1230 hrs:
Having braved traffic on the Capitol Beltway and Philly, going on roads which have stop lights every 500 meters to avoid paying tolls, we realize that we are going to be LATE for our much anticipated interview with Ron Sider.
Butterflies are flying around in my stomach.

1300 hrs:
Me: Hello, may I speak with Dr. Sider please?
RS: Speaking.
Me: Hi Dr. Sider, this is Valerie Ong. My friends and I were suppose to be at your house at 1pm for an interview. We’re calling to let you know that we’ve hit traffic and will be about 15 minutes late. Is that ok?
RS: Yes, that will be fine.
The butterflies are doing back flips, I just spoke with Ron Sider, and he now thinks that we are not punctual 20 some year olds.

1315 hrs:
Me: Maybe he’ll think I said 50 minutes.
Butterflies are fit for the circus trapeze act.

1330 hrs:
We missed Logan Road.
Megan: Now we can tell him that we got lost!
Me: Great, and now he’ll think that we can’t navigate, and did not allocate enough time for our impediments!
Butterflies are dead now from all the strenuous activity.

As you can tell, I had been overly excited about this interview. Sider’s book “Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger” spoke (or shouted, rather) truth about the role (or lack) of Christians in todays world where the majority of our neighbors go to sleep hungry. Rich Christian explores the realities of poverty and the biblical perspective on how Christians should act, among others.

In Sider’s foreword, he mentions that he does not claim to live out all the implications of his book, but that he has begun this pilgrimage. It was especially encouraging for me to see this reality –Sider and his wife live in an interracial, modest section of Philadelphia. Moreover, Sider is in his late 60s, showing us that it is not just our generation that seeks to live as “ordinary radicals” (Claiborne).

How do we get people wherever they may be their stage of life to act?
Love Jesus.
I am not a social activist. I love Jesus & actively seek His will. From that, comes the drive to bring change.
What a challenge.

Beginning and ending our interview in Philadelphia with Claiborne and Sider were perfect bookends to our adventure. But the unpacking and processing continue on.