Day One: Here we go...

I debated for a couple of weeks about whether or not to post in the days leading up to my sabbatical, a count down of sorts, but in the end, my indecision was the decision.  I put it off deciding until I ran out of time.  So here we are, fresh new blog for a fresh new sabbatical.

My plan is to write every day, a discipline of these three months.  It is a lofty goal for one for whom discipline is not a forte.  But I'm determined, so keep rooting for me.  There will be some times in my travels when we will be out of internet range (What?? It is 2011!). But otherwise, I hope to keep this up.  We shall see.

For those who haven't heard, I am on sabbatical from my work as the associate rector at a large Episcopal parish in Atlanta.  I'm going to be travelling around with my family, husband, 4 year old son and 2 year old daughter, capturing photographs of the hands of people receiving Eucharist.  I hope to interview these folks to learn about what they then do once they have taken the Body to go out into the world and become the Body.  What do you do with your hands?

We're going to Abingdon, Virginia; Asheville, North Carolina; Norfolk, Virginia; Jacksonville, Florida; San Francisco and New York City.  What in God's name do these places have in common?  People we love live there!  So we get the double-blessing of working on this project and spending time with our favorite people in the world.  I"ll be doing a little bit of shooting around Atlanta, too, in some great congregations nearby.  It will be really hard to avoid my own beloved parish, but I'm trying to get some distance, so I will try to be strong.

Finally, the other big piece of this sabbatical time is training for the San Francisco marathon.  I've never run one before.  I am terrified and determined in equal parts.  We'll see which one wins come July.

Collect for the Good Use of Leisure
from the Book of Common Prayer


O God, in the course of this busy life, give us times of
refreshment and peace; and grant that we may so use our
leisure to rebuild our bodies and renew our minds, that our
spirits may be opened to the goodness of your creation;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.