Do the Puzzle Pieces of My Life Really Work?

I live in a world where saying you want to meet at noon really means I’ll see you at 1pm.  When I wear my yuppy business hat I get impatient after 10 minutes and wonder what’s happening. I work with lots of volunteers who send a variety of signals when it comes to commitment level and real passion for what we are all about. I tend to have high expectations for myself and those that are involved in New City-Barrio, yet I know the realism of life when you have a family, jobs, other important commitments and just stuff happens.

The last year or so I have been very fortunate to have interns both from ASU and GCU. This has transformed what we do. All of a sudden I have key leaders who are serious about helping and actually want to learn and see how they can impact the life of one of our little kids or teens. Yet, the process by which I get these interns is totally their choosing.  So each semester at ASU I await an e-mail both from the program leader saying that I need to redo my program and then wait for an e-mail.

The great news is that I have received two interns from ASU so far. My first, Nancy, is an amazing gal who is going to ASU full time and also working full time. She is a great fit for our group because of her mom and dad being first generation Hispanics that have lived in Arizona for a long time. She is also former military and understands the dynamics of teens figuring out life sooner than later! I am truly blessed to have her focus and determination be part of our leadership.

I just met with a new board member who is part of a charter school that I have been fortunate to have many students involved. The principal and vice principal have become great friends who also share a passion to see the lives of these youth transformed. So as I met with Amber yesterday I was totally jazzed to see someone that literally jumped into action as we talked about our group which is also hers. She brings such enthusiasm and giftedness that I know many will be inspired to step up and step in.

As I am finishing this blog I was encouraged to have a local pastor, who I had bugged about connecting months ago, actually go out of his way to make an appointment to meet and talk. I know that he is part of a growing church and doesn’t have much spare time for anything. So this was ‘icing’ on the cake. So as I talked to my Starbucks manager friend, I sensed that the pieces to the puzzle of life transformation in South Phoenix are starting to happen.  The reality for many of our teens is that their lives look too much like puzzle pieces being scattered all over the floor without any way of recognizing where to start.