My Day/Adventure with June

This Saturday was a day I'll never forget. I went from going on an adventure by myself to going on it with someone 50+ years older than me.

The plan started out to go take the bus from Brooks-Howell to downtown. Walk and eat lunch at a Korean restaurant. Walk to the bus station. Take the 30+minute ride to the movie theatre and watch Aquaman. Depending on the time, take the bus or Lyft back, with potential dinner.

What actually happened is that we discussed the plan in the dining room on Friday. I showed June the trailer, so she would know what she was getting herself into. Even on Thursday, when I was describing the movie and how long it would be, she just said "If it gets too loud, I'll take out my hearing aids" and "Wake me up for the good parts." Someone nearby heard our conversation and offered to give us a ride down to the theatre. We also discussed getting Korean food for lunch or dinner. Finally, our plan was settled.

We met in the lobby on Saturday, bundled up for the cold weather to come in the night, June in a Santa hat and a sweater with "Ho Ho Ho" across it, and drove down to Biltmore Park to the Regal. It amazed her that my tickets were on my phone and they just scanned them to get in. We also passed a photo booth, where June commented that "she hadn't seen one in years." We got popcorn and water and walked to our seats. We sat in the theatre for three hours, watching advertisements, trailers ("there's the one for concessions!"), and finally the movie. Throughout the movie, I would look over at her and check on her, see what her reactions were to the scenery or even language (Aquaman is PG-13 after all). Afterwards, she was just befuddled by it being underwater most of the time. I pointed out in the credits to all the people who were on the CGI teams; she was amazed.

We took a Lyft from there to The Korean House Restaurant, where I had my coveted Bi Bim Bab and June got Jab Chae. Both were quite delicious. We recalled eating other Asian cuisines throughout our college years with international students. We talked about when we learned to use chopsticks and June's travels in the Far East. We had a great time.

One of the questions from that day that has still stayed with me was "How will you introduce me to people? As your grandmother?" I immediately replied, "No, as my friend." She smiled. "Good. That's what I hoped for." It was a day of intergenerational fun, of learning new and old ways, that I will treasure forever.

June and I in the theatre

June and I with the Aquaman poster.
There was no cutout sadly.

June with her Jab Chae; my Bi Bim Bab.

Intentional Community

Tonight has been one of the most meaningful ones yet.

After our respective afternoons today, we gathered around the tv and watched my favorite Christmas movie (it's A Year Without A Santa Claus for those of you wondering). Afterwards we talked, but not about the movie. We talked about community and what it means to us.

One pillar of the Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) year is intentional community. We've been living together for three months so far, but something has felt amiss. Finally, we confronted it. We all defined what community means to us and the expectations we had for this year. Several people had thought it would be easy. Several people thought that we would "coexist" and be roommates. We all had different definitions of community.

What does community mean? Who is our community? Community is the people who will be there for you no matter what. They are more than friends and family. You should not be afraid to go to anyone in your community for anything. Yeah, there are boundaries, but that's part about being intentional: knowing who to go for what and when.

We all came to the conclusion that we weren't putting forth effort to get to know everyone. We became comfortable in two separate cliques and weren't trying to get to know the others. The people we hung out with were like us and we naturally gravitated towards each other.

But that's not how we should live for this year. Yes, we can appreciate the people who are like us but we haven't been trying to get to know the others who aren't. For this year to be successful, we need to work with each other, learn each others strengths and weaknesses, lights and shadows, loves and pet peeves. We have to keep trying harder or we are going to miss what half this year is about.