In welcoming the month of compassion, I have a couple quotes to share related to what we have all been witnessing since the death of George Floyd. It is difficult to summon the right words, but we need to remember that it is better to have the conversations than to remain silent out of fear. Our … Continue reading CFD Director’s Corner 06/03/2020
Dear Friends, I returned last night from the long weekend in Black Hills National Forest, as the Dakota people say—“the heart of everything that is.” We camped in a tent and cooked over an open flame. Social distancing was pretty easy, and we wore our masks. We sanitized regularly the single-occupant outhouse and espoused bucket … Continue reading May 27, 2020 Minister’s Message
We are nearing the end of May, the month of Thresholds. In June, we welcome the month of Compassion. I invite you to reflect on the way that the two might merge. How might we move beyond our own comfort to offer greater compassion? What can we do to call for justice as a measure … Continue reading CFD Director’s Corner 5/27/2020
Minister’s Message Dear Friends, Gov. Walz lifted his “Stay at Home” order this week, asking us to remain “Safer at Home” as much as possible. And last week our UUA President the Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray issued guidance for re-opening worship, guidance that cautions against meeting in person until May 2021. You can see the contradiction. … Continue reading May 20, 2020 Minister’s Message
“…Life is too transient to be cruel with one another; It is too short for thoughtlessness, Too brief for hurting. Life is long enough for caring, It is lasting enough for sharing, Precious enough for love. Be gentle with one another.” -Richard S. Gilbert, from poem Gentleness in Living “Love a UUFM Elder” Keep an eye … Continue reading CFD Director’s Corner 5/20/2020
In Memory, 2020 We have a tradition at UUFM that goes back to 1999 when our part-time minister then, Rev. Sarah Oehlberg, celebrated Memorial Day by remembering those who had died in the last year. While she would deliver her sermon at Nora Church in Hanska, I would read it to us on Pohl … Continue reading In Memory 2020 Sermon
Love a UUFM Younger Our children and youth are living within constraints and frustrations as much as we adults. They could use some encouragement to develop their resilience and creativity, or just to know that love is coming toward them from outside their immediate families. And everyone loves getting a letter in the mail, right!? … Continue reading Love a UUFM Younger
Dear Friends, We have entered a phase in this pandemic time characterized by both impatience and fear. We ask, “Why can’t it all be over so I can get back to normal?” and “Wait, is it too soon? Is it really safe?” Pushed around by our desire to live our lives as we choose and … Continue reading May 13, 2020 Minister’s Message
“You may say: It’s too much — all this grief, all this violence and injustice, it’s too hard. You are right: The mind can comprehend one death, but it cannot comprehend thousands, especially when one’s own community, nation, or ancestors played some part in causing the death. Mother Theresa once said, ‘If I look at … Continue reading CFD Director’s Corner 05/13/2020
Notes from the Director Welcome to the Month of Thresholds! I would like to begin this month’s series of updates with a poem written by Cleo Wade: how to breathe when you want to give up today I am breathing through fatigue, fear, and feeling overwhelmed. I breathe because when I breathe, I am reminded … Continue reading CFD Director’s Corner 05/06/2020
