I spent most of Tuesday in the kitchen, cooking for the volunteers. For a long time I didn't think that day had anything interesting enough to write about, since I didn't meet anyone who had survived the hurricane or had anything like the experiences I'd had the day before. I did come up with two rules for getting through a day in the kitchen though, and now that I think about it they're not bad ideas for the other days either. Here they are:
1. Pray for a servant's heart.
2. The best you can do is all you can do.
Overall, although it was a completely different day from the day before, it was just as rewarding in its own way.

In case you're wondering what it's like to stay here at the center, it sort of reminds me of summer camp. There isn't much privacy but there's always something to do and plenty of people to talk to. Lights out is allegedly at 10 pm, but it seems to have gotten looser every night. In fact, I'm flagrantly breaking the rules right now, and I'm not alone in here. There are three showers, one inside and two outside (but those are fully enclosed). The trick is to remember to sign up early the day before if you want a late afternoon or early evening shower. The day I was in the kitchen though, I went in around 9:30 am when all the workers were out and took a marathon shower!

We've gotten to know people this week from all over the country. There are quite a few from PA who are hearing about flooding back home while they are here. It's so hard to see them gathered around the computer looking at their local news on the web. I hope all their families and homes are safe. Meanwhile, at least speaking for myself I have found out things about each of the 21 other people in our group that I might never have known without spending this week with them. People's gifts have appeared in some extraordinary ways, and I suspect that my Sunday mornings back home are going to be a lot richer as a result.

I'm grateful to have gotten the chance to go on this trip after such a short time in this church, and I hope that everyone reading seriously considers doing something like this. It's impossible to describe the experience and all its rewards sufficiently for anyone to really understand, but they are there. Even the rough parts of the trip have truly been growing experiences for me. If you want to know anything at all about what it's like to come down here, please just ask.

/Ann