And then there was one......

As of this morning I am now the sole resident of the Yellow House, well, sort of. This has definitely been a season of change with many staff ending their committments here and moving on to other things. Jon and Emily left last Friday. Jon will be attending grad school in Philadelphia and Emily will be living in Lancaster, PA where she is still waiting to hear about a job. Please pray that God will provide for her exactly what she needs, as I know he will. I already miss the laughter shared with these two and keep expecting to see Emily at the office one of these days.

Next was Ms. Jeri and adopted Yellow House resident Mishona. These two left yesterday morning. Ms. Jeri has been our cook for two seasons but has felt God calling her to be closer to her grandkids and family in Wisconsin. It is already strange to have her gone as she seems to have been the one constant. There will be no more feeding animals, sudden outbursts during prayer or late nights watching Law & Order or goofy movies. Mishona stayed on the Northshore most of the time, but was a frequent guest and sometimes resident at the Yellow House. She and Ms. Jeri are on a roadtrip to Dallas and Denver and will then be heading back to drop Mishona in Illinois before Ms. Jeri heads to Wisconsin.

And then Daniel left this morning. He has been the expert packer as people begin to leave and precisely packed his van as well. He will be missed for his sense of humor and often rolling eyes.

And then there's me. I will be leaving tomorrow for a long roadtrip home to Iowa, about which I am very excited. I am welcoming the challenge of driving 16 hours by myself and I am also looking forward to 16 hours to be alone and begin to process all of the changes as of late. As many of you know or have read, 2007 had one word "change." I am still processing through many of the losses of last year and have now added several more losses to the list. While they are not life and death losses, I am losing routines, friends and familiarity. When I return to New Orleans June 3, everything will be different.

Our summer interns arrive May 30 and soon thereafter we begin hosting teams of high school students which is a totally different environment from our usual work teams. All of the staff that I interacted with on a regular basis in things outisde of the office will be gone and it will be unearthly hot. Even with all the change, I wouldn't trade this next year for the world. I love this city. I love this neighborhood. I love this ministry. And I love that God has placed me here for such a time as this.

Please pray for adjustment to these changes and the strength to continue the hard work of making new friends as staff and teams change. Please pray for safe travel for all those who have left and for me as I head to Iowa. And please pray for this ministry as we continue to work to create a neighborhood where kids can ride their bikes.