Dear Ones,
Cicadas have always been for me the ultimate sound of summer. I learned recently that the buzz we generally hear is comprised of the mating calls of three different species. A simple and familiar thing more complex than at first thought. Like the end of summer itself—bittersweet that family time and road trips will soon give way to school calendars and preparations for colder times, as well as excitement for new learning and old friends. Such a season-change is accompanied this year by the effects of COVID on our students’ and teachers’ lives, with lingering anxieties about infection, delays to learning, need for more mental health care, and short staffing all over the place.
May we be gentle with ourselves and each other in this time of transition. May we support all of those in the midst of this back-to-school time. May we listen well and thoughtfully to the last calls of the cicadas, remembering complexity as well as comfort, as you also remember, today and every day, that you are loved, you are worthy, you are welcome, and you are needed. May you feel it so, and may it be so.
Blessings, Rev. Rita