I think people might have liked me more than I give myself credit for, but I never felt like I fit in when I was a kid. In elementary school I was pretty insecure and it took me until I was about 13 years old to finally begin to understand how to operate socially. I feel like I have been excited about chasing after the hearts of people since the day I realized I could. Now I just wait for opportunities.
Highschool was magical for me. To be with 2000 people every day was undeniably one of the greatest gifts of my life. What intrigued me the most was how different people are. Sure, everyone is different in personality, but what caught my attention was how people fit into different social categories. People defined themselves by the things they participated in, and the lifestyle they chose to live. I was determined to break those social walls.
My whole life I have found absolute joy in bringing people together. It is my passion and it is my gift. Nothing is more meaningful to me than introducing friends, who wouldn't otherwise know each other, and giving them something common to strive for. I have been fortunate enough to be a part of some really cool experiences, including weekly meals with 30 guests, Sunday night dinners at Old Chicago, and random events including slip and slides, bbq's, glow frisbee, etc. I love having fun. I love having fun with people I love. I love having fun with people I love, having fun with people that I love.
It was a blast to watch a community form around all of this, to watch people band together and go beyond events; they started doing everyday life together. But even this created a clique and left a lot of people out. Some people simply didn't desire to be a part of it, and that is okay.
Soccer wasn't something I was ever interested in growing up, but I got to start playing with middle-school friends at an after school program and decided to start a soccer team for adults. This has become the absolute joy of my life. Sure, soccer is a blast. I love the game more than any other sport (to play). Yes, running is fun and free, and competition is addictive. All of these are reasons to love soccer, but that isn't enough for me.
People are why I love soccer. And while, given my health issues, it may seem unwise for me to play as much as I do, it is the best thing for me. I have gotten to see people come together who would never be in a room together, and laugh, and play, and compete. Not only is everyone in the same room, but the group is fighting for a common cause. Nothing brings people together more than that. Those who would never come to a bbq, will come to a soccer game. I have gotten people to play that I haven't seen since sixth grade. I have witnessed people with very different walks in life, celebrate together, cheer each other on. It is absolutely beautiful. We even have a teammate that I met at a breakfast restaurant that I frequent.
Being on the field is fun, but if you see me on the bench I am just as happy. I love watching. I love sitting in the presence of the people I love, together fighting for something. I love watching us win together, and lose together. So when you hear that I am on four soccer teams don't worry about my health or an addiction problem. It isn't for soccer, it is for people. People are a worthy cause, and I will give all of myself away to see the boundaries of love transcended for the people in my life.
Come watch us play.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Friday, April 1, 2011
Craig, I Want Off Your List
Melissa called me on Friday. I couldn't answer because I was at work. She left a message and told me that she would love to watch my kid on Wednesdays from 6-9, and she left me her number and asked me to call her back. There were a lot of candidates really, from young to old, but all of them were female. The most qualified and top runner for the position was Karissa, who graduated with honors from Berkley, is trilingual, can cook, clean, has great references and agreed to a meeting before hire. I can honestly say, it wasn't a tough decision for me to make in regards to any of them.
You see, I'm not married, I didn't just recently move to California, and I don't have a kid. If I did have a kid I certainly wouldn't pay someone $150 dollars to watch them once a week for three hours. I felt bad that I couldn't hire any of them, because they all wanted the job and Berkley was obviously the best choice. But I can't hire someone for a job that didn't exist.
Melissa was helpful enough to inform me that she got my info on Craigslist, and so I googled "Craigslist (And my phone-number)." I found the article about my wife and kid and moving to long beach. Phone number and name was correct and everything. My phone continued to ring, and eventually died. When I got home from work I plugged it in to find that I had 30 voicemails. About 10 voicemails in, the messages started to sound like this, "Hey, I'm interested in the Ford F-150 you have for sale. Is $250 dollars the correct amount or is that a typo?" The last twenty messages, and about 30 texts were about the truck.
I got a great lead when someone said they were referenced to me by my roommate Lance. A text came in from him from a few hours ago that read: How is your day going? I replied: Interesting that you ask, how is yours? We talked on the phone and he admitted to the Long Beach Babysitting Craigslist ad, saying that he and Flu came up with it. He asked how I found out, and I told him that someone mentioned his name in the truck messages. He told me that he knew I had posted the Truck ad on facebook to get him back. I hadn't. Someone had posted a truck ad on Lance's behalf, and thinking it was me, he made his answering machine say, "Hi you've reached Lance, if you are calling on behalf of the truck please contact Sean at #." He told me he had gotten 80 calls in 90 minutes.
We knew it was Flu, so Lance changed his answering machine to Flu instead of me. Flu eventually called me, asking why he was getting calls about a Truck, and after a long arguing match, he proved to me he didn't post the ad about Lance. Turns out one of Lance's friends did, who Flu and I hardly even know. I laughed a lot that day. It was a very fun April Fools day, to say the least.
I am still getting phone calls about the Truck.
You see, I'm not married, I didn't just recently move to California, and I don't have a kid. If I did have a kid I certainly wouldn't pay someone $150 dollars to watch them once a week for three hours. I felt bad that I couldn't hire any of them, because they all wanted the job and Berkley was obviously the best choice. But I can't hire someone for a job that didn't exist.
Melissa was helpful enough to inform me that she got my info on Craigslist, and so I googled "Craigslist (And my phone-number)." I found the article about my wife and kid and moving to long beach. Phone number and name was correct and everything. My phone continued to ring, and eventually died. When I got home from work I plugged it in to find that I had 30 voicemails. About 10 voicemails in, the messages started to sound like this, "Hey, I'm interested in the Ford F-150 you have for sale. Is $250 dollars the correct amount or is that a typo?" The last twenty messages, and about 30 texts were about the truck.
I got a great lead when someone said they were referenced to me by my roommate Lance. A text came in from him from a few hours ago that read: How is your day going? I replied: Interesting that you ask, how is yours? We talked on the phone and he admitted to the Long Beach Babysitting Craigslist ad, saying that he and Flu came up with it. He asked how I found out, and I told him that someone mentioned his name in the truck messages. He told me that he knew I had posted the Truck ad on facebook to get him back. I hadn't. Someone had posted a truck ad on Lance's behalf, and thinking it was me, he made his answering machine say, "Hi you've reached Lance, if you are calling on behalf of the truck please contact Sean at #." He told me he had gotten 80 calls in 90 minutes.
We knew it was Flu, so Lance changed his answering machine to Flu instead of me. Flu eventually called me, asking why he was getting calls about a Truck, and after a long arguing match, he proved to me he didn't post the ad about Lance. Turns out one of Lance's friends did, who Flu and I hardly even know. I laughed a lot that day. It was a very fun April Fools day, to say the least.
I am still getting phone calls about the Truck.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
I'm on a Bike! Everybody Look at Me!
My car decided it hates me- probably because I haven't washed it for a year, or maybe ever? I don't remember. Either way the fuel pump (I think) quit working, so as punishment I stopped driving it. I really showed 'White Lightning' who is boss. Now I ride a bike.
It is a one speed and doesn't belong to me, but I feel like we are already starting to develop quite the harmony. Today it took me an hour to get to work, but an enjoyable hour none-the-less. I forgot that jeans get caught in the gear. At one point I had to pretend I was stopping to check out some sweet nature, so the lady walking her dog didn't notice that my pants and my bike were embracing. Embarrassing.
I was surprised at the people who said, "Hi," and the people who didn't. The cute old ladies wanted nothing to do with me, but the burly running football player was more than friendly. I nodded at an old man who looked very frightened, only to see frightened change to confused. It's a big world out there, I guess.
The best part of the bike ride was my date. I pulled up to a street, littered with traffic (and trash). Directly opposite me was a cute girl, stopping at the exact same time, right across from me. The EXACT same time!!! I knew then it was fate. It was just too perfect. When it was safe to cross, we made eye contact, and (get this) we ended up in the middle of the street at the exact same time, right beside each other. Same pace, same location, same time. In other words, that is like bike kissing. Could it be considered my first kiss? That depends on how strict you are on the rules. I would argue that it was my first bike kiss, but that is a completely different category altogether. And those bike kisses from preschool certainly don't count!! I didn't get her number but I am certain I will see her again.
Lessons I learned: My backpack was too heavy. Don't bike kiss and tell. Front breaks are a recipe for disaster. Biking in the rain is fun, but dress appropriately. Biking takes longer than driving, plan accordingly. The other cute girl running who apologized for not seeing me, was definitely saying it out of jealousy of the bike kiss.
I learned a lot of lessons, but I can't forget the most important one. When you drive everywhere, you miss it. I think part of the reason we are so removed from life, is because we are too busy speeding past it. There is something so healthy about using your body to travel somewhere. You experience every inch. I'm not saying cars are evil (White Lighting you are evil), but I am saying that I believe life was intended to be experienced. It is hard to do that sometimes in a car. Bike more.
I don't proofread. Offer me grace.
It is a one speed and doesn't belong to me, but I feel like we are already starting to develop quite the harmony. Today it took me an hour to get to work, but an enjoyable hour none-the-less. I forgot that jeans get caught in the gear. At one point I had to pretend I was stopping to check out some sweet nature, so the lady walking her dog didn't notice that my pants and my bike were embracing. Embarrassing.
I was surprised at the people who said, "Hi," and the people who didn't. The cute old ladies wanted nothing to do with me, but the burly running football player was more than friendly. I nodded at an old man who looked very frightened, only to see frightened change to confused. It's a big world out there, I guess.
The best part of the bike ride was my date. I pulled up to a street, littered with traffic (and trash). Directly opposite me was a cute girl, stopping at the exact same time, right across from me. The EXACT same time!!! I knew then it was fate. It was just too perfect. When it was safe to cross, we made eye contact, and (get this) we ended up in the middle of the street at the exact same time, right beside each other. Same pace, same location, same time. In other words, that is like bike kissing. Could it be considered my first kiss? That depends on how strict you are on the rules. I would argue that it was my first bike kiss, but that is a completely different category altogether. And those bike kisses from preschool certainly don't count!! I didn't get her number but I am certain I will see her again.
Lessons I learned: My backpack was too heavy. Don't bike kiss and tell. Front breaks are a recipe for disaster. Biking in the rain is fun, but dress appropriately. Biking takes longer than driving, plan accordingly. The other cute girl running who apologized for not seeing me, was definitely saying it out of jealousy of the bike kiss.
I learned a lot of lessons, but I can't forget the most important one. When you drive everywhere, you miss it. I think part of the reason we are so removed from life, is because we are too busy speeding past it. There is something so healthy about using your body to travel somewhere. You experience every inch. I'm not saying cars are evil (White Lighting you are evil), but I am saying that I believe life was intended to be experienced. It is hard to do that sometimes in a car. Bike more.
I don't proofread. Offer me grace.
Empowerment of the People
"When we learn to enjoy and trust the presence of God, we will naturally
turn to that presence in prayer. When the church is no longer teaching
the people how to pray, we could almost say it will have lost its reason
for existence. Prayer is the ultimate empowerment of the people of God,
and that may be why we clerics prefer laws and guilt, though they often
disempower us and make us live in insufficiency and doubt. Prayer,
however, gives us a sense of abundance and connectedness.
An overemphasis on social prayer (i.e. attendance at services where the
clergy happen to be in charge) has left many of our people passive,
without a personal prayer life and comfortable with “handed-down
religion” instead of first-hand experience. We don’t do God any
favors by keeping the people passive and unaware."
-Richard Rohr
Empowerment of the People
"When we learn to enjoy and trust the presence of God, we will naturally
turn to that presence in prayer. When the church is no longer teaching
the people how to pray, we could almost say it will have lost its reason
for existence. Prayer is the ultimate empowerment of the people of God,
and that may be why we clerics prefer laws and guilt, though they often
disempower us and make us live in insufficiency and doubt. Prayer,
however, gives us a sense of abundance and connectedness.
An overemphasis on social prayer (i.e. attendance at services where the
clergy happen to be in charge) has left many of our people passive,
without a personal prayer life and comfortable with “handed-down
religion” instead of first-hand experience. We don’t do God any
favors by keeping the people passive and unaware."
-Richard Rohr
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Lost Them In The Forest
Not doing ministry causes me to struggle with me. I define myself by it, and yes, in an unhealthy way. That is not to say that ministry isn’t a beautiful, great, meaningful part of my life. My lack of participation has been more the result of my health, than something of choice.
When you fall out of a routine, any routine, it is easy to forget what was so great about it. When I don’t get to see kids, ministry loses meaning. I hadn’t gotten to spend time with either leaders or kids for a couple of weeks, until yesterday. My heart was instantly reminded why I am called to this.
Here are some stories to illustrate.
At Moore Middle School yesterday I just got to walk around and see all of the kids who I have developed relationships this year. It was great to know that I was missed. Kids came up to me, “SEAN! I haven’t seen you in forever!” Kids love better than me most of the time. Sunday night a middle school student and his dad came to watch Flu and I play soccer. I got to help a girl named Nicole do her math homework. And best of all, there is a girl named Carolina who we always beg to play soccer with us and she never will. It is amazing to me, especially considering how good she is. Yesterday I begged her to play, and since her friend wasn’t there, she did.
The best part of my week, without a doubt, was playing soccer with Carolina. It would have been enough just to see her schooling all the boys, like she normally does, but there was more. Flu and I did everything we could to get her a goal. It was fun passing back and forth with Flu to distract everyone and then giving the wide open ball to Carolina. She hit the post about four times, and things weren’t looking good. We had about 5 minutes left to play and Flu and I told her to stand in front of the goal. We would feed her to ball, she would shoot, it wouldn’t go in, Flu and I would go retrieve the ball, and it would start all over again. Finally, she rocketed a shot into the goal with her left foot. Flu and I freaked out in celebration. Then Flu announced last goal wins, we got her the ball and she yet again put it in the net. Flu and I ended up on the ground, making screaming noises in celebration while Carolina giggled. Probably one of the best moments of my life.
Sometimes we get lost in the forest. Moments like these are my bread crumbs, so that I don’t forget where I came from. And while most would use bread crumbs to get them back home, I use them to remember why I set out in the first place.
The Creative Me
A few things to accomplish this year:
Making my own soda
Drawing a picture
Roommate Board Game Creation
Have a blog (check)
I'm starting simple. Like a new years resolution you can't set yourself up for failure. If I accomplish these, then I will find some new ones.
Making my own soda
Drawing a picture
Roommate Board Game Creation
Have a blog (check)
I'm starting simple. Like a new years resolution you can't set yourself up for failure. If I accomplish these, then I will find some new ones.
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