“Every day is a renewal, every morning the daily miracle. This joy you feel is life.”
“The most valuable thing one can do for the psyche, occasionally, is to let it rest, wander, live in the changing light of a room.”
It’s hard to believe we’ve arrived at June! This month we’ll celebrate PRIDE, Flower Communion, Fathers’ Day, Juneteenth, the Summer Solstice… and all the folks who’ve volunteered to make this community what it is. Thank you all!
Another thing about June is that suddenly it feels like my sabbatical is right around the corner. I have been observing myself wanting to make sure all ducks are lined up in a row before my sabbatical begins, while it has become increasingly clear that this will likely not happen! Some ducks will no doubt still be running about, quacking, while I’m gone. Fortunately, your Sabbatical Minister Li Kynvi is quite familiar with congregational life, which typically means a few loose ends and open volunteer spots. Thanks to Li, our amazing staff team and a wonderful, dedicated group of volunteer leaders, all the really important stuff will be taken care of. As for the rest, as we say, “It’s just church!” For information about the sabbatical, click here to go to the new Sabbatical webpage and FAQs.
As many of you know, this is not our first rodeo. I’ve had 2 ½ sabbaticals since my arrival 25 years ago in 1999. (I call them my “survival sabbaticals” due to reasons having to do with pregnancy, divorce and COVID; I’m holding my breath about this one!) As I said in a recent sermon, I am going to trust the process, and I hope you do too. I know it is both a huge gift and an important spiritual practice to let go, to enter this “fallow” time, and tend to the re-wilding of my own soul, while you tend to the expansion of your own. Thank you, thank you, thank you for this time and opportunity!
Meanwhile, the Soul Matters theme for June is “Renewal”. How appropriate! Here are a few questions for personal reflection:
- How does your body tell you it is in need of renewal? What is it telling you now?
- If someone gave you a box of everything that renews you, what’s the first thing you would look for?
- What might you want to shed or let go of, in order to feel lighter or more renewed this summer?
- Who or what renews your faith in humanity?
See you Sunday at the Meeting House; the Choir and I will have our PRIDE colors on! Rev. Lee