Writing at The Door of Hope

The Door of Hope is a house in Memphis, close to St Mary's Cathedral, where people can find support, friendship, resources and food. (And which one of us does not need those things?) Some of the people who come through the Door of Hope live without a permanent mailing address. Some live with mental illness. Some live with active addictions. Some have jobs and others live without jobs. The Door of Hope is a community of faith where God is present and proud of all the people she has created. On Wednesdays at 1:00 the Door of Hope Writers Group gathers around a table in the dining room with pen and paper. A topic is offered and heads are bowed as pens begin to move across the lines. There were fifteen people at the table this last week. I joined the group because it is a seed bed for the imagination of any creative writer. William, who has been writing with the group since it began six years ago, suggested the topic: "Business: How to start a business and make it work." Here is what I wrote ...

A good idea that is married to energy can turn that good idea into a successful business. Every business is about a product that people need, something that can be proudly displayed in the market place and sold for a price. I have been busy for two years developing a nonprofit business. I am in the business of connecting people to people by way of their stories. I have focused my good idea on women who are in the county jail. Their stories have been shared inside and outside the jail, connecting people to each other on both sides of the razor wire. Now I am looking forward to expanding my business. I want to hear, respect and share the stories of teenage mothers, men serving time at 201 Poplar, grandparents in the hallways of nursing homes, people who live without the conveniences of a permanent address, people who live with chronic mental illness, and children who have been exposed to crime and violence from the day they were born. Their stories shape us all. We belong to each others' stories. To the extent that we are able to receive the stories of our neighbors with compassion and respect-- we will imagine a safer and more lovely Memphis.

I am in the business that God has called me to offer to our city. I am called to respectfully ask for the stories of our neighbors who have been ignored and silenced by prejudice and upside down priorities. I want to make visible the people who have been made invisible by those who are in power and politics. I know that Memphis, a city of warmth and hospitality, a city of music and good food, can affirm the people whose stories include neglect, rape, violence, abuse and crime. We are called to listen. It is the reason for our ears existence.

I trust in the steadfast love of God to make my business work. We owe it to ourselves and to all our neighbors to be still and know that God lives in and through every one of our stories. Every person has the capacity to make a contribution to our community's success. It's funny to me-- imagining how an entire city can profit from this nonprofit business. We need each other and we long to belong to the story of Memphis. We long to be proud of our city's collective stories. It is God's business that we come to know each other, to respect every human life and to connect by way of our stories.