Week 6 - Time

I apologize for the tardiness of this week's VAP update.  As you may know, we took a camping trip with 24 of the VAP kids to PJ Hoffmaster State Park.  We had a fantastic TIME together.  In fact we have a fantastic time together every Thursday evening when we gather to create art.  During those times, we do much more than create art however, we are also creating community - building relationships with one another - becoming friends.  Without the gift of time, none of what we do would be possible.  Time involves commitment, time involves sacrifice, but time together is so life-giving that the sacrifice it involves becomes obsolete.  It's easy to get carried away with our busy day-to-day lives, and forget that time is what we have especially when we think we don't have any.  Aaron introduced the theme for the night by showing the kids an apple seed and an apple and a flower seed and a flower.  The idea being that it takes time to grow into something fruitful and something beautiful.  Individually and together.  And it's not always easy!

Once again this week we focused on one project for the night - collages.  These weren't just any collages though, they were collages done on old panel board, and had to represent growth.  The kids were instructed to use the bottom half of the panel board to display the roots of a plant, and the top half to display the plant, flower, tree, etc. they wanted to create.  They used fabrics, patterned paper, tissue paper, string, buttons, newspapers, magazines, and other materials and mod-podged the materials to the panel board.  Kids were spelling out words like "hard" and phrases like "takes time" to represent their understanding of what time is and does for relationships.  Maya's collage showed an orange tree in three different stages of growth.  Mary's collage was one big apple tree.  Mikel's collage was of a city with a small plant budding in the midst of all of the buildings.  Their art really showed their understanding of how it takes time to build a community.  I hope many of you will be able to make it to the gallery show in a couple of weeks to meet these artists and let them explain some of their art to you!

Now I know it's not easy to make time in our lives to be together.  Again, that involves sacrifice and commitment.  But when we value people, when we value eachother, the way Jesus valued people when he walked on earth, we grow just like the flowers and the trees.  We learn that it's ok to be inefficient, that life is messy, that just because relationships are hard it doesn't mean they're bad.  And if we persevere, we end up with something beautiful, something that offers a little bit of  relief from the rest of life the way a tree offers shade to the wearied traveler.  Let us take the gift of time and use it the way Jesus did - to love other people.  Love to each of you in the name of our humble Savior who always has time for us.

Love,
Christie (I forgot to sign out of Aaron's account :) )