Next First Friday

Exploring the Heart of Service

Conditions in the world today cry out for our attention and action. The list of issues goes on and on, and our responses can vary from outrage to heartbreak, frustration, fear, confusion, and numbness.  With so much need, we can easily be paralyzed with doubt that anything one person can do will really make a difference.

Questions come up: if I care about the world, where should I even start, what do I want to do, and how do I plug in? Once we are engaged, the questions tap deeper: what qualities of heart am I bringing to my activism or service? How do I keep going when the problems are so huge? Can my actions be fuel for my own heart as well as address the issue at hand? What is the field where my caring and concern arise?

These questions lead us into the heart of action, the spirit underlying our service. On Friday, September 7, we’ll explore some of this terrain with Genny Nelson, co-founder of Sisters of the Road Café.  Over the past twenty-five years, Genny’s work to cultivate an atmosphere of “gentle personalism” at Sisters’ has affected countless individuals and she was recognized with a National Caring Award in 2005.

At First Friday, Genny will talk a little bit about her work with Sisters and their sister program, Crossroads, and explore some of those questions of the heart.  We’ll also take time in small groups to consider our own questions, and our own path of action or service in the world. The discussion will be facilitated by Bill Scheider and Betsy Toll.

Our former First Friday venue is currently unusable, so we will meet this month at the Northwest Neighborhood Cultural Center. No kitchen is available, so we’ll limit our potluck to tea and very simple “finger-style” goodies and treats.

As always, First Friday is open to all. Suggested donations of $5+ for Living Earth are appreciated but everyone is welcome.