Busking and Faith Adventures

In an attempt to raise money to live on here in England, I attained a busking license for the city of Luton. Luton is a short train ride away and is a quite urban city. Very diverse, which is a pleasant change from Harpenden which reminds me a lot of Royal Oak in many ways. Full of yuppies, bless them.

I was very nervous the first time. A new city is like a stranger. You don't know how its going to respond to you.
I now go to my "pitch" a couple of times a week and play sweet songs in the spring air.
It was quite cold at first, and, after two hours of playing I thought my fingers would freeze. Now, the sun shines longer and harder. People smile more. Spring does that, doesn't it?
I play across the way from a florist who, from the very first time, leaves me flowers everyday.
They brighten up our lounge like none other.

God provided for all of my lecture fees, most of my flight costs, and even laid it on my leaders' hearts to pay for my travel insurance!

I leave in exaclty ONE WEEK (!) and still have about 1400 pounds left to raise, so please pray with me that God will continue to provide. He is taking me on quite the faith adventure.
There are a few other fellow students who have money left to raise, so please lift them up in prayer as well.

I've been learning so much, I dont know how Im going to remember it all. Someone once said a DTS is 5 years of church sermons packed into a 3 month lecture phase. I am inclined to believe it.

Ive loved learning about the Holy Spirit, the Character and Nature of God, and especially the Father Heart of God. I have been learning slowly that I am inclined to superimpose my earthly father's mistakes on my heavenly Father, even though He doesnt deserve it! I subconsciously assume that He must be just like the only father I've ever known, but He's so much more perfect!

Please pray for:

My health.
A hiking backpack/rucksack for my travels (7 weeks in South Africa, 2.5 in Newcastle)
The rest of my financial needs for outreach
My skills at long distance communicating. I have found they are quite lacking!

I will end with some of my favorite lingo that I have recently picked up from around the world

Australia
-- Keen - "I am quite keen for some ice cream"
--Beat THAT off - (forget that)

Faroe Islands
--Mamasta! - Mama Mia!

England
--Bless her/him: "She's quite a poor communicator, bless her."
--Well good: "Just had some chips, they were WELL good!" "Just saw a film it was WELL good!" "Did you see that guy? He was WELL fit!"
--Leg - pronounced "ledge": "Omw. He is SUCH a leg."

Love!

Jireh

As evidenced by the length of time since Ive written, Ive been keeping quite BUSY!
Rather than boring you with the details of my life here in England, I will tell you some of the stories of how God is currently rocking my world.
My outreach team and I are going to South Africa!!! [more details to come]




When I came here, I really thought that I would be learning a lot about God's Word and character. I have.
However, so much of what I have learned is centered on who I am in Christ. When I came here, I was spiritually DRY. Like a desert with a small water oasis in the very center where I could go for a drink every now and then. I tentatively asked God to break me. I told Him that I'd rather feel sick and broken by Him then to continue to feel nothing at all.


The third week, each member of my team was prayed over by a team who is devoted to spiritual freedom (the Freedom Team). They laid hands on each of us and asked God to speak about our individual Original Design [aka] the truth that God says about us.
I went in predicting all the issues they would pray for. Instead, God led them deeper into my heart and false beliefs I had about myself. God broke me. And there were tears. and snot. Haha! I was a mess, but God really proved Himself to me by speaking to me through people I didn't even know!



Would you like to hear what God says about me? It makes me so excited, so here it is:

I am:

[Person 1]
A town cryer, one who raises my voice and gathers the people to follow Christ
I announce, and I proclaim, I am loud enough to be heard
A woman of great strength [word] Isaiah 61: 1-3b!
I am an Oak of Righteousness!
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
because the LORD has(B) anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;[a]
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and(C) the opening of the prison to those who are bound;[b]
2(D) to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor,
(E) and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
3to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
(F) to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
(G) the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
(H) that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the LORD,(I) that he may be glorified.
[picture] A rushing river, strong and flowing, so much water it can move earth, even MOUNTAINS!


[Person 2]
A waving flag!
"When I get older, I will be stronger, they'll call me freedom, just like a waving flag."
Have a noble heart
A woman of persistence through trial and difficulty
Learn through trial and error
Have strength and boldness
Steady on a mountain
A bold warrior
(hard to believe)---> possess sweetness because I (will) hold onto God's Word like honey, the sweetness of the Word will flow from me
A Woman of the Word



[Person 3]
A woman of influence and great authority, have a presence that draws people and friends towards me
Created as a giver of life and energy in relationships
[picture] A sunrise, a symbol of life and energy
Social and relational
A leader with the wisdom of Esther



[Person 4]
A woman of faith [picture] volcano, my faith is deeper than what can be see
A learned scholar [picture] book shelves, with lots of books, the BIBLE remains MY book of life
[picture] library of books again [words] medicine and science
BUT I am persuing the unlearnable out of compassion
*I am in tears at this point*
[picture] a scale with wisdom on one side and compassion on the other where
wisdom=learned and compassion=unlearned
If you'd like to hear more about where this prayer session led, skype me sometime because we ended up in prayer for an hour and a half!


Something current you should all know are my financial needs.
As most of you know, I came here on faith that God would provide. He provided JUST enough for a one way plane ticket and $220 for an 8 month UK visa.
Lecture fees: 1600 pounds/$2500
Outreach fees: 1200 pounds/ $1900
Flights to SOUTH AFRICA (!!!): approx. 600 pounds/$960

I have pretty much been allowed to stay here for free in faith that God will provide.

If I have the lecture fees and plane tickets paid for, I will be able to go on outreach. Lecture fees need to be paid by week 8 (The week of March 7th) for me to stay here and complete my DTS. God has, so far, provided through various beautiful people slowly but surely. I currently need 778 more pounds ($1244) to complete my lecture fee payments, which means I'm halfway there!
We will be purchasing our plane tickets to South Africa soon. I will need approximately 600 pounds/$960 for the the tickets.

TOTAL NEED= $4000.
Pray with me! God will provide!



I took way longer to explain that awesome experience than I was expecting.
I will update again soon with details concerning my outreach and what else I've been learning!

I live in an Oval

-photo credit: Kellie Covert, fellow DTSer! -


The Highfield Oval to be precise.
Today was my second full day in Harpenden.
Jet-lagged. See below!

Countries represented: Argentina, Ecuador, Denmark, the Faroa Islands, England, Australia, Canada, the U.S., Columbia, Egypt, and Germany.

Work Duties: Dinner Cleanup which today consisted of scraping noodles from pots with Theresa, "our German."

Time Difference: 5 hours. Thus, I was exhausted during lecture from 9am-1pm (4am-8am Detroit time) and wide awake at 1 am (8pm Detroit time).

Fave: Getting to use the Bible as a textbook
Walking to town in the persistent rain
Turns of phrase like - "won't be a moment," "taking the mick"

Needs: Sheets and washcloths! The pound is worth almost TWICE our dollar! I spent a pretty pence on a pillow case, duvet cover, and towels.

I literally have NO money! God provided just enough for me to purchase a visa and plane ticket. I am now virtually penniless.
The cost for the lecture phase (first three months) is due the seventh week (5 weeks from now) and the outreach phase (last three months) is due later. I am truly living by faith right now that God brought me here and will somehow provide.
So if the Lord has laid giving on your heart, skip Starbucks and remember your sistah Kaylan! Who will otherwise be stranded in England with not even a return flight.

Observe: convenient Paypal option to the right.

Love from Harpenden,
Kaylan

For my beloved Grandma Jo, who, as of Thursday, is no longer with us.....
She was the glue that held us all together. She lead us with the strength of a soldier and the grace of a saint.
I stumbled across this poem, feeling quite sad. Although the title is rather grim, it is quite beautiful.
If anything, read the last verse....

The Reaper And The Flowers
a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


There is a Reaper whose name is Death,
And, with his sickle keen,
He reaps the bearded grain at a breath,
And the flowers that grow between.

``Shall I have nought that is fair?'' saith he;
``Have nought but the bearded grain?
Though the breath of these flowers is sweet to me,
I will give them all back again.''

He gazed at the flowers with tearful eyes,
He kissed their drooping leaves;
It was for the Lord of Paradise
He bound them in his sheaves.

``My Lord has need of these flowerets gay,''
The Reaper said, and smiled;
``Dear tokens of the earth are they,
Where he was once a child.

``They shall all bloom in fields of light,
Transplanted by my care,
And saints, upon their garments white,
These sacred blossoms wear.''

And the mother gave, in tears and pain,
The flowers she most did love;
She knew she should find them all again
In the fields of light above.

O, not in cruelty, not in wrath,
The Reaper came that day;
'Twas an angel visited the green earth,
And took the flowers away.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

and never the twain shall meet

Oh Canada, you failed me today. Perhaps it isn't fair to blame the evenings mishaps upon an entire fair nation.....

First things first.
Thanksgiving was a myriad of family turmoil and love. My best friend and part of her family were in town. Strickler visits are becoming a Thanksgiving tradition, I think.

Tonight ended the opening weekend of Irving Berlin's White Christmas at the Baldwin. I feel quite fresh as this marks my first experience as a cast member at Stagecrafters. Our director seems to demand the excellence of Broadway, but at the same time, recognizes that it IS community theater. We all laugh a lot. It amazes me how much of a family we have become amidst the 30 second costume changes, breaking jewelry, and wig catastrophes.


Ignore how green I look. I NEVER wear foundation! ick.

After the Sunday matinee ended around 5:15, we set out for Hamilton, Ontario to finally see Jeremy Fisher live (a dream not realized in Pontiac a few weeks ago as planned, but sweetened by the opportunity of meeting the fellow). I had even baked a sweet potato pie for Jeremy, Peter, and Julien.



Thinking nearly 4 hours would give us enough time for the trek to Hamilton, we stopped for gas, then fast food salads (observe our attempt to be healthy), then were stopped dead in our tracks by the HOUR AND A HALF we spent at the Blue Water Bridge border crossing! Naturally, the Acura overheated JUST as we reached the booth. The customs official certainly took his job seriously. He had the gall to have never HEARD of Jeremy Fisher! Imagine! haha. He simply could NOT understand why two Black American girls would want to travel to Hamilton in the dead of night and gave us quite a hard time about it. He was then kind enough to point out that our "car was smoking."

Despite his cool demeanor and mustache, the fellow was quite fetching in his skull cap and bulletproof vest :P When he finally let us through, we wandered around searching for a restroom. First attempt was out of order. Second attempt was at the back of a grocery store and looked as if it had been "out of order" all day. The car had some time to cool and we were on our way. I had no idea how bleak 402 was going to be. No lights, no stops for miles. My eyes were already beginning to droop. Kendall was unable to join me for the trip and Deb didn't feel comfortable driving a stick. We drove another hour before sighting a Tim Horton's sign.


Silly Americans expect immediate availability. We must be so spoiled, because it seemed like we drove forever before stumbling upon the Tim Horton's in Strathmore, Ontario. After more mini-mishaps (first failing to find the drive through, realizing they didn't accept visa, and realizing that the mocha looks different in Canada), we decided to pray about what to do next. We were so behind schedule at that point, we wouldn't have reached Hamilton until around 11. Driving 4 hours home in my state in the wee hours sounded like a bad situation to both of us. Especially since my tired driving abilities are nill. If I am tired, I sleep. Whether I am behind the wheel or not. Not good.

In the end, we turned around, pie still intact and feeling lonely and abandoned. (The pie, not us).
The customs official on the U.S. side, after hearing our dilemma, asked 'WHY in the world did I not slip my phone number into his pocket? Then you could just call him up!' NEVER would I. haha. She did inform us, however, that Sundays are usually the busiest days at the border (who knew?) and that THIS sunday in particular was one of the busiest border crossing days of the YEAR due to Canadians returning from Black Friday weekend shopping. Just our luck. Or, I guess, just not God's will :(

In conclusion, I am infinitely disappointed by having to miss such an epic opportunity, but will never stop being a fan of the wonderful musician, Mr. Jeremy Fisher. I hope tonight's show in your hometown was EPIC. I have no doubt that it was! Kendall and I send our love to Peter and Julien as well and wish they could have enjoyed the pie. Thank you Deb for joining me on this grand adventure and for striving to keep me awake using Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and the Beatles along with your own cunning wit and humor!


I shall now rest my weary bones in preparation for another busy week and try not to let my heart feel too acutely the pain of such a loss. I have decided NOT to blame Canada, but my inability to STOP and live. I can only GO, GO, GO, piling my plate high with more and more lovely life. I'll stop when I die.

Summer's end. It always makes me savor the morsels of life that make summer....summer

Earlier this week, my partner and I brought a patient downtown for a dialysis appointment. (Yes, un-glamorous, I know. And, yet, dialysis makes up a good 50% of the life of an EMT.)

As we stepped out onto the corner of West Grand Boulevard and Second, the thick, sultry, and sorrowful strains of a saxophone drifted through the air. I say "drifted" only because the wind had a graceful feeling as it carried the sound through the air.

I could have used a stronger word, since it arrested the souls of every passer-by no matter how hard they struggled to maintain their passionless, American personas, but I'm sure the old, homeless man delivering the melody didn't care what word should be used to describe it. He loved it enough to play it. And that was enough.

I spent Monday night in one of my favorite pursuits that often gets swallowed and pushed aside by school and work when Fall comes. Open Mic at the Plymouth Coffee Bean. Some performers were professionals enjoying the no-pressure vibe the Bean provides. Some were nervous high schoolers, having just discovering their talents, and performing for the first time. You can always read the thoughts on their faces: I love this, will they?

Of course, some performers were wonderful, some less wonderful. Being surrounded by music for a few blessed hours is always worthwhile.
It was one of those nights that can only be sweetened by summer. The night was just cool and, for once, free from humidity. Coffee was being downed like water.

Nights like those should always be spent with friends.

Dear friends.

The kinds of friends that one can communicate wordlessly. The ones who know you well enough to know when to slap you and when to let you be. The ones to whom you don't have to explain yourself. Do you know the ones I mean?

Friday night, I intended to get off work in plenty of time to go with my sisters to The Civil Wars concert in Pontiac in the Pike Room at the Crofoot. But, naturally, the whole world seemed to need an ambulance that night.
We arrived in time to hear their last three songs. A dissapointment? Maybe. If we had let it. But we were appeased by an unplugged after-show and Joy and John's careless mingling during the afterglow.

We talked to Joy about God.

Then to John about family.


Joy was one of those smiling individuals who has a sort of MEGAcompatible personality with everyone she meets. Her smile is permanent. The kind of person I can never quite manage to be. thankfully. Her voice amazed me with its strength.

John blew me away with his warmth. WARMTH. And he was huge! You know how people sometimes seem so big on camera, but turn out to be way smaller than you think in person? Like M. Ward, for example. Not John Paul. He was gigantic, broad, and warm. In every way possible.

The ease with which he wields his guitar and voice are enviable to be sure. I canNOT believe how well their voices blend. Male/female harmony blends that I can truly appreciate are hard to come by.

Only three others immediately come to mind:
1) The Swell Season
2) Mates of State
3) She & Him

I ran into a regular performer at the Bean who happened to be one of the openers that night. He gave me one of his CD's. Free music always puts a smile on my face. Especially when its good. And it is. Surprisingly honest. [Jeff Pianki's the name, by the way]

Is it bad that I am currently listening to Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk over and over and over again?


I've been experiencing a period of unfortunate writer's block as far as music goes. I hope it passes soon.

I hope to spend endless hours soaking in the Jazz Festival at Hart Plaza this weekend. I think you should too :)

Summer Swell Pt. 1

I’m not famous.
I’m not an art student with an awesome camera.
But I’m Deb’s friend, so I’ll write a blog anyway. And she will read it.

My life for the past month has been a celebration of summer.
I spent three weeks in the sweet South where I learned to run at night, love the smell of Egyptian Queen tobacco, and that God wants to fill my mind with Himself.

I experienced Greyhound yet again when I traveled from Dallas to Birmingham. What an adventure that was. I utilize the word “adventure” only as a mechanism to make myself feel better about the food stuck to the seats, the coolant that dripped from overhead, and the creepy old-timer that sat next to me.

I flew home from Birmingham on Thursday and went straight to my 10-year-old brother’s tournament baseball game. Klark’s team had made it to game 6, the highest anyone from their age level and league had ever risen, but lost that day. They had played like men, but that day they cried like boys :(

From there, my bags in tow, I went to band rehearsal with Katie on Grosse Isle. The Willing had two shows that weekend. My dear friend, Stephanie’s wedding in Mackinaw and the iArt Festival in Redford.
We left for Mackinaw the next day.
Four and a half hours to the tip of the mitten.
Four and half hours of pure Michigan.

Good music was scarce past Bay City, so we talked about life and I twisted my unruly hair.

The next day I ran in the early morning with the pines and the crows, the smell of the Great Lakes filling my heaving lungs.


We were late to the reception of course, but arrived in time to play and sing as the boat that carried ourselves and the wedding party slid between Lake Huron and Lake Michigan beneath the Mackinac Bridge.

As beautiful as the wedding was, I was pleasantly surprised at my little heart.
No emptiness. No girlish longings. As independent as ever. An attitude befitting an Iron Maiden ;)

We left in the rain and sped back to Detroit. Kendall rode back with us. Shockingly, we arrived in time to catch the Avett Brothers at the Philmore! Every cent was worth my while. The Brothers delivered their usual energetic and heartfelt performance and I danced and sang my heart out.


Better still, Ken and I got to meet them afterwards. I was finally able to ask Scott about the meaning of my favorite song: Down With the Shine.
They were as warm and genuine as old friends and I can’t wait to see them again!

The next day, I carried my weary feet to Redford for the art festival. Unfortunately, my exhaustion and a less-than-competent sound guy made for a sub-standard show. Time to shove the practice notch up a gear!

I think I might move to England next year.
More later :)