Seattle is known as being a city addicted to coffee. Starbucks Coffee Company was founded here in 1972. In the tradition of trying to bring home-like comfort to a shelter-bound people like ours, there are hundreds of small cafes vying for the love of a very demanding customer base. It rains in Seattle almost everyday. Seattleites don’t gather in parks, or near monuments; they gather in reclaimed, industrial spaces with good lighting, forced-air heat, clean bathrooms, wireless internet, and predictable yet fine wood and metal work.
Yesterday I visited two coffee shops; one in Ballard and another in Belltown. Street Bean on 3rd and Broad was established a few years ago by two local heroes; Linda and Ron Ruthruff. The Ruthruffs have been pouring their lives into reaching kids without homes for nearly 30 years. A visit to Street Bean will yield a conversation with one of them as often as not. Neither was there yesterday.
My visit home has yielded many opportunities to reconnect with people I love and admire. I had breakfast with Rob Carlisle this morning. Rob is a great family man and a man with a generous heart. I am composing this from Millstead & Co. I met my good friend Joe Macias here this morning for some rare and sweet Sulawesi. Joe is one of the best men I know. At times I am simply amazed at how deep and rich God’s love runs for me. Who am I that He would bless me with friends like Rob and Joe?
I tried to limit or define, fabricate language around or describe the concept of: now, but I find my abilities to be lacking. Now is all that we will ever truly know. Learning to love the very now is a freedom we were designed to enjoy and a calling that humankind was meant to participate in the celebration of. Now is the world, reality, this world, this reality, our world, our reality; the moment, this moment our moment. Love and love now good reader.
albaniacalling 