I commute to church three mornings a week via BMW (BART, Muni, Walk), which is the subtle payback I get for not having to move myself and my worldly possessions to the beautiful Bay Area like the other Beatitudes Society Fellows did. It's a modern marvel that I can get to St. Cyprian's in 68 minutes using only my feet and a little electricity, and for a host of reasons, I love me some public transit. That said, weird stuff goes down on the 8:10 train to Millbrae and the #31 bus from Powell Street. Yesterday, for instance, the man behind me on the bus howled like a coyote for the duration of his travel. Last night, I got bonked in the face by some guy's armpit - he was taller than me, and trying to reach over my head to hold the railing, and yes, that was just as gross as it sounds like it would be. You can't make this stuff up!
Let me take a tangent here and say this: I am SO AMAZED with you people, you beloved committed life-long members of this church, and those of you who started coming a year ago and keep coming back, and those of you who have come only once or twice. SO amazed. Because most of you come from a long way away! There are so many people in San Francisco (and its surrounding lands) who don't attend church at all, let alone pick one and stick with it, LET ALONE trek all the way from San Mateo before a service on Sunday morning. You are the reason why this church is such a special place, and I stand here today applauding you for showing up, especially if it took a BMW to get you here.
Back to my point: as you might imagine, when I finally arrive at 2097 Turk Street at 9:01 each day, I take a breath and instantly feel deeply settled. Getting to work in this old, quiet church is such a blessing, especially for someone whose brain acts like a pinball (what? distractions? what? where? over there? what?). But that calm didn't last for long yesterday. As I sat down for my weekly meeting with Will and Michael, I looked at the calendar on my laptop and realized that HOLY COW, my fellowship is halfway over! The events and outings I have planned are about to happen! Most of the contacts I need to make for the online directories are, well, contacted! It's almost JULY! It made me remember the immortal words of the great Ferris Bueller:
I think it's time for this pinball-brain to stop and look around for a while.
*
It's been a good week here at St. Cyprian's! I've been part of a number of productive conversations and I am continually feeling more comfortable in the neighborhood. (The baristas at the Starbucks on Fulton & Masonic know my name! Two weeks ago I was just "the girl who works in that one church.") Last Friday I put all of the neighborhood schools, "green" organizations, non-profits, music shops and artists in the community directory, and Will, Michael & I finished the day with chocolate cupcakes that I baked to celebrate that my wedding is exactly a year away. Sunday morning I was late to church due to the unbelievably bad traffic through the city - I totally forgot it was Pride Parade morning! - but I saw the most amazing costumes en route, so it was worth it. The rest of this week has been devoted to preparing for our Green Turk & Lyon L(a)unch. An old friend of mine (we were on the same swim team in Colorado at 9 years old!) works for Pixar, and he volunteered to create our promotional materials, so when I have those images I'll post them here. Tonight, I get to attend the "Global Change: A Spiritual View" seminar at the Palace of Fine Arts Theater. Three of the other Fellows are joining me; I think we'll go out for a pint afterwards and talk about what we heard. It is such a privilege to be a young person in the church these days! The world is changing, and the church is changing, and we have the opportunity to craft it into the body we need it to be. There's a tension between honoring the history of the church and the people who came before us - - - and transforming this institution into something that welcomes and feeds all people. I feel so blessed that I get to live within that.
Happy Thursday! Until next time... - Kelsey
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