The parking lot view from my Indianapolis apartment stood in stark contrast to the storybook charm I’d left in Needham, MA. The shrubs Hoosiers called trees couldn’t compare with New England’s brilliant maples. The woman I replaced on my new ministry team sold me her twin bed and chest of drawers. An old trunk I’d used to carry my few belongings was the only familiar piece of furniture in my tiny bedroom.

My former team of single adults had lived in two houses. We walked to each other’s houses. I felt an immediate affinity with my housemate. We even wore matching blouses my first night in Needham at an old-fashioned ice cream parlor when the team celebrated my arrival.Continue Reading