I'm anxiously preparing for a two-week excursion into the wilderness of the North West United States. During these two weeks, I'll be participating in a three-day camping trip as well as taking classes in orienteering, outdoor survival, physical fitness techniques and training, and leadership skills. All of my travel, food, lodging and equipment is provided. I leave Thursday and return just one week before Christmas.
It's not nearly as exciting as it sounds; I'm going with my Uncle Sam. He's notorious for taking everything too seriously, making everyone get up really early, stay up really late, go for days without showers, shouting loudly over seemingly mundane details, and shamelessly belittling everyone in his sights. Not exactly a vacation. I'm determined to come out on top; sharper, smarter, and ready to face whatever the new year may present.
On the eve of the President announcing his plan for military operations in Afghanistan, and particularly whether there will be a surge of an additional 30,000 - 40,000 troops deployed, I have to believe that I need to absorb as much as I can from this trip. I've been fortunate enough over the last 4 years (5 years in February!), to not spend any time in the Sandbox. I've also been blessed enough to know dozens of people who have done their duty two and three times over.
I trust that God is in control of this situation, and I sincerely believe that He is putting me (or keeping me) exactly where I need to be to fulfill his purpose in my life. I'm not worried. If I go, I go, and God will be sovereign even there. If I stay, I stay, and God has plans for me here.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Passion and Hope
The last few weeks have been busy, encouraging, exhausting, motivating, stressful and exciting. I could (should?) provide an entry to describe all the various things I have going on, but after all of it, I don't have the time or the energy to really give writing the appropriate attention. Just to recap:
I've been volunteering quite a bit with The AIR Foundation lately. For those of you who are unfamiliar, AIR addresses homelessness and addiction through endurance running. Working in cooperation with the Denver Rescue Mission, we use "Activity Inspired Rehabilitation" (AIR) to train men and women in long-term drug and alcohol rehabilitation to finish at least one of two marathons in Denver every year. It's really an amazing program. I'm really excited to be apart of something that I believe is making a difference in peoples' lives. Over the past few weeks, I've been working to finish up the 501(c)(3) application. If we can get non-profit status from the IRS, it will open up dozens of opportunities.
I've also agreed to oversee the volunteer coordination as well as training for the runners and volunteers. We're launching several rather ambitious projects in December and January that, if successful, will lead to a consistent revenue flow to support the programs. The program has so much potential to succeed, we just need to put a few pieces in place. That's become my job - putting pieces in place. It's exciting, and I'm thrilled to be doing something meaningful with my time and skills. It's also a lot of work. Did I mention, I'm still working my full-time job?
My own personal goal for working with AIR is to be able to move to part-time at Dill and Dill and work part-time, as a paid development/fundraising employee, with AIR by June 2010. My work is certainly cut out for me as my first fundraising hurdle is finding money to pay my own salary.
The wrench in the works is that AIR holds two recruiting events every year. The next one is December 8 and I'll be out of town. I recently received orders to spend two weeks in training near Seattle from December 3rd through December 18th. I've been trying to get in to this training course since February 2008. If I don't go now, no matter how bad the timing is, I may not get in for another year. The fact that I'll be away from home for two weeks and return right before Christmas hasn't even sunk in. I'm just concerned about getting everything done today, and every day until December 2.
I've never been one to shy away from excessive activity. I love jam-packed days, busy weekends, and falling into bed exhausted from productivity every night. Whether it's my need to feel important, or whether I just like getting things done, I have to remind myself that sometimes I just need a break.
I am certainly looking forward to having both Thursday and Friday off this week to spend time with my family and just relax. I have a stack of books, a list of movies, and a whole season of Fringe to watch. It's going to be great.
Happy Thanksgiving Friends! I hope you all have a lovely Holiday!
I've been volunteering quite a bit with The AIR Foundation lately. For those of you who are unfamiliar, AIR addresses homelessness and addiction through endurance running. Working in cooperation with the Denver Rescue Mission, we use "Activity Inspired Rehabilitation" (AIR) to train men and women in long-term drug and alcohol rehabilitation to finish at least one of two marathons in Denver every year. It's really an amazing program. I'm really excited to be apart of something that I believe is making a difference in peoples' lives. Over the past few weeks, I've been working to finish up the 501(c)(3) application. If we can get non-profit status from the IRS, it will open up dozens of opportunities.
I've also agreed to oversee the volunteer coordination as well as training for the runners and volunteers. We're launching several rather ambitious projects in December and January that, if successful, will lead to a consistent revenue flow to support the programs. The program has so much potential to succeed, we just need to put a few pieces in place. That's become my job - putting pieces in place. It's exciting, and I'm thrilled to be doing something meaningful with my time and skills. It's also a lot of work. Did I mention, I'm still working my full-time job?
My own personal goal for working with AIR is to be able to move to part-time at Dill and Dill and work part-time, as a paid development/fundraising employee, with AIR by June 2010. My work is certainly cut out for me as my first fundraising hurdle is finding money to pay my own salary.
The wrench in the works is that AIR holds two recruiting events every year. The next one is December 8 and I'll be out of town. I recently received orders to spend two weeks in training near Seattle from December 3rd through December 18th. I've been trying to get in to this training course since February 2008. If I don't go now, no matter how bad the timing is, I may not get in for another year. The fact that I'll be away from home for two weeks and return right before Christmas hasn't even sunk in. I'm just concerned about getting everything done today, and every day until December 2.
I've never been one to shy away from excessive activity. I love jam-packed days, busy weekends, and falling into bed exhausted from productivity every night. Whether it's my need to feel important, or whether I just like getting things done, I have to remind myself that sometimes I just need a break.
I am certainly looking forward to having both Thursday and Friday off this week to spend time with my family and just relax. I have a stack of books, a list of movies, and a whole season of Fringe to watch. It's going to be great.
Happy Thanksgiving Friends! I hope you all have a lovely Holiday!
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