Whew - I'm pooped. Three large gatherings in three weeks is enough to tire a girl out. But it's all good and it was all relatively easy - thanks to a spectacular backyard that lends itself to easy setup and clean up. I'm am so thankful to have a beautiful backyard that can easily fit 50 people or a more intimate group of 2.
The next two Sundays were our Sunday evening dinners, which were well attended and had "sparky" conversations. For those of you who don't know what we do on Sunday evenings I'll give ya a little update. We are part of a community of 10 other groups that open their homes to their friends, neighbors, random people we meet along the way of life - and we invite them into community. The communities purpose is to sojourn towards truth and live life out in the process, no matter where people are at. Every Sunday we have a potluck, wine/beer - breaking bread together. Every other Sunday, after we eat, we sit down and read a section of out of the Bible and discuss it. We ask 5 questions: What did you like? What didn't you understand? What did you not like? Does this change your view of who God is? Does this change the way you live your life? It's pretty rare that we get through all the questions, but we do have some pretty interesting and significant conversations. The important part in all this, is that very few people believe the same things in regards to politics, faith, life....so it can be both beautiful and awkward, which is so like life isn't it?
The last party we had was the annual Halloween Party. It started a couple of years ago when it became clear we lived in a great neighborhood for trick or treating. So I decided that if we all ate together and then went trick or treating it would be an easy and fun way to gather friends and strangers. I have no idea how many people we had tonight, but it was full and fun. My nephews came - which was the first time and so much fun. Jack the 15 year old, dressed in a scary scarecrow outfit with mask that looked surprisingly real. He sat on a hay bale next to the front door while Sam lured people onto the front step with candy. People thought Jack was a decoration so when they were least expecting it, he would JUMP out at them and scare the living daylights out of them. He and Sam had quite a night. There was a rule though - no scaring the little kids. I think Sam and Jack are planning next years event already.
The best part of the day though was when we decided Yogi needed to get in on the Halloween action. We took one of Sam's shirts and put it on him, then we put Sam's backpack on him and walked him into Sam's classroom. We said, "Here's Sam, he's ready to go to school!" People thought that was hilarious and he made quite the impression. It also created a bit of a traffic jam and chaos so we didn't stay long.
On a side note: last night a few friends and I went to an amazing show/concert. Gungor was spectacular - to a level that I've rarely experienced. Truly amazing. If you get a chance check out their music and if you're blessed enough to have them visit your city - don't miss out - it will be an experience you won't quickly forget.
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