Kenya via Jordan

Phew!

Well, it took me a bit longer than I had anticipated, but I finally finished my support materials, stuffed and posted 150 envelopes, and even got most of them into the mail the next day.

I pulled out all the stops and used a lot of my spare time to design each of these three pieces myself using my limited (though always growing) graphic design abilities.

If you are reading this, hopefully I have your address and have mailed you a letter along with the prayer and support cards. If you haven’t received one yet, that means I don’t have your address, so please use the Contact Me page to send me your address and I will get one to you ASAP.

Or, if you would like to save me a few cents in postage, feel free to visit my new Support Me page, print out a copy of everything for yourself, and mail me back a completed support card. I really want to hear from everyone who will be following along with me through my nearly four and a half month journey. 

If you do choose to save me the postage, you can send the cards back to me at:
Jordan Maslyn
15520 Rockfield Blvd., Suite G
Irvine, CA 92618

Oh, and by the way, if you do feel like you have the ability to help me out financially for my trip, you can make your contribution tax-deductible by writing it to “Reaching Beyond Ourselves.” If you do choose to do this, please make sure you do not write my name anywhere on the check. (more…)

Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”

The young man paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”

“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, “It made a difference for that one.”

by Loren Eiseley adapted from The Star Thrower

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Last night, I got the chance to get dinner and frozen yogurt with Alice and the newest member to our Kenya trip (Bre Dougherty).

(For those who don’t know, Alice Hibbard is a long time friend of mine who I met through Saddleback Church and have remained close to since Junior High. She spends half the year in Kitale, Kenya. And it is through her that God opened the door for me to go on this trip.)

Now first, let me give you a little background. Alice had recently told me someone else was coming and instantly I was nervous. Thoughts ran through my mind like what if I didn’t like her, what if she didn’t like me, what if she didn’t think I was funny, what if I didn’t think she was funny!? Spending four and a half months with someone you do not thoroughly enjoy could be gruesome.

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