This past week we had a low Sunday, mostly because the Sellwood Bridge and many neighborhood roads was closed all day so that cyclists could enjoy a lovely, if wet ride throughout the area. Sometimes when we have low Sundays I get bummed out. I worry about the future viability of our community and wonder if people are growing here. That didn’t happen this week. Maybe it’s that my anti-depressants are working really well. but I think it’s actually because both brunch and dinner were such amazing, holy experiences.
Brunch continues to be a place where we are moving from Capitol Hill people and Sellwood people to one community. The smaller group this week allowed for deeper sharing and wonderful connections. I felt God’s presence with us and learned as we shared a meal, laughed, and thought about the ways good leaders call us to step outside our comfort zones. How could I be sad about the folks not there when so much happened with the folks who were there?
One of the things I love about dinner is that our child care person is back hanging out with us. He’s a lovely young man from the neighborhood who does a great job of playing with the kiddos. This week, as it has started getting darker, my daughter and I drove him home since biking is not the best option. While he’s often fairly quiet at dinner, it was so fun to talk to him in the car as he shared the things he was thinking about that had been sparked by our conversation at the table. To see his growth in maturity and know that being with us is helping him think in new ways as he grows is lovely. Again, how could I lament what wasn’t, when what was is so good?
Our community has big Sundays and low Sundays. We have wonderful conversations, and times around the table where it’s quiet. We have moments of connection and times of alienation. We are on a journey, together, following Jesus. There is beauty and life in it all, and I’m finding for me it’s a matter of being in the moment and appreciating that, while always working to follow God’s call for our community as faithfully as possible.
-Eilidh
| A full table another Sunday |
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