community.. and making this summer matter

Welll, the more I talk/listen to people, the more I have to think about! So last night, Rach and I had a classic night together... which involves a comfortable couch/bed, and lots of laughter, maybe a tear or two, and the best conversations to fit both of our needs. everyone's got things to talk about when you're willing to just... open up! and talk about those things you might think about during the day, or feel. so something thats been coming up a lot in conversations with my mom and rach and others, is community! gosh how i love love loove the idea of it.

and i suppose that's why i'm beginning to brainstorm (something that is not done enough by our intelligent minds for these important life matters) ideas for making a community I care about and I feel is contributing to people who need it, or are willing to contribute to it. we live 20 minutes from downtown Baltimore, a city full of life, andd full of poverty and lack of life, and we live 45 minutes from the nations capitol, which has it's fair share of homelessness, crime, as well as beauty, success, and power (all those government buildings and what happens inside them). well that is a huge huge starting point.

a smaller, but still big, starting point for community is through churches like Cedar Ridge or The Church in Bethesda, one of which my dad started, and the other one that was started by Rob Kang and a group of great people.

And getting even more microscopic, but still blossoming with lots of opportunities and connections, is my house, me, the people I know who care about the world and themselves. how could i possibly experience community this summer in somewhat rural laurel maryland?

today i heard a great sermon by the new pastor at Cedar Ridge all about community, and taking risks, and what keeps people from taking risks (fear, laziness, being the victim, blaming others). I believe it will be available online through streaming mp3 at: http://www.crcc.org/converse/talks.htm, from May 21, 2006 sermon (it's not up right now, but it will be).

it got me thinking of ways cedar ridge could connect with the community more, and when i kept going, it got me thinking about my own personal life. after taking a poetry class with Mary Szybist at Lewis & Clark college, i developed a love for poetry and trying to express life through images. i would love to have a group meet at my house every week who would be dedicated to write a poem or two and we would all read eachother's poetry, and make suggestions... and also cook a meal together, and if we have musicians, maybe have a concert as well. This would take people who are interested in writing something, dinner could also be a place and time to sit and talk about important things if writing isn't exactly where people want to go with thoughts.

i'd want to meet some people i've never met before, or never gotten to know that well, and open this place up for some new discoveries to happen.

i'm also going on this road trip... which is so incredible because i'm connecting with a lot of people in my surrounding community to find places to stay/people to meet on our trip to Asheville, Atlanta, and then Biloxi, MS for relief work from hurricane katrina.

this blog is just part of the brainstorming going on, and i'd really like for these ideas to materialize in some delicious meals, conversations, poetry readings, house concerts... anything's possible! let's start talking about this, get in touch with me by email if you're interested - settle4more@gmail.com

i'm looking forward to the opportunities out there this summer,

jo

summer days and slowing down

talk about a change of PACE! i used to be happy for any chance i had to grab a nap or a goodnights sleep, and now sleep comes in full 9 hour time slots. summer is a different game, and i'm still warming up to it. i loved college for too many reasons to list here, most of which had to do with being busy with things that mattered and having really good friends living in my building who i'd talk to or go places with whenever! i still have dreams that i'm in portland, a lott. my mind has to remember that it is now in maryland!

i heard thunder for the first time yesterday all year! it rains a lot in portland, but rarely does it thunder storm. i had a big smile on my face after i heard that rumbling thunder and the big rain drops on the skylight in my living room.

college is a very self-focused place... for the most part. definitely towards the end of college i'd made good friends who really did care about me, and who i care about soo much, and yeah we began to watch out for one another. but the thing is, you're surrounded by so many people and so much action, that it's easy for people to only worry about themselves. in a way that's nice. because it's hard to be in a place with all this new stuff and no one who's really grounded with who you are... so in making decisions for yourself, without any one expecting anything of you, you're so free and (ready or not) you've got all this control of your life. so i learned lots about myself from being in that environment. i also discovered that old counting crows song "raining in baltimore" and it makes for the perfect sad song about being "3,500 miles away," and "needing a raincoat" cause boy does it rain all the time out there. you need those songs that seem to fit right into your life, i love that.

yesterday i had a great talk with my mom. it was after i ordered 250 MORE of my cd's because i ran out of the first 250! hooraay for people supporting my music!! so yeah, my mom says something like "i don't know HOW you manage money, you do it in the weirdest ways, but i'm starting to learn to trust you because you always make enough money." My mom thinks if I don't have a job all school year, that means I'm broke and lazy or something. OR take my trip home to surprise Rach on her birthday.... my mom's wayy too logical to understand that whole idea. she's thinking, for how much it would cost to fly there, why don't i just buy a really nice gift. and i'm thinking, this would be best birthday surprise ever, i love my friend, i don't really have the money, but i'll find a way to make it back... end of story-- i GO, i surprise my best friend, we get to spend the weekend together, i have a house concert and make back the cost of the plane ticket.

so i guess it makes me feel a little better when i see everyone rushing to get a job, and i'm still searching around for what i want to do. there's just so much pressure out there, that if you don't have a job right away, that meanns you're lazy and you're broke... but i'm really not either of the two! and i really do want to drive around and play shows in different cities, and meet people, and make enough money to make it through my next school year, and be able to hit up some concerts this summer... but i don't need much more money than that.

i've learned to trust my heart a little more, with the few positive experiences i've had with my music and my big goals. like this road trip for instance that rach and judy and i are going on in 2 weeks to do relief work in biloxi mississippi! we're taking a week-long road trip down, staying in asheville and atlanta, and i'm going to play my guitar, and rach is going to interview coffee house owners, and if we're lucky, we'll interview someone from Paste Magazine. then we're doing 5 days of hurricane relief work in mississippi. it's going to cost money, and once again, i DON'T have a job yet. but we're going to volunteer in a place that really really needs help right now, and that is important, and it's also something that other people around me feel good about supporting and contributing money to. so, it's not that i'm forcing anyone to hand me money to go places... but i am opening that door to accept anything people are willing to give. and i'm learning that it's okay to do that, and that i work so much better under those circumstances. because then i feel so so thankful for people who support these things i'm passionate about, and we sort of get to share the feeling of accomplishment- because i can't do it alone.

so people think i'm a little crazy for trusting that if i do what's right, money will follow... but i care too much about people and music to really do it any other way. i really find joy in being able to live this way.