it's 11:59 on Thursday night...

I just got home from a busy day. Not like me to be conscious so late. But here I am writing, instead of sleeping.

I invited myself to go to my little part-time jobette at 7 a.m,. this morning to work for six hours. Making the fresh-fruit yougurt parfaits and salads to replace all the ones that would either sell or get tossed in the morning before the store opens because they are out-of-date. I told them I was available to work, but had to come in early, to be able to leave soon after noon so I could get up to Harris County for the volunteer job I committed to for the weekend.

This is the weekend of the Emmaus walk, and I will be working 'behind the scenes', serving on the Worship team Friday and Saturday, and a bit on Sunday (before I have to go to work in the afternoon). That means some long days of getting up very early to drive up there at first light, and getting home way after dark. But the other option of staying in a big room with at least a dozen other people who will be tossing and turning, snorting and sneezing, snoring and coughing, if not wide awake and bumping and thumping around, letting bathroom stall doors slam all night long. and rattling around in the dark. Since I know I would not get any rest, and would not be alert all day without at least a partial night's rest, I would rather make the drive eight times (two trips x four days) than consider the completely unlikely possibility of staying over.

It is always a gratifying experience, to be an unseen worker, part of the team/group who discover the experience of serving so meaningful that they sign up and show up year after year to make Emmaus Walks a success. Opening the door to bring more devoted members into the Emmaus community who will carry on the work, and be the people who will volunteer into the jobs that they will eventually train others for, and continue to recruit more friends, family, into the fellowship.

I was telling my co-worker today who is serving as a volunteer for the first time - how it never fails to amaze me that it takes so many people to make these events run smoothly. There are probably forty or fifty people who give up their weekends, time with family to be the worker bees/individuals on different teams, in a number of different areas/capacities that make these occasions such a memorable time for those 'pilgrims' in attendance. Most of whom will be completely oblivious as to the effort all those volunteers put into making this time away from the world such a profound experience.