I started my long trek a few weeks back and my first stop was Beaver Falls (The Falls is what I like to refer it as). The Falls has a special place in my heart because I gained a new appreciation for education and learning there. I was challenged by professors in the classroom and challenged in my work in higher education by colleagues and students.
My stop to the Falls was kind of a last minute addition, but the main purpose was to see one my best friends from Grad School Ryan get married. I don't think I would have survived my first year of Grad School without Ryan. We use to go into Pittsburgh, smoke cigars and have great conversations. I'm so excited for him and Missy as they start their new life together. Blessings to you guys!
During my visit, I got to catch up with old friends and see many people that I love and care for, go to a Pirates Game, grab a meal at Mario's, Yama, Kelly's and the Backdoor (All must haves in the Beaver Cahntwy). It was a great start to the road trip.
From the Falls I headed down to North Carolina. This was the one part of the trip where I had a few friends with me in the car, Jessie and Nolan. The drive down to Raleigh was one of my many favorite parts of the trip because I got to catch up with both of them and talk about Higher Ed (Nol is in grad school at NC State and working as an RD).
I arrived at Duke and jumped head first into one of the most intense conferences I've ever been to. I'm pretty introverted and it is very taxing for me to meet new people. I knew no one at this conference and the days were long but very rich. Each day was filled with deep discussions about the broken world and how we were trying to fix it through our different callings of church planting, non-profit, NGO's, higher education the list could go on.
Shown here are a couple of sweet people I got to meet at this conference. Robyn is a public speaker and runs her own company on Racial Reconciliation and Diversity. Jae runs a Reconciliation organization in Korea and runs workshops throughout Asia. We all connected because we were all Korean, but had totally different backgrounds and upbringings. I am Korean but was born and raised in the US. Robyn was born in Korea but was adopted by Dutch-Americans in Michigan, Jae was born and raised in Korea. It reminded us about how we can't just brush a stroke of stereotypes when coming across a person. We all have very unique individual stories in which God is at the foundation.
One of the biggest things I took away from the Duke conference was that we are called to reconcile everyday. No matter what you do for work or what situation you're in, the act of love and reconciliation is needed in everything, EVERYTHING.
From North Carolina I headed up to Charlottesville, Virginia (The Ville). I always love going to the Ville because there are SO many people that I love there. I stayed at my old mentor's house which is one of my favorite places to stay in the world. They live on Lake Monticello and have a loft that has a beautiful view of the lake. In the morning the sun shines through the windows, and you wake up to a view of the fog as it rolls off the water (ahhhhh). Not to mention Greg and Nance are some of the most hospitable people ever. In the Ville I got to have several meals with awesome friends at The Continental Divide and Bel-Air Market and attend church at Trinity Pres.
Check out Greg's classic 55 Ford F-150. Wow....
The Ville was a place of tremendous growth for me. I learned about the concept of time, and how it is not mine, but ultimately time is God's and we should use each moment to seek to glorify him. The Ville was also the place were I realized my calling and vocation in higher education.
Wow this post is long...I will continue my 2nd part of the journey in another entry.
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