Measuring Histories: Tied Together by Christ-- 723 steps to family

 

    Growing up, my church was an important part of my life. They were like family. When my mom became a single mom, my church gathered around her to give her the support she needed. I was quickly provided care by those in my church and became a part of their families when my mom had to work. Those families I grew up with quickly became my family, too. I grew up with their kids- going to school with them and eventually graduating with them. Not only did they provide childcare, but they also helped with our garden, moved our huge wooden shed across the lawn, fixed bathrooms, and so much more. Later, when we were more stable, and another family would need help, our church family gathered again to help-over and over again.

    I am so thankful for the community of people that raised me. My church family taught me so much about grace, wisdom, patience, kindness, and how to truly show the love of Christ. I would not be the same person I am today without them. 

    This project represents this community. I counted how many steps it would take to walk to my church (around 273 in 3 minutes). Then, I measured 273 of my own foot size of rope. I then folded it to a manageable size to create knots. The three knots at the top represented the three minutes that it took to walk to my church. The 39 knots below each represent a person in my church community who were part of my church family that I grew up with.  Although there are more people, these 39 I grew up with and don't remember a life without them. They were the ones who came to the hospital to visit me when I was born, were at my high school graduation party, and are still present in my life now. 

    For each knot, I prayed in thanksgiving for this person, thought about specific things that they did for my family, and then prayed for them- sometimes with specific things or just for their well-being. This process was amazing. I tried to pray for around three minutes, the amount of time it took to walk to church, for each of them. During this time of reflection and prayer, I started to remember more and more about what they did in my childhood to help my mom and me. I also found myself praising God and his goodness in my life.