Wednesday's Work

Today our tutoring has turned a corner, there is more connection, friendship, and understanding. It is amazing how quickly relational bridges can be built. I did some video taping and the kids had a ball doing flips and antics and then watching themselves. Jajuan is a relaxed and easy going guy, but Darryl is a high energy kid who who likes to buck the system and push the limits. I enjoy Jujaun, but I understand Darryl. The highlight from morning tutoring was when we where working on drawing a picture of what it might look like if the sun stopped working. All three of us were highly engaged in sketching ice cubes coming out of a faucet. It was a moment of high connection.

As the other days, about four people stayed back to do afternoon tutoring. Tom led another group in finishing up Miss Burn's garage with a second coat. It was a slightly cooler day and we were grateful for this.

I had a group that went back to Miss Smith's house. Alice was there, as well as another grandson, Jess. Alice, after her huge angry scene on Monday, appeared at Miss Smith's new apartment at 3am with a suitcase and an apology. As we worked on final cleanout, she was still angry, but was more accepting of the situation and less volatile. Andrew explained that since age 7, Alice had been in and out of group homes because here mother was in jail or gone often.


One of the newer air conditioners that had been fought over was gone. Most likely sold for drug money. Per Miss Smith's request, I loaded the other three in my trailer to take to the church's "Free Store."

Just as we were about to leave, Penny showed up and started yelling about the AC units. I was at the trailer and she demanded, "Are my air conditioners in there?" I said yes. "Open the door and take those out!" I said, "Talk to Andrew." While she stormed over to him, the rest of the group loaded up. She then called the police and was giving our make and plates as I pulled away. Whether there was a response or just my imagination, we saw no less than three cop cars pass us as we were working our way out of the neighborhood.

Our final kid's club was another big hit. We did more face painting. Caleb (Aka Leb, Lebby) Sharpied another shirt or two. It was a little smaller crowd than the night before with some new faces showing up. We did another ridiculous skit. I asked each kid to give me a short line and I put them all together in a song. There was a Playdough "craft" (We made idols) and a short Scripture story and then a squirt gun fight. We closed with giant Pixie sticks, a major hit. Except that I forgot the scissors. It was all delightfully, loud, chaotic, and fun. To children who live often without supervision and limited resources, this free time to be listened to, loved, played with, and treated, is gold. We were touched in the process by their openness and warmth to us.