WELCOME FROM HAYWOOD STREET:
UPDATES:
We thank the fourth graders of Asheville Waldorf School who spent their Thursday with Haywood Street Friends and who gave our picnic tables a major upgrade!
New Haywood Street Community Development endorsement from JP Chalarca, “The WECAN man”. More…
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1. Employment opportunities. Click here!
COMPANION CORNER:
1. Sign up to provide a meal for Respite here
2. Click to access this week’s Companion Newsletter!
A HAYWOOD STREET REFLECTION BY: JOAN
(Joan, Haywood Street Companion, pictured right)
O HAYWOOD MY HAYWOOD
I have been honored to be a companion at Haywood since 2017. If I created a list of things I’m glad I can say have been part of my life, Haywood would be right there at the top. How lucky am I to have found this place and to be welcomed to its table.
I have met some wonderful people. In fact so many that I am not going to try to name them all, but I want to name a few. Again, people on my top 10 list. Number 1 is Robert. In my heart and mind, I call him “Robert, the Flower Man.” When I see him, I wonder if I am seeing flowers growing out of the top of his head or if, in my elder years, I am having a vision. Being in my elder years, I notice visions and welcome them. I no longer try to banish them as too silly but instead look at them carefully to see what I am being told — the highlights. So, therefore, Robert, I’m sure, does have flowers growing out of his head.
Then Mary and Sherill, the two companions who were my trainers and workmates for my first years here. And Seth, who was the intern when I walked into the kitchen in 2017. Again, how lucky am I to have been able to meet and work with each of them. When I inquired about when and how to work, I was told to just “show up.” It took me a minute to find the kitchen. First I wandered into an AA meeting! When I exited and found my way to the kitchen, I saw Chef David standing at the work table and Seth, Mary, Sherril and Robert were there too. I was invited to come in and start chopping.
When I arrived home later that day, I walked into my house and said to my mate, “Do you see me smiling? I got to stand at the work table with Chef David and chop vegetables!” When I went there, I didn’t know if they would need or welcome me! Instead, I have been enjoying standing at the table for four years.
There are many outstanding memories: Cleaning and setting up turkeys in preparation for a Thanksgiving feast with George; sharing the worktable with Kyle who was always a joy to behold; and working with Mary assembling meatloaf and many other dishes too. If I was handing out awards, they would all get one. The roster of other companions I have worked with is long; I enjoy them all. While we work hard prepping, assembling platters, gathering in a circle to pray and communicate, there is joy in my heart.
I am taking a hiatus from Haywood for a few months to attend to other matters. But first I want to say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU one and all. While there is a lot of darkness in the world today, I always say to others “BUT THERE IS HAYWOOD!” And it is filled with marvelous, beautiful, compassionate, caring, and alive people.
Haywood and its staff and companions send out a good vibe and great example of how to live with spirit, faith, and energy in these rough times.
