Winter ends, Summer begins

It has been hot and sunny for about a week now in Ballycastle. On Sunday afternoon I took a stroll into the town and saw for the first time what looked like rush hour. Hundreds of people flocked from throughout Northern Ireland to spend a sunny day at the beach or to have ice cream from the shops. Summer officially began in the UK on Sunday. The birds are coming back, the trees budding and city dwellers enjoying the ocean.

Niki is enjoying her time with CPT. She spent the first couple of days in Jerusalem listening to the stories of the people before going to Hebron and now Bethlehem. She has not had much access to email since Jerusalem so we'll have to wait to find out more. I spoke with a lady that was staying at Corrymeela on Monday. She had been on a delegation to Israel/Palestine in November 2006. She had such an eye opening experience that she told me CPT saved her life.

Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley have agreed to share power in Northern Ireland. I have been asked what I think of this, but I'm not too sure what to think. An article about it can be read at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6494599.stm?ls

Niki Arrives Safely

Niki emailed me today to say that she made it safely into Jerusalem and was very excited to be fulfilling one of her dreams. She spent most of today walking around Jerusalem and at 6:00pm she was going to meet with the rest of CPT for an orientation. Thanks to everyone who has been supporting and continues to support Niki in this work.

St. Patrick's Day

Today is St. Patrick's Day and we are spending the day in Belfast. During the early afternoon we went downtown and watched some of the people. Below are some photos of what we saw. Many children and young adults had whistles, there were more buskers, more police presence and definitely more green than a usual Saturday. Tomorrow is Mother's Day in the UK.

Heading to the Holy Land...

At Corrymeela we are encouraged to take 5 days to go and volunteer with another organization. I have decided to take this time plus some holiday time to go on a CPT delegation to Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Hebron from the 19th to the 31st of March. I'm very excited as this is something I've wanted to do for quite some time. It will be my first chance to be a non-violent activist in a conflict zone.

It is a 10 day delegation where I will meet up with the Christian Peacemaker Team there, learn what they are doing and help them do it. It will involve documenting human rights violations, hearing Palestinian and Israeli stories, being a non-violent presence, and reporting back to our communities in the Western world. No doubt I will have many stories to tell when I get back to Corrymeela. As it is a fairly expensive venture, so if you would like to sponsor me, funds can be given to either of our parents, anything would be much appreciated. Keep checking the blog for stories from the upcoming experience. If you would like to know more about CPT, their website is www.cpt.org Feel free to email us if you have any questions. I would also welcome thoughts and prayer.