continue to call each other by the names i've given you

continue to call each other by the names i've given you
to help remember who you are.
touch each other,
and keep telling the stories.

continue to call each other by the names i've given you

emily elizabeth ewing, child of god, sealed by the holy spirit and marked with the cross of christ forever. i was named long before i was born. from the start, i was claimed as god's beloved child. each of us can claim that name. each of us was given that identity. as i lived and loved in slovakia, i had a variety of possibilities for my name. if i really wanted to be slovak, my full name would have been milka alžbeta ewingová, i ended up going by emi/emy:) no matter what my name or nickname ended up being, i was always me, child of god, sealed by the holy spirit and marked with the cross of christ forever. my baptismal promise, affirmed in my confirmation, remains with me. each of the people i met, though called by their own names, were also children of god.

to help remember who you are.

it is in keeping the identity of child of god, that i would remember who i am. at my deepest sadness and my highest joy, i remained, emily elizabeth ewing, child of god, sealed by the holy spirit and marked with the cross of christ forever. and each person i met there, reminded me not only of my identity as a child of god, but reminded me of their identity as a child of god as well. i was constantly reminded that god was at work in slovakia long before i came and will continue to be there long after i left. i experienced god among god's children and even when i wasn't sure about anything else, i remembered who i am and whose i am as a child of god.

touch each other,

to touch someone, it means there must be a physical connection. yes, i can be "touched by" something, but when it comes down to it, touch requires physical presence. so, touch each other. be with each other. be in the presence of others. when doing things, it's not so easy to touch someone. not intentionally, anyway. to touch someone, there both must be physically present, but there must also be intention. i touched people this year and they touched me. we sat together and laughed. we hugged. we watched lord of the rings. we did things together, but we also just sat together. we practiced being together. that is what kept me going. the touch of others in my life. that small touch worked as the still, small voice, saying "i love you, child of god. you are mine and you are special." touch sustained me this year.

and keep telling the stories.

i don't need to be told that twice. i came here to learn stories. to learn from people here. and i have. i have learned stories and i have learned what it means to love and be loved - by others and by god. i take stories with me as i go. good stories and bad stories. happy stories and sad stories. in each of the stories, i see god. the stories, though currently bottled up inside me will no doubt spill out in a flood. i don't know how to start telling the stories. how do you start in on stories? where do you begin? how do you boil a year's worth of stories and experiences into a few hours, or even a few minutes? once started, i can keep telling the stories, but i might need some help getting started. can you ask me? please, ask me for stories. ask for a type of story. ask for a story that stands out most distinctly in my mind. ask me for the most recent thing i was thinking about. ask me what story i need to tell somebody. i'll keep telling, but please help me get started.

continue to call each other by the names i've given you
to help remember who you are.
touch each other,
and keep telling the stories.