Week prior to October 18, 2009

Welcome to the first posting of the Circle of Mercy (www.circleofmercy.org) Youth! We're a group of mostly middle schoolers learning how to make a difference. That simple, and that hard.


If you wish to re-wind some of today's (October 11) events, look at the paragraphs just below. For next week's assignment (yes, but call it fun-work, not homework!), we are re-writing The Parable of the Good Samaritan (You can read it here: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2010:25-37&version=MSG), situating the action and characters in or around Asheville, NC. 


Today we watched a few YouTube videos and commented on them.


To warm up, we began with a fun look at cats: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qit3ALTelOo. Don't take away any message! Just fun.


Then, things got serious with a hard look at a possible, anonymous, very fast future, that sort of scared most of us: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL9Wu2kWwSY&feature=related. Were/Are we in control, or just (huff, huff) in constant pain, trying to (pant, pant) keep up?


We discussed what that kind of future would look like for us individually, and as a group. Then, as a sharp contrast, we looked at two videos, each the brainchild of just one simple person with a simple passion, who wanted to make a difference. They speak for themselves.


1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr3x_RRJdd4 - Free Hugs Campaign
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlfKdbWwruY - Where in the World is Matt? For best results in this one, click the HD button so it's red. It takes longer to download, but the wait is worth it!


We then talked about what kinds of differences existed between the first video and the last two, where we might feel more connected, and how the vision of a single person could make a difference.


Next week, to repeat: Come and re-tell the story of the Good Samaritan, set in Asheville, 2009. We vote for the winner, who gets a bar of chocolate, the good kind. Again, to read the original story, see http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2010:25-37&version=MSG.


Marc