Central Park Shenanigans

September 14, 2018

[day 675]

Today has been a whirlwind of emotions… the highest and highs and the lowest of lows. At the bottom of the blog, you can read about the heartache of today. But up top, let’s reflect on the best aspects! When Steph became the Director of Upward Bound, one of her first major orders of business what hiring an academic coordinator. Scott’s first day of work was actually on Steph’s 30th birthday back in March. She still says he was her best birthday present. It has been SO great getting to know Scott and Bethany. We are fortunate to get to explore NYC a bit with them this week before Steph and Scott have their conference. Today, we partook in some Central Park shenanigans (including Bethany *almost* dropping her phone in the water). It was an incredible morning spent with incredible people in an incredible place.

Since the morning the news hit about his murder I have watched Stephanie deeply mourn the lost of such a beautiful soul and justifiably angered by the unjust reality which surrounds the whole case.

So, here she sat… in a tiny hotel room in the middle of one of the busiest cities in the world watching his funeral live online. The sounds of the streets below drowned out by the silence of mourning within. All that was heard was the love being spoken about Botham and the life he lead. I mourned alongside her, as do so many around the country. She didn’t realize I’d taken out my camera…but the moment was both too beautiful and raw for me not to capture this moment in time. It was evident that we were just two of thousands across the world, watching the same thing at the same time—aching and yearning for so much this world just cannot offer.

I pray that we will never forget this moment and band together in love to create a better culture—at least the best can can in this earthly realm. I pray we do not just accept the unjust, ignore the ignorance, or continue to meddle in the moderation that is comfortable. May our tears roll down our cheeks and into action. That these pictures capture a moment in time, I pray the spirit of them captures a movement in progress.