IT'S NEVER TOO LATE!

One thing I did yesterday, which I forgot to mention, is that in between church and my trip downtown, I went to another church hall for a Lions Club pancake breakfast.  Two other people from the church were going after the service and I got a ride from them.  That is one of the things I liked about the East Side neighborhood when I first started going to the church I attend.  There was a strong sense of community, similar to the small town atmosphere I wished I had grown up in as a girl.  When a function was being held by one church, or organization, everyone found out about it and they all supported each other.  

There was still a large crowd at the pancake breakfast, but it not like it used to be.  Our church tried to have a free meal for the community once a month and stopped after doing two I think, or maybe we only had one.  It was well attended, but only by the church members and those of the new church our church has planted for teens and young adults who have not come from a church background.  

The ethnic makeup of the area has changed, with mostly Hispanic families moving in, and unfortunately the older residents are afraid of these people.  Many have of them  have moved to Indiana or into senior housing where they feel more secure.  Some of  the kids are causing problems, because they are in gangs.  Our Pastor works with the police and community leaders in an Anti-Gang Initiative and starting the new church is one of the ways he is trying to reach out to them and help them change their lives. As he said in church awhile ago, they are not bad kids, they just need to be challenged to do something good, rather than destructive and harmful.

I really wish people would not be so hasty in making judgments about people they do not know.  Take time to learn about them first.  We all have the same needs and desires.  The only real difference is that we may have grown up in a different culture, which practices different ways of trying to reach those needs and desires.  The song that was added to the movie "South  Pacific" is true, "You’ve got to be taught to hate and fear."  Look at babies and young children and their interaction with one another.  They are curious.  They will try each other out and then decide if they can get along.  Why can’t more of us adults do that?   

After church, I went downtown to attend a concert of the Chicago Chamber Orchestra at the Cultural Center. The concert was "mostly Mozart" with a piece by Father McKenna, who used familiar Irish hymn tunes.  He was there and gave his own introduction. On the bus, I made some notes about ideas that I may want to follow up on and write about.

I spent a couple of hours copying some of these blog entires to a blog I opened on writing.com.  I thought it may get read more there, especially if I promote it. That’s all I have to share now.