Katie was telling me that Kenneth always said that if everybody would just forget about the concept of ‘mine’ there would be so much harmony in the world. Think about it- If nothing was mine I could share it with everyone who needed it. whatever ‘it’ is. That’s such a beautiful concept. Also, nothing has ever been ‘ours’ to begin with. Everything we have is from God. This computer I’m typing on- God gave me, The guitar you play- God gave you, the shirt you and i are wearing- God gave us. I want to share what God gives me with everyone- no more ‘mine’.

Kristi and Kenneth have taught me a lot with out even knowing it. They have a beautiful relationship that I never knew could exist. They work together on EVERY SINGLE THING in their lives. everything. They are amazing parents- i have never wanted to have children before now- i have never met such sweet children that knew so much about God and Love. When i get the chance, i pretty much just take in every single thing they do and try to learn it, because, literally, everything they do is of God. I have never seen anything like it and it makes me so happy.

Also, they have nothing. well, they did have things, but they sold it all to raise money for Jesus Cares orphanage in Uganda. The building will take about $20,000 to complete and in the meantime, kids are living on the street. Their main goal right now is to get that orphanage built and move to Uganda. anyway, today they sold their furniture in their living room to help raise the money. now they just sit with pillows on the floor. They have six people living in a two (small) bedroom, one bathroom house with no furniture and they’re the happiest, most loving, compassionate people i have ever met in my life and I want to be just like that. To not be tied to material possessions. We (Americans) have such an abundance…well, most of us…I mean, think about how many items of clothing we all own. even if we just have 2 pairs of jeans, and 5 t-shirts- that is an abundance compared to some who only have a shirt or only pants to wear every single day. It almost makes me sick thinking about how our minds have been conformed to believe that we need so much- so many clothes, so many gadgets, so much…just stuff- when really we don’t need all that ‘stuff’ to do what God has planned for us- and isn’t that the main goal, anyway? just some thoughts. 

I have learned to love learning here. One of my new friends, Katie (she works at Feed My Sheep- the place for the homeless, and Kenneth, Kristi’s husband, does too), taught me that. She teaches me new things every day, but i don’t think she knows it. She teaches me a lot of what Kenneth and Kristi have taught me about material possessions, but in a different way. She has such a deep compassion for the poor and the overlooked it amazes me. I want her passion- i know i have it, i just can’t figure out what it’s for. I think it’s becoming increasingly more clear that it’s for people- although, i think i knew that all along. Katie has such a beautiful heart. I cannot explain to you what she has taught me exactly, but i know it’s beautiful, and I pray to have as much passion and compassion as she has.

the walls are COVERED with prayers, paintings, chalk, drawings, praises. on all the walls, the door and the ceiling. The people here amaze me with how much they focus on prayer. Like it is their world and it’s probably one of the most beautiful and hopeful things I have ever seen. People younger than me spend hours in the prayer room, just hanging out with God. It’s abnormal for people to go to church here, so I think that’s why they depend on prayer sooo much, and I feel like auburn should be the same way. It’s fairly normal for people in the South to go to church right, so think about what could happen if we were as dependent on prayer as the people here? AMAZING things could happen and it makes me so excited just thinking about it. !!!!! They had an event called 24/10 where at least one person was in the prayer room each hour of the day for ten days straight. Why can’t we do the same thing?

Beautiful People:

Chloe The Leader: Chloe is not homeless. She is 18. She just graduated high school and she is so in love with God and isn’t afraid to show it. I want to be like Chloe The Leader.

I like to make people feel comfortable. the more comfortable they are the more comfortable i am. When I ask people things like “how are you?” i really really want to know how you are. when I ask how a person feels about something, I want to know how they truly feel: if they’re feeling unsure, uncomfortable, scared, happy, brave- tell me how you feel ( unless you don’t want to. in that case, say no thanks, kristin, i’d rather not)- if you know me well enough, you know that if i ask how you feel or what you’re thinking, and you say “fine” or “nothing” I always ask again- because no one ever feels just fine, or is thinking about nothing. Just want you guys to know, i guess.

Cooter The Mayor of the Mountain- The cutest old man I have ever met in my life. He camps behind Wal-Mart, a little ways up the mountain. He’s so funny and genuine. And the funny thing is– he doesn’t even have to be homeless anymore. He Could afford rent somewhere, he just chooses his lifestyle because he loves it and his friends are his family. He also got in a fight with the mountain he lives on when he was drunk– the mountain won. Poor thing had a huge cut on his face. He didn’t mind.

Todd The Dreamer- He loves Colorado in the summer. He’s from Texas but has been coming here for 5 summers or so. He has big dreams. Like going to Alaska. And riding his bicycle from Colorado to Texas. He’ll do them one day.

Thomas The Silent- He loves danger. The more dangerous the better he always says. He camps in one of the roughest parts of the Mountain. Bears have eaten his tent and mountain lions roam too close. He’s brave, and although he comes off as a little rough around the edges, I know he has a good heart.

Matt The Drinker- He had 8 beers before 1 o’ clock this afternoon. He had 10 more to go in his bag. He just really loves to have fun. He camps where most of the others camp and he makes his own wine there. He’s generous- he shares all his alcohol and his tobacco. He’s probably swimming in the river right now.

Rebecca The Great- She shares everything when she has nothing. What more can I say.

Victor The Reader- He hardly drinks. He’s kind. He reads many books. He has a big heart and it’s overflowing.

Paul the Intelligent- One of the smartest men I have ever met. Also, the nicest, Probably.

These are beautiful people.

1) Get on a plane and go back to auburn.

2) Get on the train and go to Boulder

3) ….

as i am seriously contemplating going to Boulder for a while, a girl walks up to me and asks me if i’m kristin. YES! some one did know to pick me up. Her name is Katie, she’s 28, and freaking awesome. It was like an instant connection with us. We just started talking like we had been long-time friends. She’s really chilled out and and says things like, “how’s your hunger meter? you good?” to ask if i’m hungry. we’re a lot alike.

So yeah, of course i’m thinking that this is definitely off to a good start. 

On the one and a half hour drive to Gleenwood Springs, CO she tells me a tiny bit of what i’ll be doing for the next 6 weeks. Katie works for a ministry called Feed My Sheep. It’s a day shelter for the homeless, where they can come shower, do laundry, and eat. Her job is to basically hang out with drunk homeless old men, and it’s amazing. I’ll be working there, and also for a series of house churches called River Churches- which i still know nothing about.

We get to this amazing little town. The shelter is downtown in a basement of a building, and there’s shops and coffee houses and even a hostel right across the street. I’m in love. 

We walk down the stairs to the basement and the the homeless fill the room. most of them are men but there were a few women. They seemed really excited that i was there, and I was excited to be there. A lot of them just stayed to eat and shower, but a few stayed and hung out until we closed for the night. Just in the few hours i was there, I learned so much. I learned that these people are smart. Really smart. They are not homeless just because they gave up or are lazy. Something happened to them. Maybe something unexpected, but it wasn’t because they were lazy or unintelligent at all. That is not to say that some of them didn’t make some wrong choices because some of them did. But they’re trying and living and not giving up. They just need a little help at the moment, and that’s alright. We all need a little help sometimes.

Kenneth and Kristi.

These are the people i’m staying with until tuesday. They are incredible. They are very young- 29 and 28- they have four little children – Nevaeh, Ezra, Zion, and Israel. They are so in love with each other and with God. When I picture the perfect relationship, from now on, I will think of them. I can’t even put into words how beautiful their lives and their families are. 

We just sat in their living room with two guitars, a djembe, and a violin and sang songs to God for hours.

At the beginning of the summer, I wasn’t sure how much fun staying in Auburn would be, and at first, it wasn’t any fun at all. Unexpectedly, everything changed. I met some AMAZING people and made new friends that love each other and love God. It was really beautiful. It reminded me of when the bffs- ashli, jimmy, peter, zach, taylor, jenn, and I- were together constantly. It was almost that level of comfort, which was good because I hadn’t felt that in a long time. I cannot even begin to explain how much my new friends mean to me already. It’s like that feeling of security, because i know that i can trust them. It’s also love. i can feel it flowing from them, and it makes me happy.

To tell you the truth, I was a little bummed that i’m leaving all these amazing people in Auburn to go to Colorado for the rest of the summer, but when i was talking to God about it, He made a good point. He told me that all you can do is BE with the people your with during that specific time. ‘Be’ as in: make it count. Make it intentional to be with them and form a relationship. Share love and conversation. That’s all you can do, and if you do that, It’ll be time spent beautifully. No need to be sad about that, right? Definitely not.

I’m writing this in the airport about to get on a plane headed for Denver; literally not knowing who (if anyone) is picking me up in Grand Junction. I honestly do not have a clue what’s in store for me in Colorado. I’m a little scared, but excitement definitely overpowers that  

so, i’m off to Colorado.

Right now. I’m at a coffee shop with Lee and Hannah. I just drank a really sugary drink. I think i have a sugar high because the room is spinning a little and the couch i’m sitting on feels like it’s slanted. Weird.

if anyone reads this i hope that they can comprehend it.

Sometimes I think I am too independent. (the couch is still slanting right now) I think it might not be okay for me to not want to ask people for help/advice because sometimes i really need it, but i feel like other people don’t care or i can just figure it out myself. I like my independence and I like that I can take care of myself and don’t depend on other people, but sometimes i just wish i was that person who always needed somebody beside all the time–also it would be nice to be that person that someone WANTED to be around all the time.

anyway that’s just what i have been thinking about lately.

peace

Anne-marie, Kathleen, Katie, and I went to Anne-Marie’s house in the mountains last weekend. It was good to have sunshine and no phone or internet. Just a chance to free ourselves from the world really. And just take in all the beauty God has given us that we usually overlook. The friends were good. The mountains were good. The strawberries were the best.

We went to pick strawberries in a strawberry field that Saturday. It was honestly the perfect day. The sun was shining, the mountains were almost inspiring, and the strawberry field was like a dream. Kathleen and I were seriously so amazed by the field we literally sat down in the middle of it, ate fresh picked strawberries, and looked at the sky and mountains for a long time. It was strangely overwhelming and beautiful. Not to mention they were definitely the best strawberries I have ever eaten.

We hiked in the woods, pretty much got eaten alive by ticks, and ate lots of delicious food. On Sunday, we went to a place called Crabtree Falls. It was a loooonng hike, with lots of people, but it was gorgeous. As we hiked up the mountain, the falls could constantly be heard and most of the time seen, but we wanted to get to the top. The hike got pretty intense, and lots of pictures were taken, and then we were finally there. The water we perfectly clear and cold, and we could see the mountains for miles.

It was an amazing weekend, and it felt like it lasted a week, but we were only there for two days. I didn’t even care that I couldn’t get on facebook or check my phone and that was wonderful.

I’ve been learning a lot lately. I used to think that life would always be fun and my friends would always be there ( which they will, but in high school they were just there, now you actually have to put yourself out there and just go for it) I’m learning to realize that sometimes, i may have to miss out on fun things because i have a test the next day, which really sucks. but that’s a part of life right? Don’t get me wrong, i do not think everything in life is going to be so hard and dark. I’m just learning to look at the beauty in EVERY situation, no matter what…and i think that’s what happiness is.
Brittany’s blog got me thinking about all the amazing people i met in my first year at auburn. I never thought (although i hoped deeply) that i would have a family there, and i don’t think i even realized it until we put that countdown chain on the bathroom door. it’s amazing how you don’t really have to try that hard at those kinds of things, they just kind of fall into place, and i truly believe that everyone in that little dorm cubby was God given, and I’m so thankful for every single one of them. i met some freaking awesome people and i can’t wait to meet even more next semester.

kathleen- i’m so happy i get to spend another month with you best friend. it wont be the same kind of beautiful as having our whole family there, it’ll just be a different but equal kind, and i love that.

i also love that i still don’t know where i’m going from june 28th- august something. like really, i love the not-knowing-ness. yeah it scares the crap out of me, but excitement runs all over that.
i never knew i would love blogging so much, dude.
i’m glad my family started it too makes it that much better
PEACE HOMES.