If only I were British

It has been too long since I've written, so here I am checking in from work. That's right, I'm blogging on work time! I feel simultaneously guilty and thrilled by this. I had an appointment with a client who has not shown up (just remembered annother appointment I never put on my calendar... just a sec, ok back) so I am free, footloose, and completely distracted.

Where is that girl? I can't write about ber because of client confidentiality issues, but I am allowed to be annoyed that she's not here. Annoyed and relieved. I like alone time.

While this job is amazing for the chance to work with so many people from different countries and backgrounds, and to affect change in so many lives, I do not think I would want to do it for the rest of my life. I don't know what kind of person I actually am, but I'm trying to figure it out and this job is certainly helping.

I am an Employment Specialist Assistant and AmeriCorps member, which basically means I get paid a pittance for work that others do on salary,barely paying my rent and food and student loan bills which have not been deferred yet despite all promises to the contrary. (Damien Rice, The Blower's Daughter) I am in the process of applying for food assistance from the county and will not feel bad about it at all. Pretty much every AmeriCorps volunteer goes on assistance because we are absurdly poorly paid, meaning not paid at all, only given a living allowance. Allowance? What sort of living am I exactly allowed to do?
Stop it!

This is giving you the wrong impression: I do not really care about money, and I love living without having to lump myself in a category with all the other well-off middle classers who can't figure out what shade of Ugg boots to ask for for Christmas. I do not need lots of money to survive. I do not want lots of money to survive. I would love to pay off my student loans, and sure, it would be great to be able to visit my family or friends in far-off states whenever I wanted to, but I'm making a sacrifice.

Why exactly? More on that later.

The previous few paragraphs seem exceedingly boring to me and, I'm sure, to anyone who has held out hope long enough to read this far. I apologize; I am not usually so boring. Or maybe I am and no one will tell me.

I SHARED THE GOSPEL WITH SOMEONE LAST SUNDAY!!!!! It was SO amazing! He was so interested and searching but asking all these really deep and totally understandable questions and I answered what I could but it's between him and God even though I fell blessed to have even been a little part of what God is doing in his life (the guy shall be called Paul, as in -On-The-Road-To-Damascus, which is my hope for him) although I am really hoping and praying that eventually he takes the plunge and throws in his lot with Christ. This is not Aladdin, the guy down the street. Different guy. Paul is someone I work with at the cafe, and we ended up talking to about nine hours straight!!! It was so amazing. I gave him four books:
1. Pascal's Pensees, told him to read "The Wager." Got me through a lot of doubting.
2. CS Lewis' The Weight of Glory, told him to read the title essay and anything else he wants.
3. Lee Strobel, the Case for Christ. He needs the Case for Faith, although he's reading Mere Christianity which should help a lot.
4. Till We Have Faces. If this guy is brought up on the spiritual milk of CS Lewis he will have a happy and healthyinfant Christian growth indeed! I don't know what will happen with him but it is NOT IN MY HANDS! I just need to be there for him and I AM!

Oh God, oh God, bring him to You!

I will keep you updated on his spiritual journey; maybe I'm just one small part of it and he needs another 15 years of struggling... I'll just keep praying!

Love bunches!