It's officially been a week since I bid them adieu. Though still recovering, I can now eat small bites of solid food. Looking forward to the day I can crunch into a carrot, but I'm thankful for
Lately, I've been seeing a theme of getting older and growing up. . .
The puppies are over 20 weeks old. They have officially been with us more than half their lives.
I've been driving. To Bible study. To church youth events. To dance. It's handy, but still gives me a slightly strange feeling.
I've begun my junior year of high school. I'm doing pre-calculus, world history and literature, chemistry, and do I really just have two years left of high school?!
I finished reading The Lucy Variations by Sara Zarr. It is about a girl who spends the book trying to recognize herself as the protagonist of her story. Interesting to see her growth.
I am currently reading The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. One of it's main characters is a French girl, Paloma, who doesn't see any reason to become an adult.
I've been thinking about the relationship between getting older and growing up. They go hand in hand, but I don't think they are synonymous. I think getting older occurs because of the physical consequences of time, where as growing up occurs through the mental maturity resulting in wisdom.
If those definitions are valid, I agree with the little French girl. There is no point in becoming an adult if it means simply getting older.
I'll happily get older, however, if I also grow up. (hoping I don't lose any wisdom when all four of mywisdom teeth are removed this weekend. . . :)
Continuing to tell about my week on a youth choir mission trip to Cheyenne, Wyoming. . . .
Sunday morning, June 9, we visited an air force base. We sung at the church, and the chaplain gave us a tour of the base. We saw and learned about nuclear missile carriers, including how only the President can authorize the release of nuclear weapons.
Sunday afternoon (as well as Monday afternoon and Tuesday evening) we helped with a unique ministry at Sunnyside Baptist church, the place we were temporarily calling home. I was asked to give a testimony in our church about it, so I'll just share those words here:
Hi! My name is Megan and this week I got to take part in a ministry that took me by surprise at Sunnyside Baptist Church in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Every summer, they hand out 50,000 water bottles to people attending the Cheyenne Frontier Days. Besides offering a drink, these water bottles are hand labeled with stickers that share scriptures about salvation. When we arrived at the church, pallets of water bottles lined the gym walls, ready to be unpacked, labeled, and repacked. We soon split up into teams and worked together to ready some of these pallets. In three days, we labeled a little more than nine pallets, totaling close to 17,000 water bottles. It was refreshing to be a part of something that will bring refreshment to others.
On Sunday night we performed our full concert at Sunnyside. There were few who attended, but they were very hospitable.
Monday, June 10, was full of preparations for an Upward basketball camp, backyard Bible clubs, and construction work at Sunnyside. My camera managed to stay in my bag. I was a part of the group doing backyard Bible clubs, so I got to help cut out stickers and read through lessons.
The day also included a visit to a local senior center. While waiting to sing, one of my friends and I talked to a lady named Connie who had grown up in Georgia, then moved to Wyoming. It was fascinating to hear about her transition.
Monday night everyone helped with a cook out/ carnival for Upward basketball camp enrollees. While we were ready for forty or more kids, only two showed up. Between cup stacking, face painting, a cake walk, and other games, we still had lots of fun.
Tuesday, June 11, officially began the activities. My backyard Bible club had three kids: one little girl and, later, a brother and sister. We shared the story of Creation with the kids, telling them that they are God's most special creation.
Tuesday afternoon, after a second visit to the senior center, we visited Vedauwoo State Park. Talk about Creation! I readily admit that my expectations were low. I thought we'd see a pretty forest and a few big rocks. A look around the park, however, rocked my preconceptions. We split up into groups, each with a leader or two, and were given a couple hours to explore. My group spotted another group already a ways up one of the rock-covered mountain and wondered how in the world they got there. A loud conversation ensued, pictured above, in which we got the advice of "go that way". Somehow, we managed to climb up the mountain too.
I attempted to capture the view by taking a video. It was a struggle to get to the almost-top of the little mountain. In the middle of climbing a particularly steep rock, one of my friends got stuck, her shoe fell off, and no new hand hold appeared. I reached out my own hand, but she worried she'd pull me down. We called our leader over. I started praying. Aloud. It made me feel somewhat suspended in the moment, calm as help came through our leader.
On our way back down the mountain, we spotted a moose in the trees. We stayed quiet. Thankfully, it didn't seem to spot us. We found out later that another leader had taken a picture of a moose, and the moose had charged her and our wonderful bus driver. While running away, our bus driver stepped in a hole and hurt her calf. She had to wear a special boot the rest of the trip, but thankfully no bones were broken and her driving was not affected.
Wednesday, June 12, slipped in with more backyard Bible clubs (and Upward basketball camps and construction work), as well as a concert at another church in town followed by a beautiful sunset. We didn't have any kids at our backyard Bible club location, but they had eleven kids at another one. We heard that the kids were rough, but receptive.
Breakfast on Thursday, June 13, startled me. I was seated and watching our choir director as he looked around the room for someone, one of the leaders, to pray. Then his eyes met mine and he mouthed Will you pray? I looked at him and mouthed Me? I thought there surely had to be someone else he was really asking. Still, he looked straight at me. Will you? I nodded, knowing my answer was yes, though I would never have volunteered it. He quieted the room. I talked to God. We ate our food and I marveled at how a few sentences aloud could grow me.
Thursday morning was the last time my group did backyard Bible camp. We hung out at the playground with our music going and activities ready. No kids showed up, once again, but we placed quite a few flyers at different apartment doors. Some of the flyers told about VBS the next week at Sunnyside Baptist Church. All of the flyers had information about the church. We hoped that someone would take note.
On Thursday afternoon we sang at a juvenile detention center. We saw kids our ages, with quite normal faces, wearing clothes slightly too big. We sang a song about things changing in a moment, but God staying the same.
On Friday, June 14, we packed our stuff, loaded it onto the bus, cleaned the church that had been nice enough to let us make it messy, and headed down to Ft. Collins, Colorado. There, I went white water rafting for my first time. After the complications of renting and putting on wetsuits, hearing the safety spiel, and riding another bus out to the Cache la Poudre River, we finally got in rafts (I sat in the front right spot) and learned how to paddle. The water was high, causing us to move quickly, but without the danger of all the rocks. Everyone in my boat managed to stay seated for the entire ride, only experiencing the river in waves that refreshed us in our hot wetsuits. On a calm part of the river, our guide asked us to sing one of our choir songs. We sang our one a capella song, a version of Move by MercyMe. Things got a bit interesting as we realized we were all altos, but it was a lot of fun. Our choir director passed by in his raft and was grinning.
After sleeping on a church pew on Friday night, we woke up bright and early on Saturday, June 15, and headed home. It was a long, but good ride. The bus was a bit quieter than it had been the previous Saturday. Everyone was ready to reach the church, be picked up by their families, and get a bit of sleep in their own beds before coming back the next morning to do our concert in each service. When we finally pulled into the church parking lot, my dad, who had been out of town with work all week, picked me up. I arrived home to my mom, growing sisters, and growing puppies. I told them about my time and they told me about theirs, all of us glad we had been able to talk throughout the week thanks to cellphones, but glad to be face to face again.
Sunday, June 16, Father's day, came very quickly. There was a breakfast/awards ceremony before church. Each student was awarded something, such as Mission Trip Romance (given to my friend who was given a pretzel engagement ring by a seven year old) and Chief Mischief Maker (given to the boy who was a part of every prank). I was given the Marry Poppins award, prefaced with "this girl would smile even if her arm was cut off." Glad we didn't test that theory!
All three church service concerts went well. We sang our songs and even remembered the words. I talked about the water bottle labeling, finding it unnecessary to read from my slip of paper. Turned out those words had soaked into my head too.
As in the last post, I see the theme of "words matter" throughout this trip.
The President's words matter.
Words printed on a water bottle matter.
Activities provide opportunities to share words that matter.
Everyone's words matter.
Words in the Bible matter.
Words shouted on a mountain matter.
Even in the most physically scary times, it's words that really matter.
Sometimes it's the very lack of words that matters.
Kids have a good idea of the words that matter.
Words spoken to God always matter.
Words about a place that has hope matter.
Words about a God that is hope matter.
Our choir director is always showing us that words matter.
Words, however delivered, matter.
Unique awards are words that matter.
When words can be soaked into your head, they must matter.
John 1:1 states that "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
I see that this trip was about words sung, words spoken, words written, and, most of all, the Word from whom everything else comes~
Hello again! Last time I was here I talked about getting ready for a youth choir mission trip with my church. Well, I'm back, safe and sound. I've been home for three weeks now, trying to assimilate the time. Here's a look at day one of the trip. . .
I boarded a bus bright and early on Saturday, June 8. We were headed to Cheyenne, Wyoming to share the songs we had learned. After loading the luggage, we had a group prayer in the parking lot.
As the bus pulled away, my mom and dad waved (goodbyes with my sisters had been said the night before). We had hugged, but I hadn't said much as far as goodbyes go. I was smiling, but knew I was teetering on the edge of cheerful and tearful. I didn't talk in an effort to maintain balance.
Driving through beautiful, albeit empty, Kansas, The Sound of Music was played on the mini TV screens. I was happy to hear the familiar story and sweet songs. They talked over the fear in my head.
We passed many gigantic wind turbines, my future-engineer friend happily talking about how they work.
I knit, trying to trick my brain into relaxing by keeping my hands busy. Then I remembered the note my mom stuck in my backpack. I pulled it out and read the small piece of encouragement, Scripture, and love. It was nothing I didn't already know, but it calmed me.
We drove by bright green fields. Clever word games were passed around and we had fun trying to solve them. Later I met the two sisters in charge of the games. This meeting happened in Subway, where we were getting dinner. A comment was made about one of the sisters just recently discovering she has a dairy allergy. She and I instantly connected, drawn together by mutual eating implications. She shared her snickerdoodle cookies, I shared my granola bars.
A picture of my sisters, slathered with sunscreen and smiles, arrived in my phone. It came with a text about them having fun riding all the roller coasters at the amusement park. I don't like roller coasters, so my stomach turned a bit to picture my little, sweet sisters on the big, scary rides. Still, I smiled to see and read that they were having fun.
Mountains came into view as the sun went down. Kids crowded the windows on the left side of the bus. We'd reached Colorado. I texted a picture to my family, updating them on our progress.
It was dark by the time we arrived at our home base for the week, Sunnyside Baptist Church in Cheyenne, Wyoming, so I took a picture of it a couple days later. The pastor greeted us and told us a bit about the area.
We moved around furniture, plopped our luggage down on the concrete floor, blew up air mattresses, and rolled out sleeping bags in the church's basement. The girls got the big, open room, but it was still a tight fit. As the week wore on, we had many a conversation while sitting criss cross applesauce on our pushed-together air mattresses. We learned more about each other, bit by bit.
Before going to sleep, we tried to get clean. The girls bathroom was a dark, half-finished place. Spiderwebs hung from the pipes, shower curtains hung only partially from the rods. I talked with my friend as we showered (quickly, as the water had a single temperature- cold). The room was less creepy when you could occupy your thoughts with conversation. Exhausted from the day, it didn't take long for me to get to sleep that night.
That first day I wondered why in the world I was leaving home, even for one week. Looking back, I see a theme. . .
We sang because we believed words matter.
We prayed because God believes that words matter.
I kept quiet because I felt how much words matter.
Familiar songs comfort because words matter
Informative words matter.
Written words matter.
Words in the form of offhanded comments matter.
Texted words matter.
Words of welcome matter.
Each other's words matter.
Why did I go? Because words matter.
Thank you for your prayers, and thank you for valuing my words. More on the rest of the trip tomorrow~
Tomorrow I leave on a youth choir mission trip with my church.
My bags are packed,
But I am still trying to feel ready.
I'm excited for this new adventure,
Anticipating challenges and fun and growth,
But hit with the need for deeper reliance on God.
The newness of this experience intimidates me.
Seems the challenges and growing have already begun.
Gathering words of strength. . .
When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?Psalm 56: 3-4
He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in.Isaiah 40:22
My heart is steadfast, O God; I will sing and make music with all my soul.Psalm 108:1
I love you, O Lord, my strength.Psalm 18:1
I always appreciate prayers, but appreciate them especially this week. Will be back sharing words and pictures soon~
