A Humble Request

I must have started typing, deleting everything & retyping at least 5 times so far. It's possibly the most uncomfortable I've ever felt writing a blog because this is something that comes so unnaturally to me. Maybe I should just cut right to the chase... I want to ask my friends, family, & maybe even anonymous blog lurkers to consider sponsoring my upcoming mission trip to Chiapas, Mexico.

I'm so beyond excited to return for my 3rd trip to Chiapas, it feels a little like coming home again. Every time I've thought to myself "Lauren, you work for a non-profit, you can't afford this" but I believe so strongly in the relationship we've built & the work that's being done that I decide to rely that somehow the funds will be provided. And so far I haven't been let down. Sometimes the money comes from totally unexpected places, but other times I think God provides by having people in your life who are able to give a little. Isn't that how it always goes for anything worth while... you give a little, I give a little, & somehow it's always enough?

So although I feel totally timid about this, I'm posting a button to my paypal account to accept donations. My biggest fear isn't that no one will give... if that happens it happens... my biggest fear is that I'll get an eye roll that says "C'mon Lauren, I gave to this trip 3 years ago, aren't you DONE there already?" But the truth is that it's never done which is exactly why it's so valuable. Which do you think changes the world more... 1) A one week trip to life buckets of concrete or 2) An ongoing relationship between 2 communities that continually pray for eachother, get to know eachother's needs & are able to address those needs in ways that would never be possible in 7 days?

To me the answer is clear. So please think of this less as me begging for donations, & instead please think of it as an invitation. I'd really like you to be a part of this mission too. Not all of us can do construction work or get the time off or stomach a bit of Montezuma's revenge (it happens). But this is way you can participate in the exact same work in a way that is every bit as important.

To learn more about what we're doing you can read...

This previous post about our trips
This page on my church's website

(scroll to the bottom & you'll get to see my goofy friends singing songs for some kids too. haha)

This Flashback Friday with some thoughts

You can make a donation to my PayPal here.

Any size donation is HUGELY appreciated, whether $100 or $1.

And if you want a charitable contribution receipt, just leave me a comment about that.

You can also mail checks directly to my church. 

(again, just attach a little note about charitable contribution receipts)

Hot Metal Bridge Faith Community

2700 Jane Street

Pittsburgh, PA 15203

memo: Lauren Wolcott Mexico

I'm going to go out on a limb & just say thank you in advance... THANK YOU. And I hope I've fully expressed just how much I appreciate anything you're able to give.

much love,

Passover Seder

What a perfect night in every sense. The weather, the people, the ceremony, the wine, the food... everything was perfection for our Seder on Thursday night.

We ended up with about 24 people, I originally was expecting only 9 so it came as quite a shock while trying to plan this crazy thing. But it all worked out beautifully! Beyond beautifully. We took turns reading from the leader's book, since there really weren't kids (just teens & "adults") we all participated in the family activities, & we just enjoyed.

Here's the rundown of the actual ceremony: get rid of the leavened bread hid all over the house, light the candles, 1st glass of wine (out of 4), wash hands. Then we went outside to the dinner table. Story of the exodus from Egypt & the plagues, the foods all told a part of the story: bitter herbs, matzoh, salt water, sweet apples, egg, etc. Another glass of wine, eat up the ritual foods, then time for real dinner. It was a fabulous potluck spread, I can't believe I worried we wouldn't have enough! Another  glass of wine, but this time it served as communion along with the hidden piece of matzoh. And another glass of wine....

Party!

Some of us stayed at late as 1:30am, which was unexpected for just dinner, but we had SO much fun it was hard to leave! And there was still more wine that needed to be finished, of course.



You like that "Last Supper" reenactment? haha That was probably my favorite part of the whole night. That & talking bear. (don't ask)

But other than just having an amazing time, it was a meaningful night for me too. I feel like it helped me to understand a few things better

1. If I knew tomorrow I'd die, this is EXACTLY how I'd want to spend my last night. Lots of friends, food & wine.


2. Jesus' water-into-wine miracle... I totally get it now. I was so afraid we would run out of wine... almost panicked. "We'll run out & we need 4 glasses for the ceremony & everything will be ruined!" It would have been the worst thing that could have happened, so I respect Jesus looking out for even petty situations like that when they mean a lot to us.


3. No wonder the disciples fell asleep in Gethsemane... have I mentioned how much wine you drink? Seriously.


4. The people who arrested Jesus were Jews too, I believe, which means they'd be having the same meal time with their families. The whole ending of the Seder is hope for the coming Messiah... so basically they're going through the motions & hoping for a savior while at the same time plotting to kill him. Of course they didn't believe he was the same guy, but that's still pretty ironic & sad.

Anyway, those were just some of my thoughts on it. The Seder was the perfect start to a long Easter weekend that ended similarly: dinner with friends. And wine.

Murder & Karaoke

You want to know who killed Ricky Salsa? I'll tell you right now... it was this crazy building, the thing is haunted! Or was it his karaoke rival, the bar manager, the mistress, or the crazed fan? There's not a person in the place that didn't have a reason to want Ricky dead.

Yup, this is how I spent my weekend. Murder & karaoke. Pastor Jim actually wrote this murder mystery dinner theater himself & somehow a misfit gang of "actors" actually pulled this thing off. Don't ask me how! All I know is I've never laughed so much in my life.



And as if that weren't enough, spending hours upon hours practicing our karaoke mystery & entertaining a couple hundred people, I guess we just can't get enough of each other because for our cast party we went to... karaoke. I honestly feel bad for everyone else in that bar when 20 of us took over the place & barely put the mic down all night.



A little Salt'n'Peppa, Johnny Cash, Celine Dion, Eminem, Jay-Z, Neil Diamond, Cindy Lauper, & plenty of shame to go around. If I had to rate this night against all the others in my life... the singing, the dancing, the inappropriate lyrics, the screaming... it would be a solid spot in the top 10. EVER.

The only thing that made it even better was Sunday morning... bright & early at church... it was the camaraderie that only comes from a night like that. All you need is eye contact with eachother to start laughing all over again. Like an unspoken "oh yeah, I know what you did last night." It was certainly one for the books! So much love.