We know this is prime blog reading time in St. Paul. Almost all are visiting the Dinkytown of Tucson, to buy...something. Norm and I just came back from laying in essential supplies -- 10 gallons of water, two family sized bags of Doritos, and items for breakfast and lunch. Today we all went way into the desert with Humane Borders, and tomorrow we all head out early for a day of picking up sacred migrant trash. This is stuff that gets left behind by the migrants working their way back toward the Tucson area after crossing west of Sasabe, Sonora, where the wall stops. While in the desert you always think of one thing: How can anybody survive this trip?
This is the hottest week of the year in Tucson, and the temp in the dungeon (Norm, Tom, Charlie and Jack with me) never gets below 85 degrees. It was 88 at 8 am in downtown Tucson and was 105 when we were in the desert before lunch. For our trip out tomorrow we are leaving early, with a 5:15 AM wakeup. This will cut into the adult coffee time, unless we set alarms for 4 AM. Much as Norm and I enjoy each other's company along with Marsha and Susanne et al, we have agreed that ain't happening.
I want to report that we are all well. Some of the younger youth are really stepping up and getting comfortable with responsibility. Some of the veterans started out feeling that there was not enough direct service -- so much classroom. Today, they are all utterly engaged. Trust me, lives are being changed.
We have had a few of the usual challenges. A bump, a scrape, a little outburst of crabbiness here and there. Youth forgetting to show for a work detail. The dorms are mini garbage houses. And, oh yeah, we had a face plant. But these issues are trivial in light of what we are facing and learning and feeling as we see God's children in shackles and imaging them out there, in the desert. And what should we as disciples do about this?
Your adult team is fine. We ain't as young as we used to be but there is a lot of fight left in us. And we, youth and adults, have so much more to tell you all when we arrive back in St. Paul. That's when the work needs to continue.
Lee (with Norm as Editor)
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3 comments:
You are our ambassadors, and we love you -- big hugs to all.
What you adults are making possible is unfathomable. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for sheltering, helping and letting our kids become the world's next great leaders.
Thank you, thank you.
lots of love and prayers to the whole group,
deb and todd
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