5.16.2010
TRUE PURPOSE THRIFT 3:25 PM
My Aunt put us up here in Knoxville. The top of a mountain is a much different place than the suburbs of Miami. It's beautiful.
Outside of banana pudding and eclair pie, Tennessee has been amazing because of this place. True Purpose Recovery is a group that is helping men clean up their lives after the disasters that come with drug and alcohol addiction. Their hearts are so tender. They are thankful. They had to be some of the most genuine people I have ever met in my life. Alot of these guys are coming from tough situations and life threatening addictions. You would expect them to be calloused and hopeless. On the contrary, they seemed to be some of the most pure examples of unconditional love I have ever met in my life.
The thrift store helps fund the recovery program. In the program, all the guys live, eat and work together. They generate the money through the store and jobs, like mowing lawns, and spend the rest of their time learning how to live a more controlled life and growing spiritually.
The guys we got to work with were awesome. Their stories left me in tears. We hope to have footage up soon. We asked one of them what love is. The answer was so genuine. He was one of the most loving people I have met. He told us his story, which included almost losing his life to drugs, doing prison time, and getting shot in both of his legs in a drug deal gone wrong. He described it as a miracle that he was alive and walking today.
He's been through so much and because of it, he was so thankful. He went on about how great it is just to be alive. He looks forward to finishing the recovery program and being the dad he has always wanted to be for his baby boy. He said that just being alive was reason to be happy. He said that even a smile can be loving someone. That day, I saw him greet everyone that came into the store so lovingly. He really cared about people. He said if his smile and his reaching out to the customer could brighten their day, that's all he wanted.
As we left the store, they were so kind to us. They told us that coming their and helping without expecting a thing really touched them. I think they changed me more.
GETTING DOWN TO BUSINESS 2:57 PM
The trip has been amazing. It's only been a few days and i feel like my life has been changed. All the places we've gone to are places I've been before. Its interesting how the mindset we go to a place with changes what happens there. I'm walking the same streets but seeing them in different ways.
Our mindset has been love. Looking for people to help. The people that we've encountered here in Tennessee are changing the way I think.
As we drive along the highway I see every car and I'm trying to think about how that car isn't just a car cluttering the highway. It's a person. It's a mother. It's a son. It's a person with fears, and hopes, and needs, and dreams. Maybe something I do can help them reach their dreams. Maybe something I do can lead them to a Love that could calm their fear.
By the end of this trip I want to stop using the word I. It seems that 90% of my thoughts are about myself. I want to make it the other way around.
In LOVE EACH ONE news, here are our business cards!! :) They are much better than writing the blog name down on scraps of papers like we have had to. The cards feel so nice in the hand. They represent a dream coming into reality. They make me feel like this trip is bigger than us. We are handing them out where ever we can. Every act of love is accompanied by them.
I can't wait to see what the next few days hold. :) <3 Stan
5.15.2010
hippies, fruit, and scooby doo 11:45 PM
its 11:45 and it feels late to me. this is very strange considering my usual "late" is more like... 4am. so many things have been happening, it feels like its been a week or more instead of just 4 days! we've done some really cool things and met some really cool people. hmmm highlights for me:
at His House orphanage on wednesday as we were leaving Carmen, the head of donations there, she said "ok, now go out and win the world." that really stuck in my mind.... the thought of going out and winning the world to love. soon after that we got our bussiness cards... and holding one of those in my hand and feeling the smooth glossiness and reading our mission statement on the back made everything feel so much more real! its crazy that we're doing this! it feels so hippy (which of course i'm totally cool with :P)
another highlight was meeting this boy named caleb today. we clicked automatically. he's 3 years old and he loves scooby doo. we chased each other around the house and hid from ghosts, found burried treasure, and rescued daphne. he took to calling me shaggy.... :P
this morning i read john 15 in my bible (As reccommended to our group by a good friend) which talks about God being a vine and us being branches, a verse that stuck out a lot to me was 4, which says, "remain in me, and i will remain in you. no branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me." that really spoke to my spirit because i know i havent been reading my bible enough or meditating enough on God's word. Love is a fruit, and i can't be love; live in walk in act in love, unless i'm remaining in God which means reading his word and spending time talking to him about whats going on and listening to what he says to me.
This trip is going to be so full of growing and stretching! i could say many more things but as i said 25 minutes ago... i'm pretty sleepy :) goodnight mountains, goodnight banana pudding, and goodnight you.
~gingaa
day 3&4!! 8:49 PM
these last few days have been filled with a lot of learning
Friday we drove 14ish hours to get here to Knoxville, TN and it is beauuutiful! I forgot that real green does not exsit in Florida. the trees and mountains and flowers here are lovely to see :)
today we helped out at True Purpose Recovery Super Thrift Store. True Purpose Recovery is a Christian organization that works with men overcoming different addictions. in the program they study the Bible, work to organize and run a thrift store, and work different construction jobs to make money while in the program. they are doing some great things and helping a lot of guys get free from things that once held them down. Jason and Stan were able to talk with some of the guys there and hear their story. it sounded pretty cool :)
tomorrow we're going to explore the city a bit more and then move over to Nashville monday. I think theres going to be some great opportunities to help there with the flood relief that's going on.
like I said these last few days have been a big learning experience. I've really be reevaluating how I act towards people in my daily life and how I can better show love always.
<3 emilyy
5.13.2010
day 1 & 2 !! 9:39 PM
it has officially started :DDD !!!!
it's been a great first few days and it's been super awesome to see our vision for this trip become a reality. it's hard to believe it's been two-ish years since Ginger and I first started talking about traveling around the country talking to people about love and showing love to others.
and now it's happening :)
yesterday we stuck up our first LoveEachOne poster at Starbucks! and prepared for the journey ahead.
today we were in Miami, Florida working with an orphanage called His House. they do some great work here and are currently preparing to house orphans coming from Haiti. we borrowed a uhaul and a truck to move some donations that they weren't able to take and moved other various things for around the orphanage. we really enjoyed meeting and working with the staff there :)
todays been a good day. tomorrow we are off early early to get to Tennessee !!
i am so thankful for this day the Lord has made and all the things and people that we have yet to meet and talk to. but i gotta runnn... grab some milk to drink with the lovely birthday cake provided for Jason's birthday today.
happyhappybirthday mista j :)
<3 emilyy
