Friday, May 9, 2008

on getting involved

I had secretly been regretting my recent decision to join the Fellowship & Outreach committee at my church, mostly because, by coincidence, May and June (the first couple of months I've been on the committee) have turned out to be very busy for our committee, and I was hoping for a little less of a time commitment. I had also been secretly dreading tonight's event - a supper to celebrate the seniors in our church, and the first event put on by this committee since I joined up. I had been dreading it for a number of reasons that I won't get into, but primarily, I just wasn't nuts about giving up "my" Friday night. But tonight I changed my tune.

I haven't laughed that hard in a really long time. Although I was part of the group doing all the "work," I think I had more fun than some of our guests! I was both part of the entertainment, and I was entertained. And as our work crew joked around in the kitchen while we cleaned up afterwards, I realized that I knew exactly what I was signing up for when I signed up, and that I'm glad I did. I'm just sorry I lost sight of it for a bit there.

The F&O committee is about reaching out and including everyone in our church family. Our minister aside, I was the youngest person there by a good 20 years, but I felt completely at home with these warm, welcoming people. I actually felt like I was preparing a meal with all my aunts and uncles. We weren't out to raise money tonight, but just to provide a chance for people to connect, have fun,and enjoy an evening out with good food and good fun. And that's what we did. All of us. And once again I was very proud to be a part of this little community I call home. What a great way to spend "my" Friday night! :-)

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