I have never been one to really care about my birthday, but this year I felt more celebrated then ever. It was actually quite enjoyable and did my ego well (or maybe not so good...if it was already too big). On Friday night we have our youth program and during my talk I mentioned that my birthday was tomorrow and there was a huge cheer from the crowd (I didn't even think they listened during my talks). Saturday, Nicky and I both got to sleep in because the kids were at my parents, then we went out for breakfast, came back home and had lunch with Nicky's parents who had just returned from Israel...it was so cool to hear what they got to do there, and to sense how much they really enjoyed it. Someday I want to go there myself! They left me a very awesome present, then I got to have a nap before we went out for supper. Having a sleep-in and a nap in the same day...that is like my ideal day! Then we went out to dinner and a movie with our friends Colin and Jodene (it was Jod's birthday on the 3rd - and we often get to celebrate together). We went to Hu's (an asian restaurant) and then to see U2 3D at the IMAX. That was a great time, I will have to post about that another day. After that we went out for coffee and closed down two different places. That day I also received a whole whack load of emails, facebook messages and phone calls. Sunday, I had another party at my parents with my Winnipeg family, and then on today (Tuesday) I was sitting in the office and all of the sudden a bunch of people are singing happy birthday to me and offering me the greatest cake ever...I don't know what you would call it but it was meringue, whipped cream, strawberries, blueberries and kiwi, mmmmmmmmm. I don't think my birthday has ever been recognized in this way, you all better be careful, I might get used to this!
I have been thinking quite a lot about homelessness (over the last two years especially) and have come to all kinds of conclusions about myself and the things that I (and the church) need to do in order to help people who are in that situation. I have been involved in a few organizations who work with homeless people and met with many people to discuss what I/we should be doing to help. I finally discovered something very important that I can do right now. I am reading t his book called Bent Hope which is a really interesting read. The author is a Youth Worker who works with young people who live on the streets in Toronto. He walks the streets and hangs out with them and helps when he can. He basically just tells the stories of his encounters with people and talks a little bit about what he has learned from them. I am loving it! So, I know what I am supposed to do to help homelessness. In his book, pretty much everyone he encounters he mentions how they come from a family situa...
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