Page 17 - C.A.L.L. #22 - Fall 2003

KALEIDOSCOPE

Shalom Connections No. 2 of Summer 2003 brings us Good News: Tim Lockie of Reba reports
We just returned from a week with our sister community a slightly less optimistic view:

Valle Nuevo in El Salvador, encouraged by a reunion with our “About twenty-five years ago we
long-time friends and by signs of new unity in the community. tried to count up those who have
Growing unity lived with us for more than three
Over the last decade, several cooperatives and corporate months and it was over a hundred.
structures have been formed to title the 265 acres of land We don’t have a historian. Who
that Reba and Plow Creek helped Valle Nuevo buy a decade knows how many we’ve lived with by

ago. None of these groups, however, seemed to be able to now! I especially remember Eliseo, a
rally or sustain a consensus of the community in the complex refugee from El Salvador who lived
and controversial task of how to title the land. In recent with us a year and could make the
months, as leaders of these various groups have been best meals out of ordinary stuff.

meeting together, they have reported a movement of the Then his family came and now they
spirit amongst them, a sense that God has been bringing live down the street. I enjoy hosting
reconciliation for the sake of the common good. Instead of Wendell and Jane Sprague who
titling only the agricultural lands, the community wants to come once a year so Wendell can be
make one unified project to title the houses, ecological everyone’s dentist and Jane can go
reserves, common areas and the fields all at the same time. to the operas in Chicago.

A land project promoter sponsored by CoCoDA has been “How do we do it? I still enjoy
visiting the community regularly to facilitate this process. shopping, which is fortunate,
Though many concrete decisions remain to be made, because I do a lot of it. Hilda Carper
community issues look more hopeful than they have been for has been with us most of these last
many years. forty years. She organizes schedules,
A passion for peace creates work lists, and makes things

Even though the impending war in Iraq did not affect them beautiful with music and flowers.
directly, we were surprised everywhere we went among the Julius keeps getting new ideas and
campesino population to hear their grief over another war. organizes how we will do them.
“We know the suffering of war, and the pain of every one Others like Bob, Char, and Denise
involved. The poor are usually on the receiving end, and have made it a very durable team. I

there is nothing good about it.” Many, many people went out see lots of advantages in living this
of their way to explain why it is of such grave concern to way. I think the Lord has been good
them, and then ask us how we felt. On March 19, several to us, and the people who have
hundred teachers, students and parents held a silent march stayed with us for the long haul have
and gathered in the chapel to pray for peace. Andy Horst, made it possible. This is God’s grace

one of the youth in our group, said it well: “I’ve been against because community and household
war all my life, but now I know why and why I need to do are very fragile, yet we’re all
something about it.” together. Spiritually we make a
That's it, folks. We are ready for positive/constructive/ indignant home for one another.”

comments or contributions, thank you.

Joel Dorkam

17