B1G A1

Today is a special day for us here at Kadesh. Today we are celebrating a birthday, but in a different way than may you may expect. Alex was a camper and staff at Kadesh, and one that continues to have an incredible impact on the culture here.

This past fall Alex passed away, and many of our staff miss her greatly, so today, as it is her 19th birthday, we’re celebrating her.

I had never met her, but as people have shared her stories, I have been overwhelmed by the big impact a single life can have on so many others. Her fun spirit, her desire to see others included, and her love, has impacted those who know her personally, and those who know her only through stories.

This morning I read Psalm 139:14, and this is what the writer says to God, “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvellous - how well I know it.”

In the stories I have heard, I think Alex knew how wonderfully complex God had made her. How her goofiness could light up a room, and how her love for others would make a real difference.

So today, I hope that you are encouraged. That like Alex, you have been made wonderfully complex. Know, that when you embrace how wonderfully complex God has made you, like her, you can make an incredible impact on the world around you.

- Jon

What's a Djembe and Why have them at Kadesh?

As the new guy it’s always worrisome coming into a new environment, with new ideas, while still honouring the past, and all the incredible activities in place in both our OREC and Summer programs. One thing that has been very clear about Kadesh’s programming in my short time here is inclusion. We intentionally create programs for everyone, and work hard to make all games have different aspects to engage the athlete, the thinker, the artist, and so on.

So, when I thought, “what’s the first thing I am going to add to Kadesh?” in regards to programming, Djembe drums just made sense. But why? Well… to explain that, I need to tell you an old story of how it is believed the Djembe (pronounced Gem-Bay) Drum was created.

Long ago, in the Mandinke tribe (what is now known as Mali - in West Africa), a young mother was making a meal for her family. She was using an old wooden bowl, that had been past down from generations before her. Each generation used this bowl, over and over, and by the time this young mother had it, it had almost worn right through the bottom.

But on this specific day, as she was cooking for her family, she finally had worn the bowl so much, that a hole was made in the bottom of the bowl. The Mandinke people were not the type to waste, and the same was true for this mother, so she did what was was fairly common then (yet may seem odd to you). She cleaned the bowl, took goat hide, wet it, stretched it out over the hole, and with thick grass tied the hide to the bowl, preserving its life. As she was now done with it, she put it away… but shortly after heard beautiful music in her home.

This women turned around to see her very young child, maybe 2, with the bowl flipped over, tapping the hide, and making music!

For those of us that have had young children, a young child tapping bowls is not odd, but it is believed that for this tribe, only very specific and qualified people could make music so beautiful. Therefore when this young child made music, on a worn bowl with goat hide, it was very special. It was at this moment that the Djembe was created. A drum, a music, so simple that anyone could do it.

Djembes are now played around the world, and most commonly played in Drum Circles where people use simple music to express feeling, play in community, and bond over the universal language of music. During Djembe Circles at Kadesh, students and campers will learn to play these instruments while playing goofy games, interacting and communicating with each other in a less common way.

- Jon