We are Itchy in Virginia

We are definitely California folks, and we are not used to so many mosquitoes. The kids and I have gotten eaten alive, and we are now covered in ointment. Last night, the kids saw fireflies for the first time, they are amazing creatures and we were all mesmerized by them.

Here’s a picture of the Matt, Paige, Ava and Torrey in Franklin, Tennessee. Torrey and Ava are the daughters of our life-long friends that are originally from San Diego but have been in Neck-err, we mean Jesus-ville for the last 10 years. It was so good to catch up and reminisce. Jimmy and Jason played lots of music together over the years and sat in the basement listening to old recordings.

We left Nashville and headed towards North Carolina. Even though it was late and the facility was closed, we drove through the hills of Tennessee to find the Highlander Center outside of Knoxville on Sunday night. It was a touching moment that culminated our pilgrimage through the history of the Civil Rights movement in the South. We sat gazing at the buildings in moonlight as fireflies sporadicly flashed about. Some have said that San Diego is the 21st Century version of Montgomery, AL. I don’t want to diminish the struggle and uniqueness of what went on in the South during that point in our country’s history. But still, we whose hearts long for the humane treatment of all people in our region back home in border town, find resonance with much of the struggle in this part of the country. Alabama, in particular, has touched a part of all of us. We feel strangely akin to it because of our region’s current struggles.

Tuesday night we had a Justice Kitchen class in Charlotte, North Carolina. We pulled into a farmers market in Asheville, and found the most wonderful market I’ve ever been to. They are open everyday throughout the year, and there were dozens of tables filled with the plumpest fruits and vegetables I’ve ever seen. Not only was everyone friendly, but produce is cheap here. Not cheap in the sense that it is the bottom of the barrel leftovers, but in the sense that there is abundance in this state. Here’s a few pictures from our shopping trip through the market, I couldn’t help but take photos of everything.

For our Justice Kitchen we prepared and enjoyed black beans and pan-seared corn, stuffed bell peppers, green salad and peach cobbler. Matt and Paige enjoyed playing with new friends and new connections were made in North Carolina. Our new friend, Josh, posted about the class here. And Steve posted photos here.

After the class, late on Tuesday night, we headed to Winston-Salem, North Carolina to stay with some friends. Our friend Austin Pfieffer–who has written several articles on the Ecclesia Collective blog and plays in the band Goodnight Man–was a part of our community for about a year and recently moved back to Winston-Salem. Austin put us up with some wonderful friends for our time in town. Wednesday afternoon we drove around downtown, found a farmers market, enjoyed Old Salem Museum and Gardens, and had dinner at the Mellow Mushroom with Austin, Brian, Melissa and Paul, and Erin was our server (congrats to the newlyweds Austin and Erin!) Together, this wonderful group of people are working through plans to start an intentional Christian community in town called, the Genesis Project. We are excited to be a part of their journey now!

We have just arrived at the home of Seth and Leah in Williamsburg, VA. Seth and Leah are hosting tonights Justice Kitchen. Our kids are enjoying playing with their son, Judah. We stopped at the Toano Farmer’s Market before heading over. We found lots of fresh, local vegetables and fruit. Again, prices are great!

More to come!