Speeding up or winding down?
Just two more weeks of school. The area public schools are taking their turn with "spring break" this week. Major League Baseball has begun. Tennis practice is in full swing. And winter seems to have finally made its exit.

I'm at that point in the semester when I feel like I should be winding down, but things only seem to be speeding up. Tests, projects, papers, finals, here I come. Admist all this work, I'm playing drums for three different bands that have performances within a week of each other.

Yesterday, though, I made myself slow down. I set aside time to go to an on-campus conference on what it might take for the Goshen community -- both the college and the city -- to practice "sweatfree" stewardship. Sweatshops have infiltrated our global market over the past number of years but are also a local reality. A Cambodian woman and Costa Rican man shared powerful stories of working in garment and pineapple-harvesting sweatshops.

Some of you may know that I was a member of the Spring '07 Cambodia SST. Besides learning about how to combat Walmart and sweatshops, I was able to use my Khmer again for the first time since SST. Oh how wonderful this felt. Juxtaposing the stories I heard with the language I once again struggled to speak, made me want to rush back to my house and book a ticket for Southeast Asia.

Reality reminded me that I was to spend three more hours in that same seminar room in Newcomer Center to prepare for this week's Hour After, which is a "coffee-shop" kind of musical performance led by GC students. A few of us former Kratz 3 guys decided last year to put on an hour after this year, although, in retrospect, we probably should've picked a different week!

My agenda for today is as follows: class, chapel, modeling (for an Art Dept. drawing class!), lunch, homework, tennis practice, supper, homework, indoor soccer intramurals, homework, and in bed...by midnight? Let's hope so.
Posted at 13:50 #