Passing the Time at Annual Conference

Day 2 of the Indiana Annual Conference began with a noisy neighbor down the hall...now, as we sit in the auditorium and ponder all things United Methodist I want to offer some hard-earned nuggets of wisdom about how to thrive while attending days of meetings with clergy and lay folk from all over Indiana.

1. bring your yoga mat- helps you work out the kinks from sitting all day on aqua colored auditorium seats constructed circa 1957.
2. laptop and other computer modem capability (iPhone or iPod) devices are a must in order to know that life does exist beyond the air conditioned auditorium.
3. be ready to answer, "How are you?" with a pithy quip for those who don't really want to know how you are, but ask politely because we are surrounded by religious leaders. save your real earthy answer for your real friends and share it over adult beverages later in the evening. Or shake things up by being brutally honest no matter who asks. take note of the responses.
4. pack snacks.
5. visit the Prayer Room at least twice.
6. find two people who need you to help them feel welcome. and offer them kindness and hospitality.
7. alert your staff that you will be chatting with them via Facebook to find out how things are going at 'home'.
8. pack extra business cards to share with friends or future friends or to remind the powers that be that yes you indeed are 'one of them'.
9. bring your VBS materials to read through yet again when the speaker becomes redundant.
10. water bottle is a must because you will be singing a lot with a group of people who not just know the songs, but LIKE to sing them! Robustly!