Christmas Lights

I'm not quite sure how it's December 21st already. One barely has time to turn around once December begins, and then it's over. Without final exams, school events, and tons of Christmas programs I thought that December would be a little more relaxed, BUT no such luck this year. Goings-on at the shelter have been busier than ever. Since it's been over two weeks since my last blog, I'll give a short bulleted overview of events since my last update:

• Dealt with a big verbal blow-up two Saturdays ago between two residents during on-duty time. Pretty high-stress. Had to tell a mom to "go to her room."
• Got a new roommate! Her name is Tiffany, and she's an Intercultural Studies student at Fuller Seminary. She's GREAT, and now I'm not alone as the only nights/weekends manager.
• Endured a flu epidemic among the residents here. I mentioned that I got sick, but literally every single staff member and nearly every resident, mothers and children, has gotten the flu sometime in the past month. The same weekend I had to deal with the verbal fight, another mom got really sick one evening. Tiffany and I attended to her baby and toddler while she was on the bathroom floor getting everything out, so-to-speak. I must admit I felt bad for her, but it was ironic because this particular mom has complained a lot that we are extremely "unhelpful" and "uncompassionate." She had even blown up on me earlier that day because of this issue! 
• Went to a Christmas party at the Beverly Hills Hotel with a woman from church who works there. It truly felt like a Cinderella night, because I got all dressed up, got a makeover from one of the moms here, and got to see inside one of the most luxurious five-star hotels in the country. Then at midnight... poof! All over. The only differences were that I still had both my shoes at the end of the night and no prince. I was glad to have my shoes though, because I really like them :)
• Tonight is Door of Hope's annual Christmas party and reunion. All residents and program alumni are invited to the huge event, and every single family created a wish list which Door of Hope annually has a Christmas drive for. The families will each receive gifts. We occasionally receive vehicles to present to deserving families, and we have chosen one of Glendale's moms to give a vehicle to tonight! I'm so excited, because this mom works very, very hard, has four kids who I LOVE. They are so deserving! Her old vehicle broke down a few weeks ago, and she has to use her day care company's van to drive to and from work even though it costs a boatload in gas. 

Bug Bugs, Flu Bugs & Phone Bugs... Just Kidding, Not the Last One :)

Cockroaches are gross. I don't think I've ever even seen one live before coming to California, not this many anyway. The far end of the building has been fighting an infestation for several months, with exterminators coming several times. If you don't know much about them, they like to come out at night when it's dark. Our kidsroom is one of the infested rooms, and the two times I've had to go in for things at night I could hear them walking on the linoleum floor and countertops when I walked in - no joke. I saw at least twenty of them the first time I walked in, and needing to check the computer hookup, I took a couple minutes to get myself adjusted to their presence and they to mine or else scurried away from the light. When I bent down to plug something in and a big one climbed out of the electrical socket, I think I seriously came close to a heart attack. This morning the exterminator came again, and after we were allowed re-entry into the room dead skeletons were all over the floor. I immediately resolved to vacuum them up. Unfortunately there were many live ones mixed in with the dead. After many squeals and squeamish cries of anguish, my co-worker and I managed to alleviate those visible. Out of sight, out of mind, for now.

After a weekend in spent in bed, I was elated to finally get out of my apartment and see the world again today. I caught a bug mid-week last week and began feeling rather snuffly, sneezy, and a little "off" in the head (as stopped up nasal passages somehow seem to stop up the brain as well). Of course, I took it only as seasonal allergies. With children coughing, sneezing, salivating, and transferring countless other unknown questionable substances from themselves to me, it was only a matter of time before I caught something. Plus the fact that half the city has some sort of flu or cold virus. I thought I was getting over it Saturday as I started to get my voice back, but my body decided that the scrumptious Chinese dinner I ate that night needed to go. And it did, as soon as I was able to get myself back into the building and make it to the bathroom. Saturday night was the most miserable I've had in a while, waking up nearly every hour from nausea and restlessness. I tend to be super independent, but this was one of those times when I felt pretty helpless and desperate and... yes, I had to call my mommy in the middle of the night just to cry and hear her voice. Even though mommies don't necessarily have magical healing powers, there's something about having them coddle you when you're sick - even if it's over the phone as a working 20-something - that makes you feel a bit stronger, like you can go on, just because you know they heard you.

I haven't been in my room for that extended a period of time like... ever, and while unpleasant, it forced me to slow down and get some much-needed rest.

Day of Fun

What a day! It began at 7:30 a.m., a good time when you're not in the habit of staying up late almost every night watching movies. But I must admit, movies are becoming my best friend. Anyway, the early Saturday morning was due to an Eagle Scouts group coming to do a service project for Door of Hope Glendale. I just had to make sure they had everything they needed to do their work. Their project is a huge blessing to us - they planted a bush-fence around the side yard so that we can now do stuff with the kids there without them running out into the street. It looks GREAT, and they also bought us a new patio set and some storage bins for the kids' outdoor toys. As I observed the middle and high school boys, it reminded me of being in groups like that doing service projects... and now I'm on the receiving end, working at a nonprofit. It's a cool turn-around. If it weren't for doing all those mission trips and community service, I probably wouldn't be in this line of work.

First November Post

Today during homework time, I helped one of my seven-year-old boys with his spelling words. (I'll call him Jordan, not his real name, for the sake of his security. It would probably be fine, but it's better to be safe than sorry.) Jordan has been improving in his spelling and reading by leaps and bounds since the beginning of the school year. He began to get a little frustrated when I told him to change something and said, "This is too hard!"

One of our volunteers was nearby and said, "In life you have to do things that are hard."

Jordan replied, "But this isn't life!"

God of This City

From the first time I heard that song, "God of This City," (originally by Bluetree, also recorded by Chris Tomlin) I loved it. It was inspired during a trip to Thailand when the band had the opportunity to play in a bar in the heart of a city there. The city was highly well-known for tourism, prostitution, and homelessness. As the songwriter was ministering, he was moved with the thought that despite the huge magnitude of pain, poverty, and sin God still has His claim on that city and every city in the world. Things aren't yet as He intends them to be, but He is Lord of lords. He is the God of the city, even if the people don't know it. He will remake this earth so that every city is free of the bondage it is currently in.

I often consider that, especially now that I'm living in a city. The city is usually perceived as a place that is God-less. Living so close to a big city like Los Angeles, I feel that godlessness at times. One of my wonderful new friends that I work with shared with me that there exist some groups in the area which target youth and college campuses to bring them into their "churches" by offering love and acceptance but then teach them deceptive philosophy and cut them off from their families through manipulative beliefs. It scared me because these groups are growing quickly and they are deceiving the very future of our nation. But on two separate occasions now as I was driving through at night, the bright lights lighting up the sky that song came on the radio: