Hello, dear readers! How is everyone doing? Welp it took 2+ years but COVID finally caught up to me and wreaked absolute havoc for a week and a half. Don’t remember too much, slept through most of it. Shout-out to friends who brought me meds and chick-fil-a. But I am BACK and KICKING with mild vertigo and a gentle sort of panic that my doctoral courses begin in 10 days (I had planned to do A LOT of reading these 2 weeks, but you know, plague…) I mean, it’ll be fine. Director of Doctoral Program said to do what I can and flash them my doctor’s note when I can’t, and they’ll grant me any needed extensions.
And SPEAKING OF EXTENSIONS!!!
Tomorrow’s CAYG Clean-Up Day POSTPONED!
These past 2 weeks I had HUGE chunks of time set aside to organize and pack so tomorrow would be a quick and easy job. Then I got the plague. Then Alex also got the plague. Frankly, nearly the entire church staff got the plague. What I’m trying to say is absolutely nothing is ready for tomorrow. SO the CAYG Clean-Up Day will be one of our service events in July!
2. RSVP before JUNE 4th for our Summer Programs and Ice Cream!!
ICE CREAM?? YES! Ice cream! HOW you might ask? (Not you MAY ask, that’s over.) Sign-up for our summer sessions so we have a proper headcount, BEFORE JUNE 4 and you’ll get an ice cream treat when you arrive at CAYG!!
June: Serve(d)
Set up much like a typical CAYG Sunday evening, we shall learn the theology of service and why we as God’s Church are called to such things.
Dates: Sundays June 12, 19, 26, 6:15pm-8:30pm
At Ascension?: Yep!
Pizza?: Duh
You Mentioned Ice cream??: Awarded on the first day, June 12, IF you signed-up before June 4!!!!
July: Serve(ing)
Here we incorporate the practical theology of service and actually DO THE SERVICE STUFF!
When: Saturdays July 2, 9, 16, 9am-12pm.
At Ascension?: Not necessarily!!!!
Huh?: We’re finalizing locations. Above’s service locations are our TENTATIVE plans. Activities are subject to change, we’ll keep you posted. Except the CAYG Clean-Up Day, that’s staying put. Tradition states Ascension Clean-Up days are postponed only 1 time then they go off fantabulously. So it WILL be July 2 and it’ll be GREAT.
Given that the service days are on Saturdays, we’re anticipating a decrease in the availability of our wonderful Sunday volunteers. So we’ll actually NEED willing parents (and siblings!) to join us! And just think, once you’re all done you and the fam can run and get ice cream or something and have a lovely bonding experience! Win-win!
Sign-Up for all the great things HERE!
Upcoming CAYG Shows
Any summer shows? Shakespeare in the park? Open mic-nights? We wanna hear about it!
What We Know About:
Ballet Recital! (Snow White!)
Ft. Clara H.!
Saturday (TOMORROW), May 28, 6pm
Bethel Park High School
Tickets $25, order here!
And with that dear readers, I must away to resume my sluggishly frantic reading. At the beginning of my 9 days of sickness and isolation I devised an ingenious scheme where each time I woke up from a nap I would read a chapter of my doctoral books. (Brilliant!) That went really well… the first day. Last Thursday. By Tuesday (day ??) I reached the COVID stage of “just stay down, eat your chicken nuggets, and don’t make any sudden movements. Moving your eyeballs left to right constitutes as a sudden movement. Stop it.” I hope I came out of this a better woman. But really all I can do is wonder: At what point is a student legally required to stop saying “I am reading my textbook” and specify “I have a textbook.” Anyway I’m reading again and no longer keeling over from the exertion so that’s something!
As we enter into this new weekend, I leave you with a quote from my textbook author, James K. A. Smith… His book How (Not) To Be Secular has been my constant companion these three days and I give to you now the words that have kept me in contemplation, mulling them over and over, again and again, unable to move forward until the mental fog clears:
“Preface.” (p.vii)
Much love,
Kelsey Nienna ❤
Church of the Ascension Youth Group 