We loaded a maxi van and a mini van with eight students, three staff, and luggage, and left campus at 8:00 AM on Sunday, October 25. We headed east toward Brooklyn, New York and the enjoyed the stunning views of fall colors in the mountains.
By 6:00, we arrived at Dwight and Marlene Nisly’s house. They took us a few blocks down to their friends who cooked enough West Indian food for an army. They handed out sodas to us and Joshua led us in two songs for them.
We piled into the Nisly’s house to eat goat, chicken, and chickpea curries with roti, which was a fabulous experience. As we drank tea, Dwight and Marlene shared some of their insights and experiences with cross-cultural communication.
We could have stayed a long time, but finally tore ourselves away to get settled into various homes in the neighborhood.
October 26, Day 2
The ladies had the luxury of having a whole house to ourselves, so we used that as our base for all of us to gather. After brunch together, we all headed to Manhattan to spread out and spend four hours in solitude. We began in Bryant Park, and at 4:00 we convened again at Bethesda Terrace in Central Park.
Back at Followers of Jesus Mennonite Church, we assembled 102 bags of food.
With our new friends David, Isaac, and Hannah, we headed back to Manhattan with carts of food, clothes, and hot chocolate. They led us in meeting homeless people, having conversations with them, and offering them food. We walked miles in and out of subway stations and the steps up and down until the food was gone, which took until 2:00 AM.
