Thirty-second day of Lent: Cooking experiences, pets, fermented horse's milk and two small women's shoes

3/30

We’re ready to have a meeting with Melissa around her booking proposal but Antonia and Wesley are blocking the door. Again, an apartment’s load of stuff around them. It's becoming a serious problem. I’ve spoken with Reachout about them, but its complicated. Very hard to get a place for a couple. Would be easier if they were married or at least domestic partnered. I talk to Wesley about this. They had the papers but she lost them...he even tried breaking up with her to make it easier but...I have a meeting to get to...

Melissa and her partners are there. And John H. And Jamie. We walk through the whole proposal. Financials, programming, etc.  John as usual is blunt and uncensored. I’m wondering how Jamie will react. She’s impressed by their youth , their enthusiasm, thier willingness to take risks. Positive.

While we’re waiting, I see Elizabeth walk in and upstairs to meet with the Occupiers. She’s brought their portraits for them to see. When I see her going back out again, I go out and talk with her. She’ll be coming back next week to take more portraits. 

Rafael is pleased with the way everything worked out last night with Wesyt and Sekou. Jane and Ingrid and Tia are happy too. We’re waiting to see Tia’s picture with Cornel West. We allow ourselves to bask a little in the glow of a good night, even if it was a wash financially. Story of our lives.

A woman comes in  to see Leila’s art show, but it’s already come down. She leaves disappointed.A casualty of a difficult week. 

Mim has brought lunch again. She takes really good care of us. I’ve drawn up a list of the overwhelming challenges now facing us. We at least take  a shot naming some priorities. A few short term plans. 

Hope puts in several hours working on cleaning things up.  

Jason, faithful as always, comes by to leave his tithe. Part of who he is, even when working on Sunday morning, he wants to respect the church. Rose reports some stomach virus running around. Deacon James comes in. We know he’s been struggling with chemo. He looks thin, but with his goatee, and new teeth, quite distinguished.

We’ve got a congregational dinner. Just to get to know each other  better. It’s the session. And John.And Berik. And Jamie. And Stephen S. A good gathering. We talk about cooking experiences. Pets. The power of Kazakh fermented horse milk, which maybe combines several categories. There is warmth. Laughter. I wanted to go to Tracy’s celebration of women in Chinatown, but this is important. A step in strenghtening the bonds of our members. 

There were two women’s shoes left on the steps in the afternoon. They were still there a night.