The Blue Ridge Spirit Covenant of UU Pagans will be holding our Ostara Ritual, celebrating the spring equinox, in the Sanctuary. All those vaccinated and masked are invited to join us as we celebrate being together again. For more information, contact Mary Ann Somervill.
UU Asheville Families got together on a Thursday evening for Pizza, Mindfulness, and Games! We had pizza, followed by a mindfulness game led by Amy Glenn, and then had a great time playing some fun family games!
UU Asheville Families also had a fabulous time at Sky Lanes on Sunday, March 13! There were 20 of us there to bowl, including a bunch of kiddos whose first time it was. All ages and different skill levels had a ton of fun and enjoyed the friendly competition. It is so nice to be together again, meeting new friends and old and seeing our kids bond with each other. Look out for Wes Miller, he’s there to win! Hope to see even more folks at our next event!
A friend recently asked me if they could list me as their emergency contact for a medical procedure and I said yes, of course. This is not the first time someone has asked this of me. Though I don’t have kids of my own, I have been an emergency contact person at schools for many of my friends’ kids over the years. I’ve even been called to come pick up some of these kids on occasion when their parents had a misunderstanding about who was doing the pick up and were then not reachable for a period of time for whatever reason. When I would arrive, the kids would be relieved to see me and even delighted at this change of routine. And it was always okay, because the parents and the kids both had faith in me. That I would show up. That I would make sure they were safe. Our theme this month is Renewing Faith. Unitarian Universalism offers us opportunities to renew our faith all the time. We do not have a dogma that we encourage people to follow blindly. We are constantly renewing our relationships with each other, with our values, and with our faith. How wonderful it is that we are encouraged to question, to seek out information, and form our own opinions. We are constantly being invited to renew our faith in Unitarian Universalism, as well as our faith communities. We’ve had some really lovely family get-togethers this month, which has renewed my faith in this UU community. Here are some ideas from the Soulful Home packet from this month to encourage you all to explore the theme of Renewing Faith.
Thoughts develop with time. Find opportunities to bring up particularly compelling questions again during the month, maybe on walks, rides home, when tucking your child into bed, etc. If thoughts grew or changed, notice together how we are all evolving beings, opening ourselves to new truths and understandings as we live our lives and connect with others.
This month’s treasure hunt is a little family competition. You are all going to be looking for acts of kindness or helping, the kinds of interactions between people in your neighborhood that renew our faith in humanity’s goodness and potential.
Once a day, for a whole week, you’ll all come together and tell one another about this act of goodness that you observed. For each one, the family member gets a point. At the end of the week, the family member who was able to report the best acts, kind words, or helpful contributions that they observed others make…wins! (Of course, you don’t have to make this a competition. Competition is energizing and fun for some families, others not.)
You might keep track of your observations by each claiming a color, then dropping your color of glass pebbles into a jar or marking colored dots on a wall calendar. In making your search visible in your family all month, you will be able to reflect on all the many reasons you have for renewing your faith in your community’s potential.
The rhetorical question goes, “What did we do to deserve dogs?” The special bond that dogs offer to humans is an endless source of faith that there is goodness and love in the universe. There are many groups providing service dogs to people in need, among them, veterans who are disabled. Pawsitivity is a Minnesota-based organization whose mission includes a special commitment to diversity, and namely, “training service dogs for Black U.S. military veterans.” According to a 2014 study by the Veterans Administration, minority veterans are four times less likely to use veteran health benefits as compared to white veterans, meaning they are not getting the health and wellness services they are entitled to. Service dogs have been proven to improve mental, emotional, and physical health, and could improve the quality of life for Black veterans who want them.
The invitation: Consider donating to this organization, doing a special ask at your congregation for a church-wide contribution, or both. If there is a group in your area that supports Black veterans in other ways, call them and see what kind of support would be most impactful in your community.
Sunday, March 13, 2022 11am In-person
Rev Cathy Harrington and members of the Transition Team
Join us as we outline the next steps in the Interim process that include choosing your Search Team!
From the time the pandemic locked us down in mid-March 2020 until the present, there has been an endless flow of well-intentioned advice by experts about how to live with isolation and not languish:
Now that we are, cautiously, beginning to emerge from the isolation, COVID has clarified my priorities. I find that there are ways of being, from among these and a myriad of other suggestions, that I wish to maintain.
The thrill of seeing a friend’s or loved one’s unmasked face, and observing their body language, leads me to a sense of warmth and engagement I have truly missed. Technology is a valuable tool in many contexts, but it is not a replacement for human contact. Social interaction is a sensory experience that enables our brains and bodies to feel safe, comfortable, and to explore authentic relationships. I intend to appreciate that with every human encounter.
Books can become a salvation. The luxury of time to read books was a gift that has led me to more deeply consider their importance in my life. I value being with a book; it is not a passive activity. I consider its weight, the paper’s texture, the beauty of the illustrations. I can curl up with it, escape through it, be consoled by it.
We missed the high school graduations of both of our grandsons and our granddaughter’s performance in her high school play. We postponed travel. A special event to celebrate my husband’s 80th birthday with friends and family was canceled. However, now that we can see our children and grandchildren, engagement has been more deeply satisfying and celebratory. We relish more the ability to see a live play and attend the symphony in person.
While I am usually one who desires to optimize every hour, I have discovered during this period of isolation that life is richer if I routinely meditate, go outside to observe nature, wake up with no plans for the day.
We monthly Zoom with friends from our days at Northwestern, over 50 years ago. The group members reside all over the country. We now communicate more often and more meaningfully than we would when traveling with one another every year or so before the pandemic. We plan and then actively explore, learn about, and discuss a chosen topic, teaching one another at our next meeting.
I have maintained a journal since fifth grade. My journals served as diaries in my younger years; as I matured, they were a place to record and reflect upon my inner thoughts and feelings. Journaling has become a resource to clarify my decisions, to ascertain patterns of my behavior, and to discover how my thinking has evolved over time. During the pandemic, I have paid more attention to my anxieties and have imagined ways to remain resilient. I now write about my experience with the pandemic, creating a history of what aspects of my life are changing because of it.
In reviewing my journal entries I have discovered that I am more willing to accept not being in control of many aspects of my life. Living with the pandemic over the past two years I have adapted to the unknown future, accepted the possibility of more variants to come, learned to embrace solitude, practiced better listening, invented coping statements, engaged in new hobbies, acknowledged the importance of my inner life, and found meaning in the midst of loss.
Today, I am unwilling to postpone the experiences in my life that I love the most. I am maintaining a routine, staying active in a natural space. And I am nurturing a network of family and friends through love and attention. The past two years have taught me how better to accept uncertainty while living my life.
Julie Stoffels
Member, UU Asheville Board of Trustees