Community, Involvement, and Friendship
Carolyn: Good Morning! As you can see we are giving our speeches together, because we are twins, and that is what twins do.
Elizabeth: 18 years. We've been going to this church for 18 years. How many people here can say that? Less than you'd think. Now you can argue that we don't remember all of those years and you'd be right. But we have definitely gotten to know this church well.
Carolyn: This church has become like a second home to us and we really enjoy coming here each week for the familiarity and continuity. Each week ends and begins again with this building and these people and that is really something we are both going to miss a lot next year.
Elizabeth: Like many of you, over our years in the church we've become fairly involved. In fact we have pretty much been as involved as you can be for our age and today is a good example of that. We gave the announcements, we are speaking now, we sang/ will sing with choir, and we will play in the youth band.
Carolyn: Elizabeth and I have been a part of the Christmas pageant for basically as long as I can remember. The only pageant that I remember going to that I was not in was in Kindergarten, when Elizabeth was an angel and I was in the audience watching. After that, I joined.
Since then between the two of us we have been angels 5 times, shepherds 5 times, a kings attendent, the camel 4 or 5 times, in the kings entourage once or twice, a sweeping child twice, and as of two years ago, the "tech" people, running the lights, setting up, and taking down the set.
At first it was just a fun activity that let us hang out with a bunch of kids, but over time it became something incredibly special to us. It has caused the two of us to think that Christmas Eve is better than Christmas. Yes we get presents on Christmas, and yes we get to eat a big meal, but being in the pageant on Christmas Eve has meant that when we were little we got to run around and play while taking part in something meaningful, and now it means that we get to look back each year to when we were 8. We get to watch all of the younger kids run around and spend the hour between rehearsal and the show sliding around Fellowship Hall in their socks while eating goldfish, just like we did. Christmas Eve is also the time when the entire church comes together. The sanctuary fills with members and each year we are reminded why Christmas Eve is one of our favorite nights of the year.
Elizabeth: As we have progressed through the roles and parts of the Christmas Pageant we have also moved through the Youth Program. We grew up in the church moving through Sunday school and into the Jr. High Youth Group and finally to Sr. High. The routine of going to church each week with the same group of kids all these years has provided a consistency to our Sundays and built strong friendships. Even so, it wasn't until about 7th grade when we truly began to appreciate the community this church provides. This was the year we began the youth group program and Shepherd's staff was founded. More than that, this was the year we really began consistently participating in church service efforts. On our first ever mission trip, which we took to the Congregational Church in Dedham, we began to see how important it is to give to communities and take time to recognize both what we can do for others and how fortunate we have been. Moving into Sr. High Youth Group our direct involvement in the church grew as we stuffed eggs for the Easter egg hunt, wrapped gifts for the giving tree, and cooked meals for church members. My involvement in the Youth program has even bridged into the administrative side as I attended a few Youth Board meetings this year. This was a great experience because I was able to sit down and talk about the youth program, something I both know a lot about and enjoy. Being able to talk about something you love in a forum where your thoughts can make a difference is always a positive experience.
Carolyn: Going to youth group, and church in general, has been an important thing for us since 7th grade. Before that we didn't really understand the value of coming besides Sunday School. In 7th grade we became much more involved in the church through choir and youth group which made it that much more important. At the end of eighth grade Brandon asked the two of us why we came to youth group every Sunday without fail. At the time we didn't have an answer for him, but eventually we realized that we always came because it was something consistent in our life, unlike my with the rockiness of our friends, with the majority of them moving, switching schools, or drifting apart from us. When we came to church we found that we didn't have to deal with our school friends leaving, we could just be ourselves and hang out and have fun without thinking about the changes that life brings. And I think that is a major part of why this church has become such a big part of our lives. It is always there when we need it and it's always been a stable place that we can come to.
For those people who only know us from church they have a chance to see who we really are. One day before choir a few years ago Elizabeth and I were talking to Joy, who has known us since 7th grade, and she was surprised to hear that we are shy. In fact she didn't really believe us. I found this kind of amazing. Elizabeth and I are generally incredibly quiet and fairly shy. I realize though that this is actually mostly just a school thing. This church is home to us. Everyone's family, so we feel comfortable talking to many people, organizing activities, and offering help to people that we don't really know.
Coming to church every week has also provided us with some of our best friends. Part way through Junior year we made a major transition: we stopped referring to our school friends as our "real friends" and began referring to them as our "school friends" because at that point everyone in choir and youth group WERE some of our "real" friends, and they really had been the entire time. It may seem fairly simple, but it was a major recognition. The friends that we made here, and the community that we became a part of will always be here for us, even if at some point we come back and only recognize a few people. It is for life. The friends that we have made in school may continue being our friends for a little while, but at some point all but one or two will disappear except when there are class reunions.
Elizabeth: As much as the friendships we have developed here and the community we are a part of are important to us, so are the experiences we have had. There is nothing more rewarding than helping kids experience the same things you did years ago. One example of this that really comes to mind for me is volunteering at the village fair. As a kid I remember being fascinated by the cookie monster machine. For those of you who don't know this was basically a decorated box and after doing multiple steps such as ringing a bell and talking to cookie monster on the phone you would receive a cookie. Years later Carolyn and I volunteered to help out at the children's fair and I actually got to operate. This involved getting into the box and talking to the kids as cookie monster. Now some might think this experience would take the "magic" out of this game, but instead I got to give new kids the same joy I once had while playing.
In the way that we have been able to give kids the same experience we once had we have also been able to have the experiences we heard about when we were young. One great example of this is the Guatemala program. Since we were very young we heard about the village and even donated our offerings to student scholarships. Over time our knowledge of the partnership grew into a desire to travel there and experience the village first hand, which we eventually did. This experience was absolutely amazing. I think one of the most shocking and comforting things about the village was the people's satisfaction with their lives despite what we might think of as less than ideal circumstances governing their lives. Seeing that it really became clear to me that being happy is not a matter of circumstance but instead how you view that circumstance and what you make of it. Now, I didn't have to go to Guatemala to learn that, but in that setting among so many new and different things that in particular struck me as such a simple lesson to take away from my time there.
Carolyn: Now we'd like to take some time to give advice to, well, pretty much all of you. Starting with the Elementary Schoolers
Elizabeth: Raise your hand if you're in elementary school. Our advice to you guys, keep coming to Sunday school, and try youth group and choir when you get the chance.
Carolyn: To the Middle schoolers you might not like the getting up early when some of your friends get to sleep in (I know I always hated the getting dressed up to come to church part) but this church has so much to offer you if you let it.
Elizabeth: Upcoming freshmen: it might seem strange to devote an hour and a half every weekend, and to wake up early to go to youth lounge but it's worth it. You meet people that you might not know otherwise and it gives you a break from the upswing in homework that you'll have throughout high school.
Carolyn: Current freshmen: Sophomore year is probably the easiest in high school, so enjoy it while you can and use it as an opportunity to involve yourself and volunteer in the community and church.
Elizabeth: Sophomores:You have a hard year ahead of you. When we were juniors we made it a priority to come to church on Sunday. It provided a good break and a stable community to come to each week. Junior year is manageable if you make time for the things you love, like church.
Carolyn: Juniors: FINISH YOUR COMMON APP OVER THE SUMMER. But seriously, don't lose yourself in the process of college applications, use it to figure out what you might want to do with your life. Also, with a new youth director (hopefully you'll have one in September) you guys are the real leaders because the youth director is most likely going to be taking cues from you, and you all have been in youth group the longest
Elizabeth: Adults: Call on the Youth to help with projects, commitees, or any volunteer projects that the church is doing. There is an energetic and dedicated group of youth in the church who are more than willing to get involved in anyway they can.
Carolyn: The problem with becoming so involved in an organization is that it becomes a huge part of your life and you become very attached to it. Our two biggest challenges about leaving for college are that the two of us are going to be so far apart, and that it is going to hard not to come here every Sunday. It's really rare to find a group of people where even if you don't know their name it's comforting to see their faces around town. This church has been like a family to us and we love seeing everyone around town at softball games, Sudbury Farms, and even just randomly around town. Thank you for everything that you have given us and we will make an effort to come back and continue being part of the community even if SOMEONE *glares at Elizabeth* is going to be 7 hours away.
Elizabeth: Joy, this is for you, Take these wings.