The Weekly Wrap-Up: August 24-28, 2020

I started the Weekly Wrap-Up in 2016. I didn't realize it had been that long. But I know I started this in 2016 because I've been going back through my blog in an effort to quantify the last 10 years for my prayer letter. 

Related to that, do you remember when I used to do short little videos of my day? Do you miss those? I feel bad, like I'm not giving you any variety these days. I feel very boring. I used to do things. Granted, there's a pandemic, so no one is doing much of anything. But still. 

This was quite a week. I can't really say it was a good one. In fact, parts of it were pretty bad. I'm not sure how much longer I can last under this constant thrum of anxiety before just curling up into a ball and sobbing into a pillow. 

Oh well. On with the work. Always the work. 

So, like I said, this was an interesting week. We (the production team) have been slowly working toward upgrading our processes and software. There's always an element of wanting to do things better or faster, but we have made incredible progress over the last few months. We are now working in Adobe CC, which if you don't know about Adobe, it's the latest and greatest. Previously, we were working in CS4. Think at least four generations back. It was fine, but it certainly had its issues. As does CC. There's always something that doesn't work quite the same way, so we're kicking the tires and doing some road testing. By 2021, we should be working exclusively in CC, but I'm keeping CS4 around just in case. So part of my week was resetting my workspace to accommodate the new configuration. 

My test project for this has been Amharic. Yes, we are finally getting around to working in this truly fascinating language. Amharic is primarily spoken in Ethiopia, which naturally makes me think of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch. It's such a cool connection. We're just getting started, but I'm already finding it quite different from other languages. There are always different things to watch out for. Full stops in this language (periods in English) sometimes look like :: and sometimes look like something I can't represent with this font. And I wouldn't even begin trying to speak it. 

The rest of the week was filled with little projects - helping people with computers, proofing Outreach pages, finishing my next prayer letter. That should be winging its way to you shortly. 

And that's it. That's the week. I'm trying to find some days I can take off soon. I need a break. But we'll see. 

Bye!

The Weekly Wrap-Up: August 17-21, 2020

This week got busy quickly. Like, some weeks you can take a little time to get situated, but this week was like being thrown into the pool as soon as you arrived at the party. The good thing is that these weeks are never boring. 

French is our theme this time. We basically reformatted everything because we'd done some updates, but it was fairly tight, so we went ahead and published it. And I have apparently adopted the royal we. Anyway, the other big project this week is my next prayer letter. It's coming along, but it's hard to sum up 10 years in one letter. True, I've talked about it in three separate venues now, but none of them really seem to capture the reality. I'm not sure anything could. Maybe in my inevitable book. 

Part of working on the prayer letter means I've been scrolling through the last 10 years of blog posts. It's a great way to see just how much things have changed. And how much they haven't. Seriously, there have been times this week when I'm literally groaning in my office at my own writing. If I find myself that irritating, I can only apologize to the rest of you. But it's probably not going to change. Or if it does, it'll take another 10 years to notice. 

And that's about it. Lots of meetings, both scheduled and impromptu, and some side projects that may or may not come to light in the near future. In the meantime, I truly hope you all are doing well. It's a rough road we travel these days.

Bye!

The Weekly Wrap-Up: August 10-14, 2020

I've been really bad this week about keeping track of what I've been doing. I just know I've tried to be very quiet about it because Sarah and the others have been doing an online training event. They've developed a program called "The Disciple-Making Journey" and have about 40 people participating. They were on two days this week and will be on two days the week after next. So when I had meetings (of which there were many), I made sure my door was closed. Which is very sad and lonely. 

But that's life, sometimes. I'm starting to really feel the impact of being so isolated. It's rough. And chances are it isn't ending anytime soon. But we press on. 

You'll notice I posted a short reflection on my 10-year anniversary. I've also been working on my next prayer letter, which will also look back on 10 years with OMS. It can feel sometimes like you aren't moving, but when I look back at old blog posts and Facebook statuses and diary entries, I can see just how much I've lived through and done and seen, and I remember the people I've met. This year, of course, changed a lot of things, but it happens more often than we realize. I guess our norms just shifted a little more rapidly this time rather than the gradual changes to which we've become accustomed. 

This too shall pass.

Bye!

A Decade of Service

10 years.

Crikey.

I told Patty Collins once that I wanted to make it to 10 years at OMS because then, when I die, I will make it into the Outreach In Memoriam section.

She told me I needed a better reason to stay.

Which, yeah, okay, that's probably true. And there's the whole "God called me here and won't let me leave" angle that we can talk about ad nauseum.

Ahem.

Anyway, the whole Outreach thing got me thinking - what exactly is going to end up in those 3-4 sentences?

It feels very "old white male politician" to be talking about my legacy. But that's where I find myself.

There's a temptation to talk about "the work." And the work is important. I've been in 3 distinct departments since I joined OMS in 2010. There have been aspects of each I've enjoyed. And there have been aspects of each that have been challenging. I'm a behind-the-scenes person. I like it that way. And while I've learned never to say never around here, it's unlikely that I'll ever be a front-line missionary. But the work I do supports people on the front lines. You can't fight a world war without your factories churning out B-52s and M16s.

But I don't want it to be all about the work. That reduces a life down to a series of metrics, and while useful for statistical purposes, they don't really tell you anything about a person. And as we all know, I'm all about the individual.

So I asked around. And as it turns out, people had some pretty nice things to say about me.

"You have a true passion for Christ that won't be swayed by uncomfortable topics and issues that might shake others."

"I am your #1 fan." (That might have been my sister.)

"You have always been obnoxious." (That might have been my other sister.)

"I am very proud of your work at OMS and your commitment to the Christian faith."

"She came, she served, she made a difference."

"You have allowed yourself to learn lessons that God is teaching you, even if you didn't really want to be taught."

And my favorite: "Lover of history, lover of swords, and most importantly lover of Jesus."

That sword thing came up a lot, oddly enough.

One definition of 'legacy' is a gift that is handed down from generation to generation. And I think I want my gift to be Jesus. There's a song by Casting Crowns that spells it out really well. 

All the kingdoms built, all the trophies won

Will crumble into dust when it's said and done

'Cause all that really mattered (is)
Did I live the truth to the ones I love?

Was my life the proof that there is only One

Whose name will last forever?

I don't want to leave a legacy.

I don't care if they remember me.

Only Jesus.

I've only got one life to live.

I'll let every second point to Him.

Only Jesus.

Let's face it. The idea of a legacy is getting some serious facetime in the news these days. Statues are being torn down, some of people who probably shouldn't have been immortalized, some of people who lived lives worthy of remembrance. All of them did good and bad things. But what counts is their legacy. Did they do something worthy of being emulated?

Here's what I want people to remember about me: She loved Jesus, and she encouraged others to do the same.

So what's next? Another 10 years? I have no idea. I didn't think I'd last this long in the first place, so I couldn't begin to speculate. I promised a long time ago (as referenced above) that I'd be here as long as God wanted me to be here. And if he needs me elsewhere, that's where I'll be.

Wherever the journey leads, I hope you'll be right there with me. I appreciate all of you (silent though many of you are), and I thank God that he has provided such excellent companions along the way. 

Here's to the next stretch... 

The Weekly Wrap-Up: August 3-7, 2020

How is it August already? That doesn't seem possible.

Weird time notwithstanding, we now find ourselves drifting inexorably into the latter half of the year. Whatever goals we set back in January are well and truly null and void by now, unless they were to learn how to hibernate and shun our fellow man. Which comes close to what I try to do every year, so maybe we're not as far off as we could be.

I find myself drifting in other ways, mostly to do with concentration. It's a good thing we have a lot of projects going on because I flit from one to the next like a hummingbird searching for nectar. And yet I am apparently devoted to this overly poetic turn of phrase today.

I blame it on my discovery of "The Magnificent Seven." The TV show, not the movies. There is a character therein who possesses a most loquacious spirit, and I find myself emulating said gentleman with impunity.

I think I'm done now.

So, projects. I'm publishing English booklets in different art sets. I'm also using the opportunity to make note of some things we can change or improve the next time around. Not that I think it will be soon, but it's good to take the opportunity while it's there.

I did have something vying for my attention this week, and that was my 10-year recognition lunch on Wednesday. Yes, inexplicably, I have made it 10 years with OMS. That seemed unlikely at best when I started, but here I am, still plugging away. It is indeed fortunate that God knows us better than we know ourselves, because this is not the path I would have chosen. I'm not sure it's what I would choose knowing all that I know now. It's also fortunate that God doesn't reveal the future all that often these days. I'm not sure we'd follow with such abandon if he did.

Anyway, a post reflecting on those 10 years is coming forthwith. I'll finish it in the same timely fashion that I do everything else. Sooo, sometime next year.

Just kidding. Probably.

Bye!