As I sit amidst my suitcases, taking photos off my walls,
listening to the call to prayer drift in my rooftop window, sorting through
things, and preparing to move out, I am absolutely overwhelmed at all the next 8 days will hold. Goodbyes,
hellos, endings, and beginnings; similarly, I am amazed at all the last year
has been filled with. There have been joys, fears, challenges, growth, love,
and countless adventures. I have absolutely been home here in Beit Jala,
surrounded by family, friends, and a loving community. During my packing and
cleaning and as I am preparing to say my final farewells, I have taken time to recall the countless
opportunities that have filled this year. Wow-what a year it has been. Along with the joys and the beauty of this place, I have also seen,
lived, and learned about horrific injustices and witnessed the dehumanization of people I love and care for. I don’t
want to ever forget this place, these people, the lessons learned, and the privileges
that I have often taken for granted. I don’t ever want to forget who I am at
this moment, in this place.
At YAGM orientation, way back in August when this adventure
was just beginning, a poem was shared that has stuck in my head all throughout
this year, and especially during this time of transition. I ask that you
continue to hold all of the current YAGM in your prayers as we end this journey
and look to our new beginnings. Help our loved ones to understand our new
features and help us practice gentleness with ourselves, our families &
friends, and all who may not understand the new people we are. Make us bold as
we tell the stories, and help us to remind one another of who we are, particularly
in the midst of the changes; Be with us all as we remain true to the mystery of
God’s work in the world, and help us to never go back, and to trust that God is
with us and God is waiting for us.
Passover Remembered…
By Alla Bozarth-Campbell
Pack nothing.
Bring only your determination to serve
And your willingness to be free.
Don’t wait for the bread to rise.
Take nourishment for the journey, but eat standing.
Be ready to move at a moment’s notice.
Do not hesitate to leave your old ways behind –
fear, silence, submission.
Only surrender to the need of the time –
love justice and walk humbly with your God.
Do not take time to explain to the neighbours.
Tell only a few trusted friends and family members.
Then begin quickly, before you have had time
to sink back into old slavery.
Set out in the dark.
I will send fire to warm and encourage you.
I will be with you in the fire, and I will be with you in
the cloud.
You will learn to eat new food
and find refuge in new places.
I will give you dreams in the desert
to guide you safely to that place you have not yet seen.
The stories you tell one another around the fires in the
dark
will make you strong and wise.
Outsiders will attack you, and some follow you
and at times you will get weary and turn on each other
from fear, fatigue, and blind forgetfulness.
You have been preparing for this
for hundreds of years.
I am sending you into the wilderness to make a new way
and to learn my ways more deeply.
Some of you will be so changed by weathers and wanderings
that even your closest friends will have to learn your features
as though for the first time.
Some of you will not change at all.
Some will be abandoned by your dearest loves
and misunderstood by those who have known you since birth
who feel abandoned by you.
Some will find new friendships in unlikely faces,
and old true friends as faithful and true
as the pillar of God’s flame.
Sing songs as you go,
and hold close together.
You may at times grow confused
and lose your way.
Continue to call each other by the names I've given you
to help remember who you are.
Touch each other,
And keep telling the stories.
Make maps as you go,
remembering the way back from before you were born.
So you will be only the first of many waves
of deliverance on the desert seas.
It is the first of many beginnings –
Your Paschaltide.
Remain true to the mystery.
Pass on the whole story.
Do not go back.
I am with you now and I am waiting for you.
______________________________
"And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." -Matthew 28:18-20
