I walked from the Greyhound Station because I dropped into Atlanta on the night of Open Door’s Mardi Gras celebration, and, until I called Johnny and told him I was coming, they weren’t expecting me that soon. I got to have some left over gumbo while the party crew, dressed up as clowns and women, did the hokey-pokey. After that I met some folks and got invited to the Ash Wednesday Service the next morning. I wrestled myself out of bed for the 6:30 service, only to go back to bed until soup kitchen circle. First Dick talked about Ash Wednesday, we prayed and then we ate. I was assigned to help Winston in the kitchen, putting away dishes as folks piled in to get some soup. I nearly burned my hands off multiple times. I now hate commercial dishwashers.
A group of women make dinner on Wednesday’s once a month, so I got to eat like a king for dinner that night. After dinner is Medical Clinic, (where doctors, nurses and medical students can come and offer their service and advice to folks off the street), and foot clinic, (where nurses or nurse students or anybody come and give pedicures to folks off the street. I got to help sterilize the equipment for the foot clinic.
Thursday morning circle is at 9:45 so I got up earlier than I wanted for the second day in a row, (and I didn’t get to go back to sleep this time). Nelia about the Transfiguration. Today I was a server, so I would give people napkins and make sure there was grits and coffee on the table. After that we ate and had a discussion about seeing and listening to God, which lead to discussions about other countries and resisting the empire.
Then I had to pack, (while talking to my mommy on the phone), to go to Day Spring (Open Door’s Retreat Spot) to with Johnny, Edward, Marshal and Logan. We crammed into Clifford (A little red pick-up) and drove about two hours north. Day Spring is about 20 acres, complete with a house, a barn and a swamp shed. Marshal and I worked on the dam they’re building to create the swamp, while Johnny and Logan poured the concrete for the ramp to the swamp shed deck. Edward was out and about, in the office and making runs to buy concrete. I got some blisters from shoveling clay and taking it by “Hwheel barruh” to the dam to be spread over compost. It was a fun day of working. Of course, I was last to get out there and help around 11. Marhsal had been working since 7, and Logan and Johnny made it out around 9. So it was a fun half day of working. Then we went out to eat dinner at a local Chinese restaurant where I had some of the best mushu I have ever had, courtesy of Edward. Marshal got a few stares from the somewhat confederate population of Elljay, but it didn’t stop us from having a good time.
Johnny, Logan and I drove back after dinner to Open Door and I left for Koinonia the next morning. Open Door was the biggest Catholic Worker I have ever been to, but full of beautiful people just as the rest of them were. They are committed to serving the poor and the needy as they are able, (and they ARE able, they sometimes get so many donations that they are able to REdonate things elsewhere, like white bread sandwhiches, which they don’t serve), and activism concerning capital punishment, racism, sexism and heterosexism. This makes them a bunch of loving, passionate, beautiful people which were a pleasure to spend a few days with.
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