Investing In Others

For the past week I’ve been trying to put together a nice, formal write-up encapsulating our experiences reading at Chesapeake Place’s senior community.

I realized today though, that our times with these lovely people are not formal. Rather, they are an amazing chance to interact with some wonderful people with entertaining life stories and experiences. Our part in the interaction is minimal- all we do is bring a story, read it aloud to them, and ask some interactive questions. Their answers make each meeting priceless.

These people all come from different lives, different backgrounds, and different countries. One woman immigrated from the political unrest in Germany in between the two world wars. Another woman told us what it was like growing up in a large family with a deceased mother and a workaholic father. Yet another woman shared her childhood experiences of living in a Catholic boarding school in Canada.

Our printed, polished, literary short stories by Doyle, O. Henry, and Capote truly pale in comparison to the living, breathing epistles these people share with us. At the same time, it’s heartwarming to watch them listen to what we read- the peaceful, thoughtful expressions on their faces, and the way smiles creep onto their faces during humorous parts. They are so appreciative of us coming once a month to spend time with them, but really, I’m grateful to them for their willingness to open up about their lives.

I never leave Chesapeake Place without a feeling of regret- regret that I can’t spend more time talking with them, and regret that so many people are missing out on opportunities to interact with people like this. Local senior communities are a wealth of stories and experiences just waiting for an audience- why don’t you take an hour or two and invest in these wonderful people? You will never regret it!

Jazzing Things Up… Again!

At our last “book club” meeting, we never actually got around to discussing our book selection. (Let’s just say that once you get our group started on what should be required reading for undergrads, you may never get the conversation back on track!) On a slightly related note, we need a better name for our book club. Every time I hear that phrase I think about beating up books, and that’s not the mental image we want to give people!

So, on February 2nd at 7 pm, we will be meeting on the Library Balcony to officially discuss Donald Miller’s Blue Like Jazz. We picked this book because it is engaging, interesting, and applicable to your life no matter where you are personally.

Blue Like Jazz is subtitled “nonreligious thoughts on Christian spirituality”, and this is exactly what it is. The book is a random collection on Miller’s journey from traditional religion, through his doubts and disbelief, to his revelation on what spirituality looks like in everyday life. He is practical, funny, and random. However, just when you think that you’ve figured him out, he throws something at you that makes you think about the way you live your life, and challenges you to make religion more real in the day to day.

If you don’t get the book read by the time we meet, please still come! You can also read the chapters in any order you wish- they are mostly independent of each other. Just enjoy the reading process, do as much as fits into your schedule, and then join us to share your thoughts and opinions. Oh yes, and there will be snacks! We look forward to seeing you there.

Any questions or comments? Leave them here, or feel free to email us at typeoh (at) regent (dot) edu!

It’s Been A Long, Long Time

I readily admit that things have been quite quiet in here for the past few days…weeks…. erm, months even. Perhaps the most challenging thing about running a student organization is that you have, well, school with which to deal. Even the best of intentions to just write little blog posts go by the wayside in favour of funneling all your effort into the writing that will affect your grades.

Last semester, I had classes where I was writing some 10,000 words per week. It’s a lot of writing for an undergrad, even for an English major. My personal belief is that we are alloted so many words per day, and how we spend them is up to us. Some people talk a lot, some people write a lot, and some people just let their potential words go to waste. Those weeks where I poured out thousands of words, I wasn’t wasting any of my alloted words. I measured what I wrote, I avoided talking about frivolous things, I tried to make the best use of my word allotment. It felt good.

This semester, the English Club is going to have an exciting opportunity for YOU to make the most of your word allotment- a chance for you to show off your writing and creativity. I am very excited about this project, so keep checking back here for more details on what is to come!

We have other events and fun things coming up, and I resolve that we will keep this little blog more active. Be blessed, my friends!