LATEST NEWS

Sister Marilyn Lacey: Stirring Stories of Mercy

Sister Marilyn Lacey, founder of Mercy Beyond Borders, has spent decades working with refugees in Haiti and Sudan. As part of this work, she has created opportunities for at-risk women and girls to access education and leadership training. Learn more about these heartful efforts here.

During a recent Interfaith Compassion call, Sister Marilyn shared four first-hand stories of deep compassion. Watch the video here.

Betye Saar: Taking Care of Business

As a mother with young children, Betye Saar couldn't walk in protests. Instead, she began creating art as a weapon against issues such as racism and sexism. Check out this brief inspiring video about her process - including her integration of found objects.

15 Year-old's Letter to the Yard Across the Street

When her dad sent her a picture of pending home construction in what had been a vacant “yard” across the street from her home, a 15-year-old felt a sudden emptiness.

She started remembering the coyotes, rabbits, deer, birds, a great pine tree, and amazing sunset orange poppies. She remembered playing with friends on a trampoline, and neighbors who lived next to the lot who brought grandkids and the best baked goods she had ever had. Turns out the lot wasn’t so empty after all. She said, “The only problem is, I didn’t realize just how much I enjoyed it until it was slowly being taken away. I think that’s the same with everything in life.

Sometimes, you might not realize just how much you appreciate something until it’s no longer present.” [Read more ...]

Underutilized Churches Across The US Are Transforming Portions Of Their Property Into Affordable Housing

Feeling called to support affordable housing efforts, churches across the United States are partnering with nonprofit developers to create rental units and homes along with other necessary community facilities.

Last fall, one church shared it's plans to provide “18,000 new affordable rental and homeownership opportunities and 72 community facilities — such as adult day care, child care, health clinics, and more — on vacant or underutilized church-owned land across the country.”

Read the full story here.

Belonging

Kathleen Yap was born in Singapore but moved to Taiwan and then England by the time she was 5 years old. She felt like an outsider, judged and friendless, as a child. Nature became a solace anywhere she went. "I want to show people that it's okay to be vulnerable in my love for nature. To inspire others to do the same" said Kathleen.

Check out the moving video below, a tribute to the possibilities and connection possible through nature.

 

Entrepreneur Promotes E-bikes In Ghana

British-born businesswoman, Valerie Labi, began converting secondhand pushbikes into e-bikes during the pandemic. Four years later, there are 300 delivery riders using e-bikes in Ghana's capital, Accra, with a vision to expand the effort into additional African countries.

Read the full story here.

A Famed Cellist Played For Bison In Montana

The legendary Yo-Yo Ma took his cellist to a buffalo pasture in Blackfeet lands. He was playing for the free roaming buffalo herd reestablished by the Blackfeet Tribe toward a multi-Tribal effort to restore 30 to 60 million bison in the western United States.

Read the full story here.

Me-to-We Youth Retreat in Ahmedabad + Ripples 

Last month a retreat was held in Ahmedabad with youth aged 18 to 25. It was an embodied head-hands-heart journey from me-to-we in the spirit of inner transformation and service. During the retreat, youth had a lot of fun singing, dancing, listening to each others’ life journeys, and participating in acts of kindness together. They also met some uncommon love warriors and had a few surprises throughout their three days together!  

Watch an uplifting video of highlights from the retreat here and check out this post about some ripples of kindness that emerged.

We are not merely what we do, but who we become by what we do.

'I No Longer Pray':

I no longer pray—  now I drink dark chocolate  and let the moon sing to me. I no longer pray— I let my ancestors dance  through my hips at the slightest provocation. I no longer pray— I go to the river and howl my ancient pain  into the current. I no longer pray— I ache, I desire, I say “yes” to my longing. I no longer pray as I was taught but as the stars crawl onto my lap like soft animals at nighttime  and God tucks my hair behind my ears  with the gentle fingers of her wind and a new intimacy is uncovered in everything, perhaps it's that I’m finally learning  how to pray. ... [Read more]

Seed questions for reflection: How do you relate to the notion of prayer as finding an intimacy with everything? Can you share a personal story of a time you recognized intimacy with everything? What helps you feel your connection to all that is?

Couple of stories from our KindSpring community this week ...

drjoybug: Hello All. Good Whatever ...
Hello all. Good whatever time of day it is by you Kindnesses this week ..Paid for lunch for a friend. .. pleasantly passed the time of day with another woman in the waiting room. [Read more...]

lt33: Act Of Kindness I ...
Act of kindness I was at the vending machine at the mall waiting to pick up my brother from work and this little boy probably around age 10 came up to me hey do you have 4 quarters for $1? I knew I might have had a little change left [Read more...]

Mish: 🍿❤️ Popcorn Kindness
One of our neighbor-friends knows hubby loves popcorn 🍿 (Skinny Pop popcorn)….when we returned home yesterday we found a bag on our porch….with no note , but we knew right away who it was from :) 😊 Hubby wrote this ditty & sent it to her : 🍿 “Somebody dropped a bag ... [Read more...]

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