Breakfasts

No news is good news, right?  While I haven't been finding a lot of time to sit down and write blog posts, I have been enjoying my time and learning a lot.

The big thing that happened just over a week ago: our first conference!  Our team hosted our very first Communicators for Christ Conference together (called a "sneak-peak", because we go into this first conference knowing we'll need to work out quite a few hiccups and bumps) in Norcross, Georgia.  For me, the biggest highlight of the conference was seeing how our team worked together.  We all, including the student instructors who joined us for this conference, were very intentional about displaying an attitude of positivity and encouragement...which comes in really helpful when details don't line up and logistics don't run as smoothly as planned.  Because we were ready to smile, pick up dropped balls, and watch each other's backs, the Georgia Conference was a really enjoyable time.

Since then, it's just been the intern team at the Training Center.  We've gotten to do some fun things as a team--go out for coffee, watch some great movies, go on long walks, crank out three media projects in two days.  One of my favorite things, though, has got to be the breakfasts.

The Sunday after we got back from the Georgia Conference, Mister Wendell (our tour manager) made an amazing brunch of blueberry stuffed french toast, and we sat around the table talking about our conference experience and telling stories about how we first found out we were interning.  It was a refreshing time of looking back, to yesterday and to five months ago, before we began to polish up our programs for our next conference.  Because I like to remember pivotal moments during this adventure, I took a picture of this breakfast.

I didn't get to take a picture of our other brunch, but I sure wish I did.  This past Saturday, we (okay, mainly Michelle, Kimberly, Deanna, and Jessica) cooked up a big crepe bar, complete with salted caramel sauce, cream cheese filling, nutella, sauteed mushrooms and spinach, bacon, and cheese.

The brunches were fun, but breakfasts have also served as some of the most meaningful times this week. Two separate mornings, we took breakfast outside to the Oasis (the Training Center terminology for the patio), and read aloud a chapter from Love Does by Bob Goff.  Our team will be working our way through this book over tour.  Goff is excellent at using funny, engaging, true anecdotes, and then drawing out mind-blowing truth.  Among other things, Love Does has prompted discussions about living genuine love, letting our stories shape us and not scar us, and living life to the fullest.

Until next time,
~AnneMarie

On the Thoughtful Side

Hey there!

A few days ago, I wrote this poem to sum up some of where my brain has been lately. I hope you enjoy. :) Please share your thoughts with me in the comments because I'd love to hear them.

Pressing forward, full steam ahead,

The tracks look like a roller-coaster of threads,

It all flys by too fast to take in.

I want to grab hold, I want to explore.

It never stops, there’s always more.

Like flashes of color,

Ribbons of texture,

Glimpses of diamonds,

And hints of herbs,

The ideas flow fast.

They will not stop.

And if they did, what would I be?

Would I be human? 

Would I be me?

The universe beyond the glassy eye,

Is where I live and die:

My living room,

My grocery store,

My ivy league school,

My country road.

Here I go to discover anew,

To interpret and color the lens I peer through.

My greatest joys stored in the main-street gallery,

My sorrows and losses the granite to walk on.

When I close my eyes, they really open.

I don’t see “banana”,

I see “complex”.

I don’t taste dinner,

But inhale epiphany.

But if I dwell too long on the “Who knows?” or “OH MY!”s,

This small brain might explode and die.

So I’ll gather the thought crops,

I’ll welcome them in.

I’ll make my thinker a place they thrive.

Then I’ll lift my windows and let light pour in,

And with new perspective, I’ll explore again.

It won’t all make sense,

I’d regret if it did,

But my life will be fully lived.

I am loving this experience and learning so much! Thank you for keeping up with us here and in your prayers. 
With love,
Jessica

Hurrah for a Super Sneak Peek

We just finished a fantastic Sneak Peek conference! Things went very smoothly and when there were bumps, we were incredibly flexible in working through them to learn and make things better. I'm so grateful for this team and for the community in GA who welcomed us and helped us kick off tour!

3....2....1....Go!

Here's a taste of our packed prep week before the GA Communicators for Christ conference. ALL the details and rehearsals, plus another program! I think our whole team was a little stir crazy by the end of the week. :P On the bright side, I was surprised and grateful for how prepared we were by the time we hit the ground!

Of Community, Caffeine, and Chocolate

Hello everyone!

Here's a vlog from the week following commissioning. 

 If you'd like to see more about our tracks and experience the epicosity that emerged from our track video filming session (and an uber-ton amount of work from Caleb, Clark, and the awesome Media PREP), you can see those here:

YCC:

Track YCC | CFC 2015 Experience from ICC on Vimeo.

Connect:

Track Connect | CFC 2015 Experience from ICC on Vimeo.

On Wednesday morning, we head out for our first conference. Please keep it in your prayers! God is going to do great things, but we are all feeling the pressure. I'm incredibly grateful to be working alongside this community. We have each other's backs even when things get crazy.

With as much energy as I can muster with the help of community, caffeine, and chocolate,

Jessica

P.S. I think I'm becoming a coffee addict. :P

Commissioning Weekend!

Hey there!

This past weekend was Commissioning Weekend. It's a very special time where the intern families and National Leadership come to the Training Center to see what the interns have spent the summer preparing. It was wonderful to see my family and catch up with them. 

This week, our team started reading Love Does by Bob Goff. I'm very excited about the theme and I know it will be helpful throughout tour and beyond. I would love prayers for our team to know how to best support and love each other as we face challenges and busy weeks. Also, personally, I want to grow in appreciating the people I work with and being fully present with them.

With love,

Jessica

Vlog 4

Hi Friends!

Here's a blog from two weeks ago when Jason's PREP team left and the next team arrived. It was so much fun having Jason here to share the experience. I've now finished writing my track and I'm thrilled with the results. It is detective themed! I'll be teaching the 6-10 year olds about the core values of ICC and how they can communicate for a change even at their young age. :)

We just came out of a great Commissioning weekend. You'll be seeing more about that soon!
I've been learning a lot lately about how important perspective is. I can choose to have a perspective of positivity and being engaged in the moment. That choice changes everything. It allows me to let go of little things that don't need to get in my way and it gives me the energy to enjoy life and love the people around me.
We head out for our first conference in two weeks! It's hard to believe the summer is almost over.

Enjoying life,
Jessica