“Courage is found in unlikely places.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien
The Path of Courage, and Honoring its Complexities
As we wrap up the month of courage, I find myself reflecting on the multitude of places it can be found and ways it can be practiced.
Courage can be found in not having the right answers and in the wisdom that sometimes there is more than one right answer. It is courageous to admit that we are sometimes wrong – that we may fall short, hold a different perspective, have more to learn, or say things we don’t mean.
It can be found in empathy and in looking beyond what we think of as wrongdoing to what is underneath it. In countless action movies, the wounds of the “villain” are made apparent time and time again – let us be courageous in remembering that the ones inflicting hurt, indeed, suffer too.
Setting boundaries can feel courageous, especially when it was not modeled or taught. A lot of anxiety can build when preparing to create new boundaries, but ultimately this kind of brave act serves both parties, in most cases.
In Children’s Chapel this past Sunday, a few other examples that came up of practicing courage included singing or performing in front of others, making big life changes, and sharing our stories. We reflected on how courage may not always take the most loud or bold of forms. We talked about how it might feel in our bodies and that sometimes courage is doing the thing that makes us uncomfortable, and yet other times, courage is saying no to the thing that makes us uncomfortable.
May we remember that we all have courage inside of us when we are paying close attention. Let us honor courage as a path and a practice.
Nursery care
We now plan to have the nursery open every Sunday during worship and during some of our Wednesday night activities. We are in the process of interviewing and hiring childcare workers. If you know of anyone interested in filling in the gaps with a very part-time, fun job, please reach out to Macey.
Children’s Faith Development
We now plan on having CFD every Sunday, including the first Sundays of the month.
I look forward to celebrating a favorite holiday together this Sunday!
- October 30th, 10:45-11:30am Samhain / Halloween – costumes welcome, Children’s Chapel with Macey and Deb
Youth Group Due to a lack of participation, youth group is canceled tonight and will resume in November. Please give me feedback on when your youth-age children may be available here: https://uufm.breezechms.com/form/e8a5c4
- OWL for 7-9 grade – Postponed
o Because we have not yet had enough youth able to participate in the upcoming OWL dates we had proposed, we will be planning to offer a time to sign-up again in early 2023.