We are moving, more quickly than ever it seems, into November: this month when the leaves have fallen and there is frost on my windows, and it starts to get dark at 4 PM.
Has it really been a year since the last big election? What a year. So many people I know are struggling. The phone rings with concerns from a mother who is losing SNAP benefits. An LGBTQ+ group shares stories of survival in a society full of hate. Just blocks away at the courthouse, ICE agents assault and pin a man to the ground as he cries out for help.
We still do the usual things at UUC– gather for lunch in the community room, play board games, practice tai chi, hold committee meetings. But there is this other reality we live in too- where the political is never far from the personal; where the decisions of the state have an impact on so many of our bodies- our access to food and healthcare, our basic human rights. These matters of life and death live here within and among us too.
How, in the midst of all this, do we make space for nurturing gratitude, November’s Soul Matters theme? I need only look at the full room of food and diapers collected by our youth group to support immigrant families impacted by ICE. I see the eleven logos- both Spanish and English- on a flyer for our upcoming Jazz for Justice concert to raise funds for these families- and know the heart and soul each person is bringing to this celebration. I hear the sound of our new choir practicing in the sanctuary, while UUC members and families join with community activists to make rally signs in the community room. On any given day, our downtown space is filled with meditators, musicians, sign-makers, knitters, mutual aid food collectors, activist groups, and reflection circles. We are all working so hard, but we are working together.
Often it can feel like it is never enough; not enough money or resources or time; but love is not in short supply. Love is abundant if we allow ourselves to open to it. Love is the people who show up, who answer the call- be it words or silence, gift cards or diapers. Love is the people who are vulnerable and tender enough to share their stories; and those who will listen. Love is neighbor to neighbor communicating over google translate, hobbling together a shared conversation of solidarity and hope. And love is learning that no matter what, we are never alone.
Come, let us embrace November. Come, let’s build a wider table and a space where we all belong. Let us break bread- with music and joy and celebration- for all that gives us life, this life we share together.
In peace,
Rev Terri
I will be in Stamford Sunday, November 2nd , Wednesday November 5th and Thursday, November 6th. Please schedule an appointment with me in advance via my calendly. I can meet by phone or Zoom on other calendered days.