Monday May 24th

This morning we went to New Jerusalem Now, a recovery facility for adults in Philadelphia overcoming addiction. We met Sister Margaret, who runs the facility. Imagine your favorite relative and this is what Sister Margaret is like - immediately inviting you into her family. Obviously, a perfect person to run a recovery home. She seemed very passionate about her work and the programs she helps to run, and she clearly lives for others. Other People who are part of the program seem to represent a spectrum in terms of how committed they were and their attitude on life. One guy named Mike seemed particularly well-adjusted, peaceful, and self-aware, while others that we worked with were only a week into the program and clearly had a lot of personal growth yet to come.

The work we did consisted of constructing and installing raised beds for an herb garden. It was tough work, but we had a great afternoon. We definitely had to take showers when we got back, and the van stunk! Alex was driving the van and hit the same curb for the second time in two days, despite the fact that we should not have even been on that street. And we had great fun naming the GPS system and playing with accents.

In the evening we wen to the Sikh Gurdwara (place of worship) and were welcomed with great hospitality by a board member from the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia. When we arrived, we took off our shoes and everyone covered their heads with shawls or turbans. A different experience for all of us, but Elizabeth claims that she will do this all the time because she doesn't have to worry about her hair! We were then served our first meal of the day (dinner #1) and had a chance to talk with members of the Sikh community. (Dinner #2 came after the service - they clearly knew that they were hosting college students...)

Want to know some tenets, beliefs, and misconceptions of the Sikh faith? Well, first of all, they are not Muslims. Wearing a turban does not make you Muslim, and in fact in the United States, most people wearing colored turbans are Sikh (because Muslims were black or white turbans). Most importantly, however, the Sikh faith accepts anyone who comes to the religion, and everybody can participate in all aspects of the service. An important idea is that everybody is equal and no member of the faith is "higher" or designated as a leader. Women and men, children and adults can participate in all aspects of their services. When you think Sikh, think equality.

It was interesting to learn that the older and younger generations seem to have different views on practical applications of the religion, including arranged marriages, jewelry and piercings, and hair. I guess there is a generational gap in all religions and communities! (Alex says way-to-go for interfaith connections!)

Overall it was a good day, but tiring. And Alex and Emily want to sleep. So peace out,

Alex and Emily
On behalf of all the AB Summer Philly Crew