Hello, hello!

Well, I realised I finally have a good reason to keep a blog, as things have been picking up speed in my world this year. Let's see....

I have become a Big Sister with the mentoring organisation, Big Brothers Big Sisters. I have been matched to a young woman, E, but unfortunately I don't think the match is going to pan out. She comes from a confused family background, and it has been very difficult for myself and our caseworker to reach E. I will attempt one last call to E and her family this week, but if things don't get moving after that I'm throwing in the towel. I realise that sounds like I'm quitting, but it's not that simple. I'm sure there are people or children out there who actually want help of some kind. I don't get that impression with this family.

Secondly, I am creating a library while simultaneously starting a reading club for a group of needy children & young adults. It's all happening at a sort of community centre house in Philadelphia. I have asked friends if they would be kind enough to donate a gently used children's book or two. As it turns out, I have been able to fill an entire bookcase with donations, and there are more to come. Several people have asked that I give them a better idea of the sorts of books I'm looking for, so I will be publishing the wishlist I have developed in the next few days.

In the meanwhile I also plan to share stories about the reading club, which starts tomorrow evening. A number of the people who have already donated books are eager to hear how the project goes, so I decided this was probably the easiest way to keep y'all informed!

What else? Well, you can expect to hear about how our gardens grow (see above), and other miscellany from life in Pennsylvania, my home away from home.