This is a photograph of the final configuration of the objects Hannah uses to tell the story of Tapestry’s guiding principles. The presentation represents a faith-adjacent remix of the Godly Play storytelling tradition, a popular religious education practice inspired by Montessori techniques.
All posts in Places
Voice Memo: Anxious Reflections Before First Team Outing
On September 21, 2019, I went on my first mentor team outing. It ended up being the only in-person outing I attended with Team Z. (I did, however, subsequently engage with team members briefly at the 2019 holiday party. We also worked together extensively on Zoom during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, i.e.,…
Voice Memo: Observations and Reflections Before Picnic
On September 7, 2019, I attended the All Tapestry Fall Picnic. Before participants started arriving, I recorded a voice memo describing the playground where the event was taking place and reflecting on some of the meta questions I was chewing on at the time, including how to form relationships with the youth and how my…
Co-Created Artifact: Yesenia’s Story
Kyle Matthew Oliver · Becoming Tapestry: Yesenia’s Story A podcast-style digital story cut from Tapestry mentor Yesenia’s “exit interview” with co-directors Hannah and Sam, by permission of all participants. Yesenia is an alum of Team Z, and this artifact bears substantial similarity to the video-based story the team composed several months after her departure. In…
Summary of Subsequent Outings
As I reached the period of time for which I had consent to make field recordings with participants (October 17, 2019, and following, depending on the type of event and who was participating), this act of public analysis and documentation proved too time-consuming to pursue comprehensively. Transcripts and audio files of “outing”- rather than “memo”-length…
Meeting: Facilitator Training Lunch, Reflections on the Move
I met Hannah and Sam at a deli in Powell Gardens after a morning of hustling around. I thankfully remembered before I left the house that I would need to go to a local music store beforehand to buy an XLR cable to use with my new shotgun microphone, since today would be the first…
Team Z: First Time Hanging with Team on Outing
I heard Liz ask Zoe about how school was going, and she said her grades were some good and some bad (two A’s, two F’s). Liz then said, “Oooh, tell me about the A’s.” I ordered an iced coffee and came back to the table. I listened as the group chatted for a bit, then…
All Tapestry: Subbing on Insta at Fall Picnic
The story of my engagement at the fall picnic begins before the event itself. Early in the week of the event, I received an email from Hannah: I’m going to be out of town for much of the month of September, so I will be missing the picnic this Saturday. Since I believe you’re going…
Encounter: Errands with Marie at Remembrance Event
Operating mostly from an instinct I’ve developed as a pastor (say “yes” whenever you can, especially to invitations to make connections in the community), I accepted mentor Marie’s invitation to volunteer at a yearly remembrance event hosted by a racial and economic justice organization she’s a part of. The event commemorates the death of a…
All Tapestry: Mini Golf with Team R
I arrived at the course on my bicycle mid-morning. I could see a group that looked like Hannah and company in a large tent structure. I walked around to one end and came in. Upon entering, I said hi to Deacon Derek, and then sat down and talked to Liam, Hannah’s husband. He asked about…