The Weekly Wrap-Up: March 23-27, 2020

The days are starting to blur together a bit, so I'm going to do my best to be coherent, but please don't hold it against me if I'm not.

(Also, I think I'm headed for some severe agoraphobia when this is over. Reintegrating me into society will be a lengthy process.)

Is anyone else going through these periods of wanting to know everything about what's going on and then not wanting to know anything that's going on? As a historian, I should probably be paying more attention and taking better notes, but I've come to realize that I enjoy studying history far more than I enjoy living through it. (Can I express my admiration for people like Mary Chestnut and Anne Frank right now? Their ability to document life in the midst of chaos is a treasured resource for historians. But I'm just not cut out for it.)

Did I mention I'm having trouble concentrating? Cabin fever has set in. I apologize.

Okay, here's where things stand at OMS (at least with the US HQ). The office is officially closed. Those of us who live on campus and can walk to work are welcome to do so. We just do our best not to get too close to anyone else. Everyone else is working from home. I decided to come into the office every day since I will get exactly nothing done if I try to work from home. Also, I need to keep some kind of routine, otherwise I'm gonna go nuts.

More nuts.

So what have we accomplished in the world of T&M this week? Well, I finished GR04 of English F and realized that I'll probably need to go back to U and B. The more you look at something, the more you notice that needs to be changed. I've also been taking a closer look at the latest new booklet called "Tell Your Story." So far, I've completely rewritten the first three paragraphs. I'm not sure the original authors will appreciate my edits, but you can't quarantine me and expect me not to do my worst. (I would have done it anyway. This thing is awful. Not necessarily the content, but it's not really formatted in the style of T&M.)

That's about it for the week. I fully expect next week I'll be reporting in from some nest I've built in the woods, not having showered for days. At the rate things happen these days, it really wouldn't surprise me. But hey, I have plenty of toilet paper.

Bye!

The Weekly Wrap-Up: March 16-20, 2020

Here's the deal: I'm staying pretty quiet about this whole thing. Why? Because I'm in just about the best position I can think of to weather this out (aside from being an independently wealthy reclusive author who lives in the woods). I have plenty of food. Plenty of toilet paper. I still have a job, and people are still depositing money into my support account. I have an apartment, where I live on my own, and I have a two minute walk to my office, where again, I am almost entirely on my own. I'm an introvert, so that doesn't bother me. Even if it did, I have access to the Internet, wherein there are millions of people who I could, if I chose, interact with. Mostly I don't, because people be crazy right now. And that's okay. There's a lot to be anxious about. But I'm mostly not. Because I also have a God who loves me and whom I love and trust to get me through this, whatever that ends up looking like. I do worry for my family and for friends who aren't in nearly as good a position as I am. I worry about what the future might look like. But I don't dwell on it. I do my part, and as for the rest, I have zero control over it.

It actually reminds me of this wall hanging my dad got from someone in Jamaica on one of our trips there. It says something like this:

You only have two things to worry about: either you are well, or you are sick.
If you are well, there is nothing to worry about.
If you are sick, there are only two things to worry about: either you get better, or you die.
If you get better, there is nothing to worry about.
If you die, there are only two things to worry about: either you go to Heaven, or you go to Hell.
If you go to Heaven, there is nothing to worry about.
If you go to Hell, you'll be so busy shaking hands with all of your friends that there won't be time to worry!

Helpful? Unlikely. But it makes me laugh, and that's really all I'm going for right now.

So, on to actual work stuff. All week, it's just been Sarah and me in the ECC hallway, and today I'm on my own. It's kind of up to everyone where they want to work, unless they've been traveling, so most people are staying home. There's really no point in me staying home (no Internet) so I trudge over to the office every morning and pretty much do what I've always done - sit in my office working on booklets and listening to music or podcasts.

MIZO CHIN IS PUBLISHED!!!!! Sorry for yelling at you, but I'm really glad this project is finally done. Well, mostly. We still have to do the two new booklets, but that's easily done. We didn't want to send those to them until everything else was done. No distractions. But now the people of Myanmar (at least those who speak the Mizo Chin dialect) will be able to use T&M for evangelism and discipleship. And since Hakha Chin is also done, they can coordinate their efforts more easily.

Now, we're back to publishing English art sets. That should hopefully go pretty fast since I speak the language. ;)

Hey, seriously though, be safe out there. Take care of yourselves and each other, from a safe distance of course. If we're going to spread something, it should be the love of Jesus.

Bye!

The Weekly Wrap-Up: March 9-13, 2020

Let's start with the thing that's on everyone's mind - COVID-19.

No, OMS offices aren't closed. Yes, we're taking things seriously. We've cancelled some events, and we are restricting large gatherings, such as chapels. Many of my coworkers have opted to stay home - I believe the phrase is self-quarantine. The rest of us are practicing my new favorite phrase: social distancing. (Turns out, I've been practicing for this pandemic my entire life!) That means a lot of time alone, in my office, doing what I was already doing but with a lot more email and video chats.

I'm not afraid of what is coming, but I am cautious. I don't plan on hoarding toilet paper or hand sanitizer, but I do plan on being smart and limiting my interactions with others. That protects me, and it protects them. Panic isn't sensible. Neither is carelessness. I hope that you can be a comfort to others in a spirit of love and understanding. Don't shame those who are afraid. There is much to fear in this world. But we know the power of One who has conquered fear and death.

Okay, on to actual work stuff. I had devotions on Monday, in which I talked about Purim, the Jewish festival celebrating Esther's rescue of the Jewish people in Persia. It's one of my favorite books of the Bible, and it also inspired one of my favorite books/movies - "One Night With the King." It's a fantastic interpretation of the story of Hadassah.

I was able to finish GR11 of Mizo Chin! I was hoping to complete the entire language, but I forgot that Missionary Manual is part of GR12, and it's 120 pages long. So that will keep until Monday.

We had staff briefing on Wednesday. It was a long one, but most of the information was known to me already. We are losing a couple more people, though. We really need more workers. Good thing we've been focusing on the 10:2 challenge. But seriously, if you know anyone who is looking for a way to serve in missions, send them our way.

We had a second chapel on Thursday (just before we cancelled chapels for the rest of March) to celebrate Founders Day. Two of our founders had the same birthday (March 13, but you know, Friday the 13th, not great), so we celebrate the history of OMS on that day. I had to leave early because I had a dentist appointment. But I learned some things I hadn't known before. We have a very long and rich history, and as much as some stuff exasperates me, I can still appreciate the sacrifices made by those who have taken on the missionary mantle over the years. They answered the most important call, and I'm so proud to follow in their footsteps.

That's pretty much it for me. Wash your hands, look after your elders, and have a blessed weekend.

Bye!

The Weekly Wrap-Up: March 2-6, 2020

I could spend half my life reading emails. I blame Ray Tomlinson. This is a terrible medium for communication. And yet, I'm incapable of just deleting them under the assumption that there's nothing in there I care about. (I do actually delete most of them. But even knowing how subject lines are constructed for maximum eye-catching, I don't always resist. Maybe it's professional pride? I have to show support for a fellow wordsmith.)

Anyway, as you might have guessed, there was a lot of file maintenance this week. It's easy to get snowed under, and these little tasks seem so insignificant until you're looking for a file and it's not where it's supposed to be. Actually, it was a real mixed bag of tasks this week. We had Orientation, which always means putting my drawing skills to use for the history of missions presentation. My favorite part, each time, is when our new missionaries put their names on the timeline - you can pray for Peggy, Duane, Jack, and Megan as they begin their journeys.

Then on Monday afternoon, I sat in on an unexpected interview for a VCP admin role. I should say it was unexpected for me, not for the applicant. We'd gotten a call from Rwanda (we have a team doing training there) in crisis, so Brian was talking to them when the applicant arrived. Which is how I got pulled in. It was fine. The applicant was nice. I did an emergency output of a French booklet to supplement the training material. All good.

On Wednesday morning, I covered the front desk for Sophie. We get a lot of phone calls at OMS. Most are legit inquiries, but some are just weird. Fortunately, I'm great at making stuff up. :) But look at what Sophie left for me!

Awesome, isn't it?!

Between all of that, I managed to finish another group of Mizo Chin. We're so close! I know I keep saying that. But we really are getting there. And other projects are moving along as well! We even got a group of Russian back from the translators this week. Dude! I honestly didn't know if the translators were still around.

And that's about it for the week. I've got to figure out why my computer is doing weird things, but that's a concern for next week. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy my weekend.

Bye!