I am approaching the wake of what I would describe as, "normal life." Everything is about to begin...I have a number of opportunities that are just about to begin. Starting this week work, tutoring at the high school, and other volunteer jobs commence. The fact that my days might just become super busy does not scare me or stress me out. During my time at Biola, I actually was more productive in the time that I was busy with running and with school and all of the other things I was involved in than in the times that I had a week or two of time off from running. There were more opportunities to procrastinate when I was not running...so that is what I did, Procrastinate. But in this stack of dry wood about to catch a spark there is a lot of me that is going to miss being free to explore the city by bike or by foot.
With my free time I have also had the opportunity to continue to learn skills and arts that I enjoy. I am trying to figure out what learning looks like outside of classes, credits and degrees. Even, how can I make myself more marketable for jobs that I am looking for without working toward a masters degree. Reading is one easy way that I have been able to get started at that. Reading books about Social Entrepreneurship or writing a lot might get pushed to the side as the clock begins to tic again. As for right now, it is somewhat on standstill.
On that note, something tragic happened. The band on my watch broke transforming a wristwatch into what is now an improvised pocket watch. There have been far too many times that I have looked down at my wrist only to find a pale silhouette of where my watch should be. I have only realized how much I depend on my watch in its absence. I live constrained by the grip of the minute and second hands.
Also, only after having to buy all my own food and not have the convenience and endless supply of food from the school cafeteria do I realize how much it costs to feed myself. I am starting to budget my expenditures looking at the past month and deciding what I can live without and how I can be increasingly wiser with my money. But fortunately this coming month my personal balance sheet will not be painted all with red, but with some green as I now have an income generating job.
So through the Bicycle Bread Company I have been able to meet some people. And one of the guys who works in the bakery there heard my story about coming to Boyle Heights and that I had graduated from Biola and was looking for work. It just so happened that his wife went to Biola, studied art there and is now working for an ocarina making business. You might ask, "what is an ocarina?" Well I am just beginning to grasp what one is also. Think an ancient flute, made from ceramics or clay that the only place that I had heard of one before was on the Legends of Zelda Nintendo game. Well, I like to play the harmonica, so maybe a four to twelve holed flute isn't much different...
As I am making ocarinas I am also listening to an audiobook. In it, the author talks about Romans 9:20-24 and I took a sobering look at myself and thought about how often that I think that God should do things certain ways. And then I think how foolish it is that me, the clay, should tell the almighty potter how he should mold and make me. I am inclined to think, 'well the analogy breaks down because clay is not a thinking being. But then I think that it is completely fitting because compared to God's wisdom and knowledge our thinking is like bricks, stones, or clay. I wouldn't do things God's way, especially I would never think of sending my only son to die for humanity.
The intricacies of making these instruments are subtle, and there is much to learn on the subject. The work environment is more than I could have asked for: friendly, classical music playing, learning something new every day, getting to know the other workers better, and as one of them put it..."sientete familia" it feels like family.
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