...and a (quite enjoyable) 12-hour+ workday for everyone.
Every year, MLK celebration night at my organization consists of about 3 hours of acts, poems, and songs performed by hundreds of kids from the after school program. It was adorable and actually quite inspiring to see all those kids relaying what they knew about civil rights and their feelings about it.
Putting on this great affair for children and parents takes a ton of hands from the staff and AmeriCorps members - people who have been working since 8:30 (or earlier), who are there to make it all happen until the last bit of spilled coffee ad cookie is picked up off the gymnasium floor around 9 pm.
And no one was grumpy, I didn't hear a singe person complain - in fact, everyone seemed quite pleased to be there - including the entire audience, from what I saw. Even the parents who came straight from work with hungry kids who hadn't had a chance to have dinner yet. Even the man I accidentally sent in the wrong direction to a water fountain who spent 10 or so minutes looking for it. A handful of kids even smiled at me joyfully when I had to turn them away at the refreshment bar because the only hot beverage we had was coffee.
Amidst the hustle and bustle of getting 100s of kids on and off a stage and shuffling 100s of parents and siblings in and out of an auditorium and not having enough refreshments and the iPod dock not working correctly and the translators showing up late... I saw no one who was upset (other than a couple of kids who dropped their cookies, that is).
Isn't that how it should be? No one taking themselves too seriously, people enjoying being together, seeing kids perform, celebrating some of the richness of our history and the idea that it's not okay to treat anyone wrongly, we should all serve one another, and everyone should be able to be friends.
Above all I think I learned last night that I love, lovelovelove, working with people who are so happy to serve. Isn't that, afterall, how God intends it?
We were made free to serve one another in love (Galatians 5:13) :)
What are your plans for MLK Day on Monday? Consider using your day off to serve someone else.
What an awesome-sounding event! And how admirable for all of you that make it happen. Your words about service really spoke to my heart, though I still struggle sometimes with the "getting there" part. I tend to resist God's call to service and sometimes go along begrudgingly...and then when I'm there, my heart feels so full and joyous that I can't believe I ever resisted! This seems to be a trend in other areas of my life, as well. Definitely something I'll be working on this year! Thanks for the inspiring post :)
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