Yes I know its about time! I will be sending out my fall newsletter within the next week so if you would like to recieve one please email me your current mailing address. This newsletter will contain a first ever DVD update! I'm really excited to send you each some mail but I cant do it without you. So run to your email editors and hit compose, RIGHT NOW! Send your mailling info to lindsay.arbour@gmail.com and you will get this new and exciting package.
I would love to tell you more about what I've been up to but that would just ruin the whole idea of me sending you mail now wouldn't it!
Happy Holloween!
BElla
Hello everyone...
So I'm home for the weekend, hurray for Thanksgiving! Today camp was so fun, but it has been fun for the past two weeks too.
I know I'm doing something right when my kids come to camp early looking through the fridge for milk or offering to peel potatoes for dinner. It may seem like an odd way to measure the success of a ministry, but for me this is what it's all about. When my kids come to camp they feel at home. They are safe and happy, what more can we want for any child? Oh and they're learning too. These past two weeks they learned about transparent, translucent, and opaque objects, Claude Monet, and the Egyptians. They worked their way through a maze by answering math problems correctly, and they read to each other about a little girl from the Arctic and her "Very Last First Time" ice fishing.
They are receiving "most improved attitude" awards and getting As and A+s on math tests. In Kids Church we learned about prayer. We learned that we can pray to God because we have a relationship with him. The kids started worshiping each day in our very own kids church (room dividers with a colourful parachute for a roof). They come in and turn on a DVD with worship music and lyrics on it and sing along while I get the lesson organized. We learned what 'amen' means, and replaced it with a loud YES! to make prayer time more real.
Sometimes my job is really hard (OK often its really hard), and there seems to be this never ending list of things I don't know how or when to do. But when I'm with these kids all of those worries and frustrations just seem to fade away and I realize why I'm still here. To love them.
Thank you so much to everyone who supports me, whether through prayer, or financially. The ministry you are supporting really is making a difference and I couldn't do what I do without you. I'm adding a link on the right hand side of this page for anyone who would like to help support what I do. The only way I can continue the work I am doing is through the generous support of those who believe in this ministry and would like to see it continue. If you would like more information about how you can support me please contact me by clicking here.
thank you,
BElla
Hello Everyone,
There is so much going on I don't know where to begin. As many of you know I recently moved to a house near Lakeshore. Its excellent because its only a few blocks from the water and when I ride the streetcar on my way to work I can look out over the lake. It's beautiful. Maybe I will take some pictures of it for you. So we have the two top floors of a house all to ourselves, its great. Its all newly renovated and has lots of big windows. Chalak moves in this weekend and Uncle Stephen is helping me move the rest of my stuff too. I realized when I was moving that I could start my own library. I had 11 boxes of books!! How insane is that? They aren't on the many bookshelves yet but they will be soon.
We found a lot of the furniture we needed for free on websites like craigslist and freecycle. The only thing we haven't recieved yet (because we're waiting for people to move) is our new couch. So I'm siting on the floor right now. :)
In other news. It was my first week of After School Program this week. It's always nice to have the kiddies back in the building and they are as entertaining as ever. The stations are working beautifully and the points system really gets them working hard. I have 2 guys volunteering this year who used to be kids in the program themselves and its really amazing to see them working with the boys helping them with their homework and their stations, and playing ball of course.
I've decided for my next newsletter I'm going to write about "if you could see what I see". I want to tell you some stories of things I see every day that most people would never know about. I'm pretty excited about it so hopefully it will turn out ok.
I think that is all for today, I need to go plan dinner for the kids for tonight.
Thanks for reading,
BElla
Hey Everyone!
So it's back to school time again and I'm really excited. I actually love this time of year because all my pens still work! (if you know me you understand!) My after-school program begins in just a few weeks and I came up with a plan as I woke up this morning (... for some reason I get all my good ideas when I'm half asleep ... then again maybe they just seem like really good ideas because I'm half asleep) I'm hoping to work with educational stations this year where kids will have two weeks (tues-thurs only) to complete 5 stations (so 1 per day + 1 bonus). Each station will have an activity pertaining to a subject (math, science, reading, art, and history). There will also be bonus activities at each station so kids who have completed their stations can return to a station they liked and try something else. Each kid will have a note book or binder which will be kept at camp. In this notebook they must write a short entry about each activity they complete; something short that says what or who they learned about. They will also be able to rate the activity with a 5 star system. (Any teachers or educators out there if you have suggestions for this plan in general or activity ideas pass them on).
Of course back to school also means back to supply shopping and there are some things I need to help make this program plan lots of fun and as interactive as possible. I have added a new list pane on the right side of my blog which I will update regularly. If you have something on it please contact me. If you know where I can find something on it for a good price, please contact me. If you know someone else who has it and need me to help you convince them to give it to me, please contact me!!
……………………..... lindsay@urbanpromise.com ………………..................IN OTHER NEWS
I'm apartment hunting again. Fun Fun Fun. I will have a roommate named Chalak (see picture) and we are both very excited about finding a new home. Please pray that we find the right place and that we are able to budget wisely and have good discernment about how much rent we can actually afford. The moving day will hopefully be between the 1st of October and the end of November.Moving also means we may need some of your used stuff. So I will be adding a "Lindsay and Chalak's Apartment" list to the blog as well. On it will be all the crazy random stuff we are looking for and if you've got it and don't want it let me know.
Thank you guys so much for continuing to read my blog and pray for me. I really could not do what I do without you. My next newsletter is currently in the works and should be in your hands/inbox soon. If you have a new address, another address, or an address of someone else (that rich uncle of yours????) you would like me to send it to let me know. I am continually trying to raise my support (both financial and spiritual) and every little bit helps. If you believe in the work I am doing please spread the word and help me keep doing it.
I love you all (Please contact me I'd love to hear from you!) Many many blessings,
BElla
This week was probably the hardest yet. To be in the 4th week is hard since everyone is exhausted and the end is still far off. You're half done but theres still 3 weeks to go. Plus this week we had no work group which meant every leader on site was ready to fall over at any second pretty much all week.
God was good though and he provided helpers to us. Since so many of my staff were sick (including myself) and exhausted (also including myself) I had to call in some help from UP staff. I had 2 extra helpers on Monday, and then Tuesday the youth program canceled so I got 5 of their staff for a day.
For the trip this week we went to the science centre. This trip has been like a looming storm cloud all summer. I hate science centre trips, too many people and too many hiding places for small children. We made the best of it though and took a long lunch break and a long snack break, and tried stick together by only dividing the kids into 3 groups. All in all I only lost 1 child. (kidding).
Now there are only 2 weeks left and I have a workgroup both weeks!!!! Hallelujah! This seems much more do-able.
Today I am enjoying my long weekend and my quiet empty apartment. Maybe I can shake this cold if i sleep enough.
BElla
The wedding was so ridiculously beautiful! I can't even explain. I couldn't even breath right before Anita walked down the aisle. It was very exciting.
It was fun to be home for a few days too. Refreshing. I got to visit with some people I love ALOT too so that is always good.. you know who you are.
I rented a car this weekend too.. they gave me a PT Cruiser. Oh my. I was so irritated, but after a few days we (the car and I) really bonded, it was precious. I miss her (the car) already and it makes me sad.
I have realized that I really need to move as soon as I can. Hopefully I will have a roommate and a good apartment and then I can afford a car. YAY. I really hoped I could live with out one cus it makes me feel like I am contributing to the greater good of the planet by taking the bus but I have realized that I need to be able to pick up supplies for camp, make emergency trips, and just take care of myself and my interns better by being able to transport us wherever we need to go without taking all day to do it. So if you are a prayer, please pray that this will all be worked out, as I'm sure it will be. God is good and he provides all we NEED, so as long as I really do NEED it (which i believe I do) then it will be provided. Praise God.
What else, summer seems to be slipping by and it makes me sad. The sun is no longer up at 5 am which makes it so much harder to get out of my wonderful bed. It is still up at night when I go home though which is such a treat from going home in the dark all year.
Please pray for my team and I as we go into our 3rd week of camp. We are all getting more and more worn out, tired, and sick, and we pretty much lose are voices within the first half hour of camp everyday cus they are so worn out. haha. Yay working with kids! It is still loads of fun though and I seriously could not imagine doing anything else. The cool thing about that is that I am seriously starting to see myself here long term which is so cool since I have never been able to see myself anywhere long term. I guess that means that this is where I belong. Very cool.
Psalm 72:17-19
17 May his name endure forever;
may it continue as long as the sun.
All nations will be blessed through him,
and they will call him blessed.
18 Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel,
who alone does marvelous deeds.
19 Praise be to his glorious name forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and Amen.
The first week of camp flew by! It was amazing. The church basement filled with 60 kids again! All the staff working hard and an amazing workgroup that jumped right in.
Fast forward to week two. No workgroup, some staff missing, and still 60 kids. I didnt know how it was going to go but i felt it would be fitting to read the story of Gideon (Judges 7) for staff devotions this morning. It went well. I focused on how it doesn't matter if we have 1o staff or 50 if we don't rely on God we are nothing. Everyone pulled together so well today it was amazing. It really felt like a family too with just 10 of us. We all had to rely on each other and communicate. Did I say I have the best staff ever.... I have the best staff EVER! Its very cool.
This Friday we are going hiking and fishing with the kids so please please please pray for safety... im a little bit scared about taking such young kids on cave trails. But I've been assured it will be safe so... oh gosh fishing... oh yeah and its 2 hours away.. loooooong bus rides! anyone know good bus songs I may not know yet? (if you say the wheels on the bus I really will roll my eyes at you.)
Hmmmm. What else is new. OH>>> TYLER AND ANITA ARE GETTING MARRIED ON SATURDAY!!!!!! ok so very very exciting! two of my very best and oldest friends ever are finally getting married... YAY!! (This is them...)
wow ok now i am really really excited for saturday.... i believe alyssa illeman is getting married this saturday also (yay alyssa!) wow big day! Ok im too excited to write anything else that will be worth reading so good bye and good night!
BElla
THIS IS MY STAFF ... FIRST TO THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN IN URBAN PROMISE'S AMAZING RANCH RACE 2007!!!
So I seriously have the best staff ever and I'm so excited summer camp has finally started! We just finished day two and wow I'm so impressed. Thanks for everyone who's praying for us please continue to pray and praise God for being so Good!
In other news. It is hot and humid... and everyday the weather network says its going to thunderstorm every day but it never does. That was good today because it meant we got to go to the splash park! Very Refreshing! It was awesome to see five year olds wet up teenage leaders with huge smiles on their faces. One little girl was pouring a water bottle on a leader and the water bottle slipped and hit him in the head. The poor guy had a bit of a welt at the end of the day.
Ok I dont really know what else to say right now...
BElla
In other news. It is hot and humid... and everyday the weather network says its going to thunderstorm every day but it never does. That was good today because it meant we got to go to the splash park! Very Refreshing! It was awesome to see five year olds wet up teenage leaders with huge smiles on their faces. One little girl was pouring a water bottle on a leader and the water bottle slipped and hit him in the head. The poor guy had a bit of a welt at the end of the day.
Ok I dont really know what else to say right now...
BElla
I got my haircut this weekend. It was my last chance before summer and one of the many things on my to do list. Next week we have training so that everyone can be ready for camp. I'm excited for a few days away to spend with my leaders. It should be fun. Happy Canada Day!
BElla
ok so only 2 more working days before summer camp starts which means i need to get everything together right now!!! ... shoot i need to go to bed... pray for me.
BElla
hello... hello... hello...
i feel like im still in shock but im doing better. the interns start working tomorrow which means we are pulling into high gear of planning and prep. only 2 weeks left and so much still needs to be done. God has absolutely been pouring out blessings on me and my site though! I have an amazing team that is coming together to run camp this summer and i am so excited to get everyone together at summer camp training this year!
please pray for me and my staff that we remain close to God and rely on Him fully for strength and wisdom and guidance.
more soon,
BElla
I can't say much since I still don't know how to express how I'm feeling but I will give you some news from my broken perspective so you know how to pray.
When I first came to Urban Promise I was given the responsibility of taking over a youth basketball drop in program in the community. It was every Friday night and quite simply was a time for guys to come play and give them something to do other than hang out in the community. These guys became as much a part of my ministry as the kids were and I loved getting to hang out with them every week and watch their amazing skills on the court. There were two brothers who came every week from the begining. I remember them as the only light skinned kids and for their huge hair, but they held the utmost respect of everyone who came to drop in.
Last summer I was able to give the younger brother a job working in my camp. He was very eager to work for Urban Promise which was very encouraging to me, it showed his respect for the program. Basketball drop in was put on hold this year because of low staff for safety reasons and it was really hard for me not to be in the community.
This past Saturday at 3pm there was a shooting in the community, you can find it anywhere in the Toronto News. It killed the older brother, Jose. He was just 19. This has broken me so deeply. Please pray for his family, his mother and brother. Pray for the community that any thoughts of retaliation would cease. Pray that when visit with the family God would give me the words to say. Pray that the peace of Christ would reign in that community.
BElla
today I am home doing research before I head over to the office do do another interview. our theme for camp this summer is gear'd up. we're learning about the armor of God. it should be a great lesson for the kids to learn, but its hard to find a positive way to teach about God's armor while trying to stay away from the soldier image since that is such a major gang mentality. interviews are almost finished i think but i still need a few more spots filled. lots of decisions to be made which is always such a leap of faith but God has been good to us throughout the process and i really feel that He is afiriming every step ive taken so far in preparing for summer.
its nice that the rain has finally stopped. the sun is shinning today but it is still kind of chilly with the cool breeze. its funny how in the summer trees seem to appear out of nowhere. its like they are hiding all winter and then the sun comes out and they are everywhere. i love trees.
anyway, i should get back to work.
if you have any memories of learning a cool way to teach about the armor of God let me know!
BElla
Hello People!
Today was so fun! After a wonderful day of planning summer camp themes and meetings Shawn and I went to hang out with some of our kids and their families in the community. I haven't seen my kids in about 3 weeks so it was exciting for me to get to see them. One of them ... we'll call him Billy is so cute. He saw me walk up but since there were a bunch of older boys around he was hesitant to come say hi. I said hello as he fiddled with the chain on his bike. It was all jammed up so i went over and asked if I could help. As I was talking to him two of my younger boys ran at my and wrapped their arms around me. (I love my children!) After saying hello to the boys I lifted Billy's bike and flipped it upside down so I could fix the chain. Once everything was in order a boy I didn't know leaned over to Billy and I heard him whisper "you should say thank you". He didn't, and I just smiled at their interaction. Billy was obviously still trying to be cool in front of the big kids.
I actually needed to talk to Billy's mom about offering him the opportunity to attend free of charge a Tim Horton's camp in Nova Scotia! Tim Horton's donated 8 spots in their camp for kids from Urban Promise Toronto which is such a cool thing! Their camps are amazing. At first Billy was hesitant about the idea but as soon as I was talking to his mom about it he started with the "please can I go mom? please please please?" After talking to his mom I continued my rounds visiting all the mom's in the community. As I stood and talked to mom after mom (I was there for a good few hours I think) Billy would ride by on his bike and go back and forth past me, or just ride up and stand beside me as I talked. It was like, he couldn't say it or show it like the other boys, especially in front of the big kids, but he was really glad I was around. I guess he missed me as much as I missed him!
The title of this blog comes from a story one of the mom's was telling me today about how the country people in Jamaica react when they come into town and see street lights for the first time... she said they call them moon-upon-stick. Just thought it was a funny story. Maybe instead of being a candle on a hill we should be a moon on a stick. Just don't let your moons go out!
BElla
Lyke as a ship that through the Ocean wyde,
By conduct of some star doth make her way,
Whenas a storme hath dimd her trusty guyde,
Out of her course doth wander far astray:
So I whose star, that wont with her bright ray
Me to direct, with cloudes is overcast,
Doe wander now in darknesse and dismay,
Through hidden perils round about me plast.
Yet hope I well, that when this storme is past
My Helice the lodestar of my lyfe
Will shine again, and looke on me at last,
With lovely light to cleare my cloudy grief.
Till then I wander carefull comfortlesse,
In secret sorow and sad pensivenesse.
-Edmund Spenser, Amoretti
By conduct of some star doth make her way,
Whenas a storme hath dimd her trusty guyde,
Out of her course doth wander far astray:
So I whose star, that wont with her bright ray
Me to direct, with cloudes is overcast,
Doe wander now in darknesse and dismay,
Through hidden perils round about me plast.
Yet hope I well, that when this storme is past
My Helice the lodestar of my lyfe
Will shine again, and looke on me at last,
With lovely light to cleare my cloudy grief.
Till then I wander carefull comfortlesse,
In secret sorow and sad pensivenesse.
-Edmund Spenser, Amoretti
Hello again.
I had my first day back at work after a whole week off today. It was actually a "Fun Day" so we had a barbecue and went to see Pirates of the Caribbean 3. It was fun. Actually the movie was pretty entertaining because there were 8 of us there from Urban Promise all siting together and everyone was commenting all the way through. Things like "wait what?" "what the heck is this guy doing?" and "why does that guy look like such a reed" were common.
Good news! Since Colin and Brett talked to all the MPs in our areas we got the grants we were looking for for summer. Now I just need to find someone to give it to. Pray for me.
While I was on holidays I took a journey to Goderich and it was so nice to just spend a little time with some people I love. Mom, Anita, Al and I went for a walk on the boardwalk. It was so nice. And of course I had to put my feet in the water to test it out.......
The water is actually really warm! I encourage anyone with access to it to go swimming asap! This is my face while my feet are in the water... ya thats a sunset behind me... Goderich, I love you!
As most of you know I also bought a new bike! It has been very nice to have and I even biked to my office and back yesterday... mostly just to see if I could. (1 hour each way was a little hard on my knees so I probably won't be doing that ride every day). Here are some pictures of the new baby...
See the mud splats? Thats from a good long ride after a bit of rain... ya thats right I'm hard core!
I think that is all for now. Oh I picked up my keyboard in Goderich and by the end of June I fully intend to be on the radio... I'm that good!
Later skaters!
BElla
Today was lots of fun. We had a staff BBQ at High Park which is so nice and close to my house. We all played baseball together and the weather was so perfect for it. It was nice to hang out and talk about camp and summer and the future too.
After the BBQ I decided to walk home since High Park is only a few subway stops away from my apartment and its so nice out. On my way I took some pictures to share with you. It really was a nice walk :)
The first two pictures are of this amazingly beautiful, lush, pathway that runs right outside my apartment and I can take it to the movie store or Bloor street. There are always lots of families playing there and its just this great oasis.
The last picture is of this pretty little park I stopped at on my way. It had this beautiful stone bench and lots of pretty tulips and flower gardens.
BElla
Found this song... or heard it somewhere... and I really like it and it expresses well how I'm feeling tonight.
BElla
This boy wants to play,
There's no time left today,
It's a shame 'cause he has to go home.
This boy's got to work
Got to sweat just to pay what he gets to get left all alone.
Well let's step outside,
Let's go for a ride,
Just for a while.
No we won't get caught,
Well that's what I thought, until we cry.
Chorus
I'm still here,
But it hasn't been easy,
I'm sure that you had your reasons,
I'm scared for this emotion,
For years I've been holding it down,
For years I've been holding it down.
This girl tries her best everyday,
But it's all gone to waste 'cause there's no one around,
This girl she can draw she can paint,
Likes to dance she can skate,
Now she don't make a sound.
We?ll play in our park,
'Till it's too dark for us to see
Well we'll make our way home,
With mud on our clothes,
She won't be pleased.
Chorus
I'm still here,
But it hasn't been easy,
I'm sure that you had your reasons,
I'm scared for this emotion,
For years I've been holding it down,
And I,
Love to forgive and forget,
So I,
Try to put all this behind us,
Just,
Know that my arms are wide open,
The older I get, the more that I know.
Well it's time to let this go.
I got to let it go
I got to let it go
I got to let it go
I got to let it go
Chorus
I'm still here,
But it hasn' been easy,
I'm sure that you had your reasons,
I'm scared for this emotion,
For years I've been holding it down,
And I,
Love to forgive and forget,
So I,
Try to put all this behind us,
Just,
Know that my arms are wide open,
The older I get, the more that I know.
And I,
Love to forgive and forget,
So I,
Try to put all this behind us,
Just,
Know that my arms are wide open,
The older I get, the more that I know.
BElla
This boy wants to play,
There's no time left today,
It's a shame 'cause he has to go home.
This boy's got to work
Got to sweat just to pay what he gets to get left all alone.
Well let's step outside,
Let's go for a ride,
Just for a while.
No we won't get caught,
Well that's what I thought, until we cry.
Chorus
I'm still here,
But it hasn't been easy,
I'm sure that you had your reasons,
I'm scared for this emotion,
For years I've been holding it down,
For years I've been holding it down.
This girl tries her best everyday,
But it's all gone to waste 'cause there's no one around,
This girl she can draw she can paint,
Likes to dance she can skate,
Now she don't make a sound.
We?ll play in our park,
'Till it's too dark for us to see
Well we'll make our way home,
With mud on our clothes,
She won't be pleased.
Chorus
I'm still here,
But it hasn't been easy,
I'm sure that you had your reasons,
I'm scared for this emotion,
For years I've been holding it down,
And I,
Love to forgive and forget,
So I,
Try to put all this behind us,
Just,
Know that my arms are wide open,
The older I get, the more that I know.
Well it's time to let this go.
I got to let it go
I got to let it go
I got to let it go
I got to let it go
Chorus
I'm still here,
But it hasn' been easy,
I'm sure that you had your reasons,
I'm scared for this emotion,
For years I've been holding it down,
And I,
Love to forgive and forget,
So I,
Try to put all this behind us,
Just,
Know that my arms are wide open,
The older I get, the more that I know.
And I,
Love to forgive and forget,
So I,
Try to put all this behind us,
Just,
Know that my arms are wide open,
The older I get, the more that I know.
Since I live alone I often sit down at the computer and chat online with people while I eat... food needs conversation I think. So today here are my dinner time comments:
-I made homemade pasta today!!! ( ok well its not done so it might be garbage but at least I tried)
-I spent the whole time I was at work in the office... theres a lot to do before summer and I want to get a head start... plus there are always people coming in to apply to work so I was doing a lot of that today.
-I got to walk kids home though... in the rain... we took a shortcut to Jessica's house. That was an adventure! we walked down a path, through a fence, through some garbage, over some wooden boards (bridges), up a wet grassy hill, and back around to the front of her building to get in.
-Actually I love walking Jessica home... her elevator talks.."Third Floor" the female voice will say... I named her Ellie.
.....
ok time to try and cook this pasta
.....
hmmm... not bad actually. A lot thicker than what I'm used to but with the pesto and cheese it tastes nice.
Mom made me plan out all of my meals at the beginning of the week and go shopping for what I needed, so I'm cheating tonight. I was supposed to have shake and bake. Oh well.
so back to my adventures for today:
-I made this blog this morning, people at work laughed at my photo so if you are laughing too you are not alone. I guess laughing is good. I wanted a fun picture and laughing is fun.
-tomorrow is the last day of after-school program for the year. It's sad for me because I really like ASP. Its just a few kids, and we get to work on their homework with them and give them snack, and then we go on trips on the weekends sometimes. The trips were good this year actually. Saturday we went to a Toronto FC game (thats the new professional soccer team). It was amazing! The crowd was singing and chanting, and everyone was wearing their team colours and waving flags! We took three girls who have been amazingly behaved lately and they loved it. I think that was the highlight for me.. I love getting girls excited about sports! Boys love anything involving a ball, and girls are a lot harder to get engaged in such activities. It was a very good day... oh and it was nice and sunny too! I could write a lot about that day. We took the TTC bus there, and there were all these buses lined up at the station just to go to the game... it was like the whole city was coming out. Then we got off the bus and had to walk through the exhibition centre to get to the stadium and it was amazing to walk with this huge crowd and as we approached the field we started to hear the noise of the crowd inside. It was the coolest thing I have ever experienced attending a sports event!
-wow rambling on....
In other news... it is my big brother's birthday tomorrow!!! so HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAMIEN!
I guess thats all for this fine wet evening.
BElla
Hello everyone and welcome.
I've been working on my newsletter and am debating still the best way to make that available to everyone and I hope this will be part of that. I still want to have a mail out newsletter because everyone likes to get real mail, but I'm hoping that this will become somewhat of a companion to the official letter.
I will try to update this as often as I can and fill it with fun stories about my life and my kids, and just stuff I'm thinking about. Feel free to comment on anything I write, or just use the comment space to tell me what you are up to.
I wont be posting pictures of my kids on here because I'm not sure if that is a good idea or not but I will hopefully be adding pics of myself, and interesting things or people I come across in this crazy city.
So have fun and enjoy my BLOG!
(I hope)
love, BElla
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