LABOR DAY RIDE....

.... or stranded on the Natchez Trace?

Well, Annie and I were ready for a fun filled day on the scooter heading down the Natchez Trace but we ended up stuck on the side of Natchez with what has turned out to be a problem with the carburetor. Not all was lost though. As we were stuck on the side of the road trying to come up with a game plan we encountered angels... or at least a huge dose of southern hospitality.

First, a guy named Dallas and his girlfriend stopped to see if we needed any help. It turned out that he worked on bikes. He hung out for the better part of two hours working on the bike. In the end though he couldn't get it working so we piled into the open trunk of his sports car and he took us to a gas station.

We then waited for a tow truck to come. When it did we met Jason, the driver. He not only towed us but spent about an hour working on the scooter. He determined that the problem was in the carburetor. So now he's coming over tomorrow to work on it.

So although we didn't get to make it down the Natchez like we planned, we did get a lesson on how to treat people- take time out in your life to help others, and when you are on the receiving end count your blessings.

The day wasn't totally shot either. We did get to eat lunch at one of the best burger joints- Bobby's Dairy Dip. YUMMM!!

PEACE,
J.

monday night's group

so last night at the davidson county court ordered group i led a session on speaking out against injustice. most if not all of the boys in this group live in urban settings, are active in gang activity and are in this group because they have a very violent background.

last week we watched a documentary on the children's march- a significant event within the civil rights movement. so this week i shared artists who have used their musuc to speak out against injustice. i used mos def, dave matthews, common, and john mayer. this went over really well and the boys opened up in very cool ways talking about their lives.

i then invited them to imagine they were artists who had an audience. if they were able to say anything about "their world around them" what would they say? they could write lyrics, draw it, create a collage or sculpt with clay. i was amazed and proud at what they came up with.

so i am sharing a few here with you.

(IMAGE 1) this first drawing struck me as it shows a world divided- one clean and natural, full of life. the other side with a house falling apart.

(IMAGE 2) this drawing was interesting in how the house was big enough for everone to live together and everyone in the picture were different colors and sizes or ages.

(IMAGE 3) this lyric struck me the most. annie read it to me as we were heading to vandy campus this morning. it says:
hey listen up man, tell me something right now,
they dyin' everyday, and dey frownin' so,
they know i'm hard and wanna help them,
but lord forgive me for i have sinned....

the world around us is crumblin'
they fallin' and tumblin'

(IMAGE 4) this collage came from a student who is from panama. he hardly ever talks. i wondered how much he is taking in. apparently more than i thought...

(IMAGE 5) i wasnt sure what this student was trying to say, maybe something about the environment, maybe something about the direction our culture is going....

(IMAGES 6 and 7): two halves of one collage. I really liked the images he used.

i can only hope that i will have more nights like last night. it was really special.

saturday's fun pt1

oh the people at the thrift store loved me and annie. in fact we werehaving such a fun time we stayed till they closed.one of the clerks said we were cute playing dress up. i would have to agree.

this is probably what we will wear when we are old and retired. or maybe if we get a job working at a hot dog stand.

is it naughty to try on clothes in the same dressing room? nahhhh. but definitely fun. i'm sure the clerks thought we were crazy!

e bought jenga at the thrift store and annie kicked my tail twice. blahhhh!

what a great way to spend a saturday.

FRIDAY'S FUN PT 1

i just finished up presenting at the "choose respect upperland cumberland region rape prevention education conference".

it was cool. there were high school counselors, mental health workers and almost 100 teenagers present. i was most excited about the students there. they were invited there in hopes that they will return to their schools to start peer counseling groups.

i led two sessions. one session was on domestic violence and anger. after a short break we spent the remainder of the time on healthy relationships and sexual respect. it went really well. my presentation is posted on the blog as well for anyone interested.

now i'm about to leave cookeville, hit the road and head back to nashville.

thursday night fun...

yup... its 9:45pm and this how the night is going down. annie is writing a paper for a law class and I am preparing for a training event tomorrow. but more on that tomorrow. now its back to work.

test....