Friday, March 23, 2007
my "day off"...
it's now 4:03pm and what have i done with my day off? hmm.. well, i did manage to sleep in a little bit (waking up at 9am) but then i had to deal with a demanding "urgent" phone call-- a request to write a letter of recommendation and description of our Covenant Players work in schools-- and have it posted so that the recipient could receive it by Wednesday. nice, huh? well, I managed to say "no" to the recommendation (since I thought it was an awkward request anyway-- not having even done a full program in that teacher's school ever before, I didn't feel right recommending her school and students for special funding). But I did agree to write a description of our work in schools since I'm always "PR'ing" anyway. I was just really taken aback at how demanding the request was put out and it certainly wasn't a pleasant way to start my "day off".
i think it's nearly impossible for me to have a complete "day off" as a unit leader. there are always calls and emails that come in that need to be taken care of. there's always things i need to catch up on since i seem to be constantly behind in everything. there are always shows to plan, housing to find, lines to learn, plays to be directed, contacts to follow up on... on and on and on. and they're things i can't delegate. that's the really hard part. it's not like i don't have a unit that wants to (and does) help me as much as they can. they're wonderful and i wouldn't trade them in for the world. but there are a lot of things i can't hand off this tour.
anyway, i realize i haven't introduced
my unit to you all, so here they are...I, of course am on the right side. Jo French (from Devon, England-- not France) is in front. Jo is 27 and used to teach primary school before joining Covenant Players. Rachel Saalfeld (the fiery redhead from Oregon) is 20 and joined right out of highschool. Her older brother, Dan, was also in CP and served in S. America with his wife, Melanie for 3 years. This is both Jo's and Rachel's first time in Poland and they agree wholeheartedly with me-- the food's great, the people are wonderful, but the roads are horrible! A 3 hr drive here feels like a 6 hr drive back in the States. They're real troupers, they are. I'm a pretty tough teacher when it comes to rehearsal and learning lines in Polish and they take the correction and countless repetitions very graciously. They're hardworkers with teachable hearts.
And right now, we're blessed to be staying with two missionary families here in a little town called Borne Sulinowo. Dan and Chris Defever (and their daughters Brittney and Melanie) are very dear to me. I met them in 2003 on my first tour in Poland and they've always kept their home and their hearts open to me. They have a tremendous gift of hospitality and making people feel very loved and welcome. They've introduced us to a new couple, Kent and Jan McKinnon who also have incredibly big hearts and make you feel all warm and fuzzy (--oh, please, not literally). i just wish that i could relax more and just enjoy my stay. i can't. i have a list of calls and emails that still need to be taken care of. and shows that need to be planned. (and they're coming up really really soon. as in housing needs for monday and tuesday.)
well, it was good to take a bit of time to blog and feel like a normal human being with feelings and frustrations rather than a robot who just works and works and works....
well... back to work.
it's now 4:03pm and what have i done with my day off? hmm.. well, i did manage to sleep in a little bit (waking up at 9am) but then i had to deal with a demanding "urgent" phone call-- a request to write a letter of recommendation and description of our Covenant Players work in schools-- and have it posted so that the recipient could receive it by Wednesday. nice, huh? well, I managed to say "no" to the recommendation (since I thought it was an awkward request anyway-- not having even done a full program in that teacher's school ever before, I didn't feel right recommending her school and students for special funding). But I did agree to write a description of our work in schools since I'm always "PR'ing" anyway. I was just really taken aback at how demanding the request was put out and it certainly wasn't a pleasant way to start my "day off".
i think it's nearly impossible for me to have a complete "day off" as a unit leader. there are always calls and emails that come in that need to be taken care of. there's always things i need to catch up on since i seem to be constantly behind in everything. there are always shows to plan, housing to find, lines to learn, plays to be directed, contacts to follow up on... on and on and on. and they're things i can't delegate. that's the really hard part. it's not like i don't have a unit that wants to (and does) help me as much as they can. they're wonderful and i wouldn't trade them in for the world. but there are a lot of things i can't hand off this tour.
anyway, i realize i haven't introduced
my unit to you all, so here they are...I, of course am on the right side. Jo French (from Devon, England-- not France) is in front. Jo is 27 and used to teach primary school before joining Covenant Players. Rachel Saalfeld (the fiery redhead from Oregon) is 20 and joined right out of highschool. Her older brother, Dan, was also in CP and served in S. America with his wife, Melanie for 3 years. This is both Jo's and Rachel's first time in Poland and they agree wholeheartedly with me-- the food's great, the people are wonderful, but the roads are horrible! A 3 hr drive here feels like a 6 hr drive back in the States. They're real troupers, they are. I'm a pretty tough teacher when it comes to rehearsal and learning lines in Polish and they take the correction and countless repetitions very graciously. They're hardworkers with teachable hearts.And right now, we're blessed to be staying with two missionary families here in a little town called Borne Sulinowo. Dan and Chris Defever (and their daughters Brittney and Melanie) are very dear to me. I met them in 2003 on my first tour in Poland and they've always kept their home and their hearts open to me. They have a tremendous gift of hospitality and making people feel very loved and welcome. They've introduced us to a new couple, Kent and Jan McKinnon who also have incredibly big hearts and make you feel all warm and fuzzy (--oh, please, not literally). i just wish that i could relax more and just enjoy my stay. i can't. i have a list of calls and emails that still need to be taken care of. and shows that need to be planned. (and they're coming up really really soon. as in housing needs for monday and tuesday.)
well, it was good to take a bit of time to blog and feel like a normal human being with feelings and frustrations rather than a robot who just works and works and works....
well... back to work.
