The NELM Trip Team put together a video to share with those who have followed our journey. It was our hope to put it on this blog. However, the video is too long to fit here and it is not the sort of piece to place on You Tube. Our apologies. But we will be making a video compilation with a slide show and videos which will run for about an hour. That should be coming out in the next month and will be made available to members of Hope and St. John. We would be glad to send you a copy of the compilation. For a copy please e-mail us at: Hopeforesthills@aol.com and ask for the NELM video. Be sure to give us your mailing address. We will see that you get a copy.
Have a most blessed summer.
The St.John-Hope NELM Team.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Last Day
The last day of our journey began early this morning. Our flight from Phoenix departed at 2:55. In order to get to Phoenix Sky Harbor our plan was to leave at 7:00AM, but you know what can happen even with the best of plans. We spent some time with a reporter for The Lutheran and posed for a few pictures.
Shirley, Susie, Kathy, Pastor S, Kayla, Kyla,Gail and Betty Ann, plus our new canine friend and Dineh the kitten
Some of our Navajo friends had suggested that we drive back to Flagstaff via a Navajo short cut. Well, we were determined to do that, but missed a turn off and ended up jigging when we should have jogged and so spent more time on Interstate 40. But what a delight to be in the land.
We got back to the airport in good time, but it was cutting it a bit close for the drivers who had to fill up the cars, return them and then get back to the airport, go through security and catch up with the rest. But we all made it safe and sound to
our evening destinations.
Tomorrow we'll share our experiences at Hope and St. John. Check for a video wrap up!
Shirley, Susie, Kathy, Pastor S, Kayla, Kyla,Gail and Betty Ann, plus our new canine friend and Dineh the kitten
Some of our Navajo friends had suggested that we drive back to Flagstaff via a Navajo short cut. Well, we were determined to do that, but missed a turn off and ended up jigging when we should have jogged and so spent more time on Interstate 40. But what a delight to be in the land.
We got back to the airport in good time, but it was cutting it a bit close for the drivers who had to fill up the cars, return them and then get back to the airport, go through security and catch up with the rest. But we all made it safe and sound to
our evening destinations.
Tomorrow we'll share our experiences at Hope and St. John. Check for a video wrap up!
Friday, July 24, 2009
Mural Completed
The painters closed the door into the Mission school for the last time tonight. Except for some touch-up cleaning that just couldn't be done, they have completed their task. It was really more than they had anticipated and so they really were not as prepared as they would have wished, but the mural is complete!
Across the bridge is the school building and outside the front door is Miss Ida Mae calling the children to school.
On the other side of the hallway is a forest with deer and bunnies, lady bugs, butterflies a horse and turtle.
The best to the children at Navajo Evangelical Lutheran Mission from the Pittsburgh Painters
On the wall just inside the hallway to the Kindergarten classroom, Pooh, Tigger, Eyeore, Piglet, and Roo are making their way down a path to the school. The path goes over a bridge which crosses a stream.
Across the bridge is the school building and outside the front door is Miss Ida Mae calling the children to school.
On the other side of the hallway is a forest with deer and bunnies, lady bugs, butterflies a horse and turtle.
The best to the children at Navajo Evangelical Lutheran Mission from the Pittsburgh Painters
Worship and Prayer at the Navajo Mission
We are an energetic, mission focused group of women here. Our tasks are clear and we are eager to bring all our gifts to painting and nursing clinics. It is a challenge to hold ourselves back in the morning and to stop mid-project in the evening. But every morning Pastor Schwartz leads us in communion and every evening I lead Taize sung prayer in the Chapel. Each morning, our communion bread has had a different shape and texture, reminding us of the many cultures around the world who share in Christ’s love with us, including the Navajo, Hopi, and Apache who live on this land.
On our altar are three icons which I brought from Pittsburgh. The large central icon is a compassionate Navajo Christ breaking bread and offering communion with traditional pottery and spiral basket. Behind him and over his shoulders are the beautiful and distinctive Navajo blankets. His strong and peaceful gaze offers us pure grace, balm for the stories of terrible treatment the Navajo have received in this desert at the hands of our ancestors. He is indeed the wounded Christ offering healing and wholeness. On one side of the Christ is a Navajo virgin and child, looking very much like the mothers and children we have encountered during our mission. On the other side is a Navajo corn maiden offering a generous armload of corn, the staple of most indigenous diets in the Americas. We will be leaving the large icon of the Navajo Christ at the mission when we leave.
With you, O Lord, is life in all its fullness
And in your light we shall see true light. (Taize chant)
The scriptures Pastor Schwartz and I have been choosing are about compassionate giving, offering ourselves to others as Christ’s offering to us, and about stopping to spend time with our Lord, even when our work is half done and we are worried about finishing it all before Saturday. This is no simple spiritual discipline. But the juxtaposition of prayer and practice gives deeper meaning to our work. Meanwhile, the images from the scriptures seem more vivid here in the desert. Every time we step into a building, we “shake the (red) dust from our feet.” Reading about Christ as ‘living water’ has more meaning as we drink water constantly to avoid becoming dehydrated and dizzy in this arid terrain. And while we don’t see Eagles specifically, we do see large birds “mount up on wings like eagles” over our heads as they ride the up drafts of the red rock outcroppings and we are reminded that those who are weary and “wait on the Lord shall mount up on wings like eagles” and we can return to our work with new purpose.
Our sung prayers ring through the mission Chapel, making our small community of eight sound full and beautiful. Harmonies and devotion flow through the Chapel in waves of prayer. Every evening, the sound has invited others on the mission to come and join us. Our visitor on Monday evening came into the Chapel and lovingly tapped the front of the altar before joining us. This tapping has been taken up by our members, a sign that we are truly sharing in the Spirit as we sing
Live in charity and steadfast love.
Live in charity, God will dwell with you. (Taize chant)
Contributor: Gail Ransom
On our altar are three icons which I brought from Pittsburgh. The large central icon is a compassionate Navajo Christ breaking bread and offering communion with traditional pottery and spiral basket. Behind him and over his shoulders are the beautiful and distinctive Navajo blankets. His strong and peaceful gaze offers us pure grace, balm for the stories of terrible treatment the Navajo have received in this desert at the hands of our ancestors. He is indeed the wounded Christ offering healing and wholeness. On one side of the Christ is a Navajo virgin and child, looking very much like the mothers and children we have encountered during our mission. On the other side is a Navajo corn maiden offering a generous armload of corn, the staple of most indigenous diets in the Americas. We will be leaving the large icon of the Navajo Christ at the mission when we leave.
With you, O Lord, is life in all its fullness
And in your light we shall see true light. (Taize chant)
The scriptures Pastor Schwartz and I have been choosing are about compassionate giving, offering ourselves to others as Christ’s offering to us, and about stopping to spend time with our Lord, even when our work is half done and we are worried about finishing it all before Saturday. This is no simple spiritual discipline. But the juxtaposition of prayer and practice gives deeper meaning to our work. Meanwhile, the images from the scriptures seem more vivid here in the desert. Every time we step into a building, we “shake the (red) dust from our feet.” Reading about Christ as ‘living water’ has more meaning as we drink water constantly to avoid becoming dehydrated and dizzy in this arid terrain. And while we don’t see Eagles specifically, we do see large birds “mount up on wings like eagles” over our heads as they ride the up drafts of the red rock outcroppings and we are reminded that those who are weary and “wait on the Lord shall mount up on wings like eagles” and we can return to our work with new purpose.
Our sung prayers ring through the mission Chapel, making our small community of eight sound full and beautiful. Harmonies and devotion flow through the Chapel in waves of prayer. Every evening, the sound has invited others on the mission to come and join us. Our visitor on Monday evening came into the Chapel and lovingly tapped the front of the altar before joining us. This tapping has been taken up by our members, a sign that we are truly sharing in the Spirit as we sing
Live in charity and steadfast love.
Live in charity, God will dwell with you. (Taize chant)
Contributor: Gail Ransom
Daily Lunch Guests
One of the neat features of the week at NELM has been the groups inclusion of members of the staff at lunch. Actually, it started with Lark, a brand new staff member, who had just arrived on the NELM campus over the weekend. Her little kitten Dineh was an instant "awwww" and conversation quickly began. Monday night we invited her over for supper. Tuesday at noon, Marina was our guest. Wednesday we were out of town, but Thursday we invited Lynn and Deborah, the Executive Director and Mission Pastor. Tomorrow Tara Chee will join us for lunch.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Painters Paint the Town Red
Well, not exactly, but did sound like an exciting headline! On the other hand, the daily progress has been phenomenal. We do have a forest and squirrels, Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, too. The mural is really quite delightful. We hope to have a more
thorough description tomorrow. Way to go Kyla, Kayla, BettyAnn, and Shirley! Thanks for the help and encouragement from the rest of the team.
Healthy Snacks Cooking Demonstration
Kathy and Susie were busy today planning and doing a cooking demonstration of healthy snacks (low in calories, fat, and salt; high in fiber and nutrients). We arrived with a collection of recipes that we reviewed with Marina, the Certified Nursing Assistant who staffs the Health Center. She told us which ones would be most likely to appeal to the residents of this area. We shopped for the necessary ingredients yesterday, and today it was time to measure, chop, stir, and simmer or bake.
We spent the morning typing 6 recipes into a handout to give to all who attended the demonstration. Marina had also found some helpful resources online that she printed and copied for additional handouts. We had found a copy of a Food Pyramid that was specific to Native American diets, so we added that one to the stack of handouts.
The demonstration took place in the mission school cafeteria, and we used the adjacent kitchen to prepare ingredients and simmer and bake the foods that needed the stove and oven. Marina and her daughter April set up tables with blue and yellow tablecloths and plates; April contributed flower arrangements for each table. Another table held the handouts and a sign-in sheet, and we had a large container of fruit punch as well as water and coffee for beverages.
We started with the Gelatin Jiggle Snacks recipe, which Kathy had made ahead of time. As we cut the gelatin into small squares and passed them out for everyone to taste, Kathy explained that sugar-free gelatin was lower in calories. The gelatin snacks were not familiar to many attendees, and they seemed to enjoy them. Marina and April cut up some watermelon, peaches, and kiwi fruit, and we passed out samples of those fruits to everyone as well.
While the attendees were sampling those snacks, we demonstrated how to make peanut butter sandwiches using rice cakes instead of bread, reduced-fat peanut butter, and apple slices. Substitutions included peaches or bananas in place of the apples, and raisins and cinnamon sugar were suggested additions.Then we started the recipes that involved baking. We made a healthy cookie recipe that included rolled oats, crunchy wheat and barley cereal, and raisins. While the first batch of cookies was baking, Kathy mixed up a batch of low-fat fruit bars. Marina was skeptical about that recipe; she has made granola bars before and she noticed that the recipe we used didn’t include oatmeal. But when the fruit bars were baked and cooled, she liked them so much that she surprised herself!
While the fruit bars were baking, we made a batch of sweet and savory popcorn. For this recipe, we used a spice that the local residents were not very familiar with—cumin. They liked it! We talked about substitutions for the cumin such as black or cayenne pepper or cinnamon. Then we had to mix up a second batch of the popcorn with black pepper to taste test the difference.
The final recipe was Ornish Trail Mix, a heart-healthy snack. This mixture included several unsweetened cereals, raisins, dry-roasted unsalted peanuts, and dry-roasted unsalted sunflower seeds. That recipe also was so popular that we had to make a second batch.
At the end of the demonstration, we distributed small plastic bags with samples of the snacks that we had prepared, so that participants could take them home to see if their family members would like them. Then Kathy, Susie, and Marina washed the bowls, pans, and utensils and cleaned up the kitchen.
We spent the morning typing 6 recipes into a handout to give to all who attended the demonstration. Marina had also found some helpful resources online that she printed and copied for additional handouts. We had found a copy of a Food Pyramid that was specific to Native American diets, so we added that one to the stack of handouts.
The demonstration took place in the mission school cafeteria, and we used the adjacent kitchen to prepare ingredients and simmer and bake the foods that needed the stove and oven. Marina and her daughter April set up tables with blue and yellow tablecloths and plates; April contributed flower arrangements for each table. Another table held the handouts and a sign-in sheet, and we had a large container of fruit punch as well as water and coffee for beverages.
We started with the Gelatin Jiggle Snacks recipe, which Kathy had made ahead of time. As we cut the gelatin into small squares and passed them out for everyone to taste, Kathy explained that sugar-free gelatin was lower in calories. The gelatin snacks were not familiar to many attendees, and they seemed to enjoy them. Marina and April cut up some watermelon, peaches, and kiwi fruit, and we passed out samples of those fruits to everyone as well.
While the attendees were sampling those snacks, we demonstrated how to make peanut butter sandwiches using rice cakes instead of bread, reduced-fat peanut butter, and apple slices. Substitutions included peaches or bananas in place of the apples, and raisins and cinnamon sugar were suggested additions.Then we started the recipes that involved baking. We made a healthy cookie recipe that included rolled oats, crunchy wheat and barley cereal, and raisins. While the first batch of cookies was baking, Kathy mixed up a batch of low-fat fruit bars. Marina was skeptical about that recipe; she has made granola bars before and she noticed that the recipe we used didn’t include oatmeal. But when the fruit bars were baked and cooled, she liked them so much that she surprised herself!
While the fruit bars were baking, we made a batch of sweet and savory popcorn. For this recipe, we used a spice that the local residents were not very familiar with—cumin. They liked it! We talked about substitutions for the cumin such as black or cayenne pepper or cinnamon. Then we had to mix up a second batch of the popcorn with black pepper to taste test the difference.
The final recipe was Ornish Trail Mix, a heart-healthy snack. This mixture included several unsweetened cereals, raisins, dry-roasted unsalted peanuts, and dry-roasted unsalted sunflower seeds. That recipe also was so popular that we had to make a second batch.
At the end of the demonstration, we distributed small plastic bags with samples of the snacks that we had prepared, so that participants could take them home to see if their family members would like them. Then Kathy, Susie, and Marina washed the bowls, pans, and utensils and cleaned up the kitchen.
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