is something to be said for being in the splendor of creation. I am drawn to the city and the rich diversity that lies within it. Yet, the wilderness to me is a place of solitude, discovery, and rest. Whenever I have had the opportunity to bring kids from an urban setting camping or to the "woods" the experience has been both liberating and therapeutic. God has created this vast spread of beautiful landscape for each of us to discover.. Even kids who may not like being outdoors learn about themselves through seeing new animals, hearing different sounds, and looking up at a sky full of stars.

I love living in the city and being within walking distance of a pretty amazing park. It doesn't necessarily take a roadtrip for us to have opportunities to play in the outdoors.

This year I have been trying to appreciate Minnesota Winters more by making the most of them. I have XC skied more than any other year, gone skating, sledding, and have taken part in a few other shennanigans.

A few weeks ago Minneapolis did not have school so I took some DinoMights sledding.



I also went XC skiing with my brother Dan at a park in MPLS, with a view of the skyline.

In less than a month I am hitting the open road with a friend.. We are going camping and hiking out West. In and among creation is where my heart is set free. I am looking forward to this time of discovery and being in the wild.

Dinos in the Star Tribune!

The DinoMights were featured in the Star Tribune on Monday!
I also just got back from the Hockey in the hood tournament in Detroit which was fantastic!


The article is below, but I will also include the Star Tribune link which has a photo gallery of the kids.


Inner-city kids get a shot at playing hockey thanks to the nonprofit DinoMights organization.

By JOY PETERSEN, Star Tribune


The alarm rings early Wednesday mornings for 11-year-old Hector Ramirez.

Just a day before he was to leave last week for the Hockey in the Hood Tournament in Detroit, he was catching a ride to an early-morning practice at the Augsburg Ice Arena. Arriving at the brightly lit rink, he was greeted with upraised arms and an eager welcome by his coach, Scott Harman.

"Hector! Glad to see you, buddy!"

Red duffel bags were piled in a heap next to the lockerroom door. One was marked specifically for Hector. All the gear inside -- helmet, pads and skates -- had been donated.

Hector, along with 94 other boys and girls ages 5 to 18, is part of DinoMights, a Minneapolis program that gives inner-city kids access to a sport not commonly played by minority children.

The National Hockey League in 1995 began the NHL Diversity Task Force, now known as the "Hockey is for Everyone" initiative. It offers children of all backgrounds the opportunity to play hockey.

That same year, a team was organized in Minneapolis by John Foley, a preacher's son who started the program as an outreach effort from his father's church, Faith Covenant. That early enterprise today has grown into DinoMights, a nonprofit organization with three paid staff members and 40 volunteers who work with children from the Central, Powderhorn Park and Phillips neighborhoods.

The organization holds an annual fundraiser, receives grants and accepts donations from local businesses. While it asks for $50 from each participant per year to defray costs, those unable to pay are not turned away.

DinoMights also provides tutoring, mentoring, social interaction and faith-based education to the players.

Harman, who is also executive director of the program, said the 40 volunteers pick up and drop off the players. Because most participants are dependent on rides, Harman said it teaches the kids responsibility because they have to set an alarm and be on time.

The volunteers bring the kids to the Augsburg Ice Arena for their 6:15 a.m. practices each Wednesday during hockey season.

While the youngest kids get help suiting up, the older kids take the ice. At 6:45 a.m., after the skates have been tightened and the mouth guards put in place, the volunteers huddle up the younger children for a morning prayer. Then a one-hour practice begins.

Hector said the hardest part for him was learning how to skate -- he'd never skated before he joined DinoMights. For the littlest ones, tumbles on the ice are common. Some fly into the side boards and hit hard. But they pick themselves up and dust themselves off.

After practice, the kids eat breakfast together as a team and then the volunteers take them to school.

Team members practice and play in games and tournaments against squads from around the metro area. The DinoMights also played during intermission at Saturday's Minnesota Wild game. Last fall, Willie O'Ree, the first black NHL player, visited the team.

Hector was one of 10 DinoMights who participated in Detroit's fifth annual Hockey in the Hood Tournament Friday through Sunday. The event hosted teams from 11 cities, including Chicago, Washington, D.C., Pittsburgh, and smaller cities such as Windsor, Ontario, and Wasilla, Alaska.

Hector was looking forward to the trip. "I'm excited about all the teams we're going to play."

Leonard Silbernagle, 24, grew up in the Longfellow neighborhood and joined DinoMights in 1999 at a time when he said he was "struggling with school." While some in his neighborhood turned to gangs, Silbernagle said the program was a way for him "to get out of the community."

After graduating from high school and taking some time off, he rejoined DinoMights this year as a volunteer coach.

And he loves working with the kids. "It's great to see their faces."

Joy Petersen is a University of Minnesota journalism student on assignment for the Star Tribune.

Dreams

For Black History month at work we are having the kids look at poets from various cultural backgrounds. One of the poets that the kids read about yesterday was Langston Hughes.

"DREAMS"
by Langston Hughes
Hold onto dreams
For if dreams die
Life is like a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.

What gives a child regardless of socioeconomic factors the ability to dream?

What holds a child back from achieving their dreams?

Who influences an individual to follow through on dreams they had as a child?

Why do some dreams die?

How does one individual "make it" in this world and another not, even if these two people come from the same circumstances?

How do we keep from failing our youth? What more can be done? How do we
( as a society) keep them from being lost in the system, or failed by the system?

I have been wrestling with these questions and so many more recently.
I have come to some of my own conclusions or opinions . Yet, I would love to hear a variety of perspectives.