a novel

This semester I am studying in Washington, DC with the Washington Community Scholars Center out of Eastern Mennonite University.    We don’t just live in DC, or just work in DC, we study being there. Part of the purpose of the WCSC program is to combine the lens of learning with that of urban living and service. We are encouraged to look around at the city and our experience with a critical, curious eye – to ask questions and to delve into the complexity of their non-answers.  For one of our classes we are encouraged to explore the dynamic of faith in an urban setting. Each of us chose a local faith community to visit with and research. The goal was to see how their world view interacts with the community in which they live.   And so a few Sundays this semester I found myself gathering in silence at a Quaker meeting across town. Always inspired by the way in which the Religious Society of Friends, also known as the Quakers, are politically and sociall...

It’s humbling to admit to reality, most certainly when that reality is winter – a spiritual and emotional winter.  I have always struggled with winter – in Winnipeg, when it got cold I would hunker down, disengage with the world, and wait for thaw. I have watched others bundled up in layers, walk out into the blistering cold and then find beauty barren landscape. But when times get tough and stepping out into the world could mean frost burn (emotional or physical), I have chosen to escape reality. A good fantasy novel was my escape throughout high school – lately I chose fantasy television. I miss the good books – it is much more wholesome to cuddle up with a friendly novel than to cuddle up in front of an emotionless computer screen. But to some extent the sentiment is the same: I want a way to disengage. And that seems to be my reality.