Finishing Things & Beginning New Things
I did the thing. Half marathon is in the books, and I can check it off the list. It was hard, but I trained for 2 months to prepare for it. I will always remember this as something that I worked hard to accomplish.
Four Years
It feels now as if the last four years were a defining chapter of my life. I started working at the San Antonio Food Bank, welcomed Ruth & Avi into our lives, experienced the pandemic as a frontline worker, and punctuated that time running a half marathon. Most of my life has felt like mini-spurts or sprints of energy and resolve, while the last four years have been a figurative marathon with their moments of extreme pressure and tests of my resolve to push forward.
But like most seasons of life, there comes a time to close one chapter and open another. I’ve accepted a new role with SAMMinistries, leading their marketing efforts to strive for all people to have access to housing. Everything in my working life has been about serving humanity, and that will never stop.
My guiding principle has been centered around Luke 4:18-21, when Jesus entered the temple and read from scripture to announce:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”[a]20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Every organization I’ve worked for has - in some way - been guided by this type of good news– to serve their community, their neighbor. The San Antonio Food Bank has and continues to do this, and I will always be grateful for the part I was allowed to play in that service.
To New Beginnings
New beginnings feels redundant I guess. I suppose there are times when we return to a previous era, refreshed and renewed. But there’s something to be said for opening a completely new chapter, pulling back the first page on a new thing. I’m excited for what the future holds and this new opportunity with SAMM. But I also will never forget the time that I worked and served alongside my fellow hunger fighters at the San Antonio Food Bank.