July, 2002
Late today we were notified that National's Wednesday supper speaker cancelled, so we jumped in to fill that spot.
It is interesting the variety of opinions that will be in one audience, so while one person might challenge our assertions, another will back them whole-heartedly.
It's a touch of Georgia nostalgic kitsch - which usually isn't a problem, except that Georgia's past includes a big dose of slavery and racism
We drove downtown to meet up with the religion writer of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for an interview.
It was quite an educated and interested group, who asked wonderful, open-ended questions.
Another day of travel, this time down to Atlanta, to meet up with Marthame's parents and sister (who's doing a bit of her own traveling these days!).
Today was the last day of our training, rounded out by a wonderful worship service of song and communion.
One of our friends, who is now a professor of church history, shared that she will be making our journal required reading for her students.
We are feeling wiped out - orientation has involved long days, and arranging all of the logistics for the remainder of our time in the States takes a lot of time and energy.
We were surprised to find that all the tables set out were filled, especially this being a summer evening in Chicago with many other things competing for attention.
The Sunday School children had drawn a mural for us, which we hope to share with our friends back in Zababdeh.
A long day of good reconnecting with our old peer support, something we've all missed.
We broke into groups, visiting Buddhist, Sikh, Hindu, and Muslim communities in Chicago.
After worship, at fellowship and coffee time, we shared the video and spent some fruitful time in conversation.
We took the afternoon off to have a barbeque and to head to the fireworks display along the river.
As of today, we are employees of the Presbyterian Church (USA), and our work in Zababdeh is now part of the Presbyterian Church's mission program.
