Prone to Wonder

I send out a weekly email to the team members I get to work with as the Philly city director for the program I work for, Mission Year. For a number of reasons, I had folks who were deeply impacted by Brett Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court in October of 2018, and this was … More an email

I remember sitting at a picnic table in the park, the thick humidity of Philadelphia in June bearing upon us, having one of the most challenging conversations of the year. We spent an hour dueling back and forth, me trying to ignite hope, conjure grace, catalyze love…and being told, “I don’t want to be catalyzed!” … More abundance

I’m writing this from Terminal E of the Philadelphia Airport. The original plan had been to be up in the air by this point, miles and miles above the earth on my way to Chicago for a layover before getting to Columbus this evening for a trip to be with family on my mom and … More god was the light left on

I. Growing up, I had a tenuous, inconsistent relationship with the church. My family, for a variety of reasons[1], tended to move nomadically from one to another, never laying roots and going stretches of time without attending any at all. For the most part, then, church wasn’t really on my radar, and neither was the … More communion

MissionYear asks it team members to write out a newsletter each month as a way of raising support and connecting with the communities people come from. It creates an opportunity to share stories and reflect on what one is experiencing and learning. Below is the text from my September 2015 newsletter, aka the VERY FIRST … More new beginnings in philadelphia! (september 2015 NL)

 MissionYear asks it team members to write out a newsletter each month as a way of raising support and connecting with the communities people come from. It creates an opportunity to share stories and reflect on what one is experiencing and learning. Below is the text from my July 2017 one, aka the VERY LAST … More endings & beginnings (july 2017 NL)

MissionYear asks it team members to write out a newsletter each month as a way of raising support and connecting with the communities people come from. It creates an opportunity to share stories and reflect on what one is experiencing and learning. Below is the text from my June 2017 newsletter. The beginning of June … More expanding the boundaries of “family” (june 2017 NL)

MissionYear asks it team members to write out a newsletter each month as a way of raising support and connecting with the communities people come from. It creates an opportunity to share stories and reflect on what one is experiencing and learning. Below is the text from my April 2017 newsletter. Although there’s still a … More the beginning of the end (april 2017 NL)

MissionYear asks it team members to write out a newsletter each month as a way of raising support and connecting with the communities people come from. It creates an opportunity to share stories and reflect on what one is experiencing and learning. Below is the text from my March 2017 newsletter.        “Nothing is more … More staying in love (march 2017 NL)

Every Monday after family dinner, my housemates and I gather for a time of worship. We rotate who leads, allowing everyone the opportunity to share and invite others into ways that they experience God. It was April’s turn this past Monday, and she asked each of us to write our own version of the Lord’s … More the Lord’s prayer, remixed