We're tourists now!

Our hard works' reward came today as we left on the big yellow bus to go to the Plimouth Plantation, a living museum depicting life at the original colony from 1620. The lives of the native Wompanoag people and the original colony are on display. We had lunch at the welcome center and then went on to see the Mayflower II, the replica ship built in 1957, freshly rehabbed and just brought back into port last week. Like the Plimouth Colony, the ship also is staffed by docents that stay in character. Our group posed lots of questions and we had a real good laugh.

We left on our bus for the ride back into Boston, tired and somewhat sad knowing our adventure was coming to an end. Senior night awaits as of this writing, a farewell to our oldest members. They will be off next year to schools and adventures. Gone but always members of our community. Always.  

Saturday brings travel and home, home cooking and our own bed. While we are secure at homes with our families we can't help but think back to the friends we have met and thepersonal challenges that we have overcome.  The Agape we offered and our Ministry of Presence had made this trip to Boston special.

Winding Down

Our seniors!  We'll miss you all!

Thursday brought us our last service opportunity. Two of our three groups went to "Cradle to Crayons", an agency that collects and distributes clothing and school items to children in huge numbers. We found out they are opening a branch in Chicago too. 

The third group made their way back to the Children's Clothing Exchange where they continued the sorting duties that had been started earlier in the week,

In the afternoon we did a photo scavenger hunt on the Boston Freedom Trail. Following our instructions, each work group was led down to the Sam Adams Memorial. Afterwords we all rode the train to the Fenway Ballpark area and had a wonderful meal at Wahlburgers, though Donnie was not there, darn it!

Friday we'll go to see Plimouth Plantation and finish up the evening with our Senior Night. A great trip all around so far. Service, fun, and wonderful community!

Rookies!

Half way through our week but so much more to do...

Three days have passed and we feel like we have logged a million miles on the T, the bus and the sidewalk. We have met people from the north side and south. Dorchester to Cambridge. So many people with stories to tell. Lessons in life, good and bad. From the innocence of children caught in the middle of a life that they did not choose to people experiencing homelessness but still exploring their souls through the arts. We have witnessed so much this week, so many memories to  keep.

Tonight after dinner we had a chance to reflect on our day. It was a time to explore our own feelings and what we have witnessed. We also took care of our own. We celebrated Connors birthday with cake and some of the best darn cannoli you have ever had!

Thursday we head out for our last morning of service, then we follow Boston's historic freedom trail for a photo scavenger hunt.

We all have been effected by what we have seen and done this week.  We'll hold these memories forever.  Hopefully we'll use them as we grow into responsible members of the body of Christ.

Crisscrossing Boston

Tuesday, another day in the life of Boston and another day of offering God's love.  We have visited a wide range of service agencies the past two days. Some, multiple times, as each team goes to two locations a day. We are 3 teams that crisscross the city and surrounding neighborhoods; all of us working to treat the people that we serve with compassion as well as treating each other with that same compassion.

This evening we were joined by Ron, one of the folks from Boston Immersion. He shared his story of great success that was followed by unfortunate decisions that lead to a life in prison, but through re-examining his decision making process and his faith in God he was able to turn his life in a positive direction. His was a story of redemption. A personal resurrection. He was an inspiration to our group to share our own stories of decisions. Through this we learned more about ourselves and the effects that our own decisions have on others around us. 

Tomorrow will bring more challenges to be sure, but also, more chances to engage our First Church Agape.