I've got Nothing to Do Today But Smile

The past 2 days with the mission team have been great.  Yesterday Big John led us all over the city and met a bunch of people.  It's was cool to see kids (and leaders) branching out and talking to more and more men and women on the street; a few of them having very emotional encounters with these strangers.
In the evening we went to Kids Club with an organization called Night Light.  Night Light works to rescue women from the sex industry and part of that means prevention. The average age of entry into prostitution in the US is 11-14 years old. So Night Light works with kids to provide them with a loving environment, teach them about Christ, and show them a different type of life that is available to them, apart from gangs, violence, drugs, and prostitution. So we went to an "at risk" neighborhood and hung out with these kids; playing games, worshiping, coloring, just having a great time.  I've gone to Kid's Club quite a few times but it has been about a year. So going back it was nice to see that there are a bunch of the same kids there.  They didn't remember me but I remembered a handful of them.  There is something about playing with kids, especially kids starved for attention that can completely lift your spirit. One girl was a little shy when I tried to talk to her, but would not let me walk away. She held my hands and sat in my lap, just trying to get some affection.
The whole mission team seemed to be enjoying it (especially in contrast to walking in the heat). One girl in particular had been talking earlier in the day about how she wanted to start a program that does basically the same thing, even before she had heard of Night Light. So this mission team decided that they are going to try to start something similar in their city when they go back home and she can help run it! So the evening apparently impacted the kids and their leaders pretty seriously.

Today we started out working at the shelter disinfecting beds. The group really didn't complain, though this wasn't the most fun of tasks, and we got it down quickly. So we had some time to check out the art gallery and chat with the guys on the street before lunch.  Then we hung out at Woodruff for a bit. While we were hanging out, just talking to folks, getting to know them, some men came through handing out tracks that say "if you die tonight are you 100% sure you are going to Heaven?" on the front and then have verses and prayers that well help save you.  It just makes me sad that this is what so many people think this is how to reach people and change lives in some meaningful way.  We saw Ed (and Lucky).  They seem to be doing great and Ed just got all these new supplies to start doing tattoos again.  Eventually Joshua (Six) came by and starting making spoon rings, so he was a hit quickly.  Everyone is drawn to him. You can just tell he is a good guy. Plus he loves the attention and being able to make others happy.  He told us tonight that he knows he is called to encourage others.  For instance, one of the girls later told him about a friend in the hospital, and so he is going to write her a letter, this girl he has never met.  Not exactly the stereotype of a homeless guy.
After Woodruff we went to Centennial Olympic Park, we gave them some instruction and left them behind, with only a time and place to meet us.  We interns enjoyed some dinner and a long walk back, as we stopped and talked to people.  We stopped at the top of Pine and talked with some of the usual suspects.  One woman, who has cussed me out and yelled at me on several occasions has been easing up recently.  We have not been on friendly terms quite yet, but at least not hostile ones.  Well today she took my hand and slipped my spoon ring on her finger.  I knew she already had one but I told her she could keep it. She immediately gave me a huge hug and kiss on the cheek. While I appreciated that the next part is what really made it worth it: she started sharing some of her life with Andrew and me, about her son and husband and bout some of the struggles she has gone through.  We didn't get to talk for long before we had to part ways, but by me reluctantly giving her a simple little ring I was able to communicate with her in a way that I have been hoping and praying for all summer.  So this could just be a momentary turn around, but I will take it.