Make Space For Joy

The AIAIA delegation will be leaving tomorrow in order to return to our lives in Minnesota. This will be the last blog posting prior to our return to family and friends. We have traveled many roads, between sunrises and sunsets, we have encountered many men, women and children that have touched our lives forever. It would be impossible to define our experience by one word, however if I were to try, that word would be joy. Richard Rohr reminds us of the importance of this gift in his writing -

"I have come to realize that those who make space for JOY, those who prefer nothing to JOY, those who desire the utter reality, will most assuredly have it. We must not be afraid to announce it to refugees, slum dwellers, saddened prisoners, angry prophets. Now and then we must even announce it to ourselves.  In this prison of now, in this cynical and sophisticated age, someone must believe in JOY."

Our journey has been lush with the joy that is derived from the African belief in "umbuntu." It is the realization that we can only be truly human when we choose to work and live together in peace. I thank our South Africa family for their gift of umbuntu, and and I pray that our American family will draw on this African wisdom. May the journey continue... James Cassidy Arm In Arm In Africa Visit our Flickr page for more photos