From the Sabbatical Minister - March 31, 2020

So Long and Thanks for All the Fish

It seems so long ago and only yesterday that I arrived for our first service together in October. Since then, we've celebrated holidays and holy days, we've noted the changing seasons (and an odd lack of winter), and we've begun a different kind of being together in this time of pandemic.

We've done a lot - those who were present for the service on March 29 heard just how much we've done together and how good it is. I won't recap it here (go watch the service!), but know that you were already doing remarkable things before March 1, and are simply extraordinary now, as you figure out how to be in community in new ways, how to stay connected while physically apart.

Some of you have asked what's next for me - and sadly, that's not as certain any more. Here's what I know for sure:

Guest Preaching - Whether online or in person (pandemic-permitting), I'll be gracing pulpits in various congregations in New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Wyoming, Nebraska, and Maryland.

Conferences - Again, pandemic permitting, I'll be at General Assembly in Providence, RI; and the Southeast UU Summer Institute (SUUSI) in western North Carolina.  GA might wind up being online, and SUUSI might wind up being canceled.

Other Travel and Workshops - Hopefully, I'll be with my affiliated congregation (the Unitarian Church of Lincoln) in June, with worship and workshops there, Denver, and Cheyenne. I've also got a worship workshop scheduled at Shelter Rock. Time and virus will tell whether those are also online.

Projects - I do a fair bit of one-on-one consultations, so those will continue, and I expect to do some writing; I have a worship book formulating, I am writing a new curriculum for UU Wellspring, and I have a longer-term project to write a guide to all of our hymns. We shall see how those go!

Next Sabbatical Ministry - Again, pandemic permitting, I will be at the Community Church of Chapel Hill - UU beginning September 1 for a three month sabbatical ministry. I am very hopeful this will happen.

Besides peppering Rev. Meredith and Tracy with questions about me, you can find out what I'm up to by visiting my website or by following my Worship Whisperer page on Facebook.

I leave you with these words from UU Composer David Glasgow:

We have spent time together,
And these holy moments
Give us strength to go
down the winding road
That brought us to this place.
And my prayer for you
Is a peace that's true —
Until we meet again.

Farewell, friends.