“When crisis is the context for the past and the present, 
hopeful people manage the now and imagine a future.”
–Barbara A. Holmes, 
Joy Unspeakable: Practices of the Black Church

Beloveds,

Human beings have always, everywhere, lived with both crisis and hope. I like Barbara Holmes’ observation quoted above because it notes the importance of hope in the face of crisis, but points to some concrete results of hopefulness. Rather than leaning into or encouraging a feeling of hopefulness, Holmes points out the concrete actions supported by hope: managing and imagining.  

I found a very useful definition of crisis on the website of the state of Washington’s Dept. of Social and Health Services, which notes that a crisis is a disruption or breakdown in normal or usual pattern of functioning, which cannot be resolved by customary problem-solving resources/skills. It seems to me that if some of us are not yet experiencing crisis, we likely will be soon enough. Even if we somehow escape economic, judicial, or moral challenges, climate change will impact us all in ways we are only starting to understand. 

Holmes offers a response to our times that is practical and doable; we already know how to manage and imagine, and especially practicing together, we can improve those skills and apply them to our new and ever-changing circumstances.  And those skills are applicable in all sorts of areas and at multiple levels–in any life, we have opportunities to navigate (a skill which combines both management & imagination!) situations within our selves, our families/close circles, and all sorts of different communities of which we are a part–ranging from small groups like our congregation, through the communities surrounding GNUUC locally, statewide, nationally and beyond. 

There are so many opportunities to practice good, fair, inclusive management of the present and imagine a future with more love, justice, and life-saving power. I am reminded of a recent Shared Ministries Council meeting in which we had a discussion that imagined GNUUC as a sanctuary for those in need, and I wonder how we might combine our powers of imagination and realistic management of current realities to create together something in service to our world. 

Think about it…If you have ideas about how GNUUC can live and work as a truly faithful and hopeful community in these times, please share them. 

How to share? 

-Mention long-term ideas during the next Shared Ministries meeting (Sunday, January 26 after Sunday service) and find others with whom to collaborate.

-For more immediate opportunities, share during the “What’s Next?” section of any Sunday service. (What’s Next? is a time to further our shared ministry, not just a bunch of announcements!)

-Reach out to me or other members of the congregation to brainstorm, ask questions, or work out preliminary ideas. Working together, there’s no telling what we can do! 

Yours in management and imagination,
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org 

“There are trees outside that hold
memories from before I was born.”
–Katherine North

Dear Ones,

This week, I am retreating with other UU ministers from throughout the southeast. Our retreat center happens to be placed amidst an ancient and rare forest of dwarf white oak trees. And we are talking about ancestors–our individual and communal ancestors and the ancestors we aspire to be. This is all healing and necessary on so many levels, and I thank you for being a congregation that provides for your minister’s professional development and well-being. 

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday (or maybe Saturday afternoon’s Game Night), and I hope you, too, are connecting intentionally (or planning to do so) with your own sources of comfort and power.

From this hilltop amid the trees, I remain 

Yours in hope and in determination, 
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org 

“....Oof!….”
–me, at 5:57 this morning

Beloveds,

I am finding it difficult to find words today to express how I feel. 

I thought yesterday, as I fed myself mac & cheese for breakfast, that I needed a little comfort food. This morning was, ummm, less ideal. I don’t know how the potato chips and french onion dip got into the house; must have been brought home from some office thing by my partner. But they seemed like the best, easiest option at the time. (Don’t worry: I had a beautiful salad for dinner last night, and I will surely find things later today to balance this morning’s need for creamy, crunchy bites.)

How are you today? No matter how you find yourself feeling–or not feeling–I hope you will make an effort to be kind to yourself and to those around you. There was lots of work to be done last week, and there will be plenty to be done in the weeks to come. We have each other, and we know who we are and the values that guide our work. 

Yours in hope, persistence, and love, 
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org 

P.S. I will see you on Sunday, but I am curious: Would any of you appreciate a chance to gather at church in the next few days? Or would you like to talk to me one-on-one? Email me if either sounds helpful. 

“Having no destination, I am never lost.”
–Ikkyū (Zen monk & poet)

Dear Ones,

A colleague asked me recently what I would be saying to you on Sunday, November 10. I couldn’t (and can’t) answer for sure, but my initial thoughts are that no matter how the election goes, I’m likely to want you to know that the world needs us to continue our work: the work of welcoming, of love, of justice. No matter what happens, we can rest in knowing that being always on the way to more love and more justice means that we cannot ever be truly lost, especially when we know who we are together.

A couple of suggestions for reminding ourselves and each other of who we are and what we value in the upcoming weeks: 

-We will have a Shared Ministries meeting between the service and lunch this Sunday (Oct. 27). It will be a chance to reflect further on the Vision of Ministry for  this church year presented by our Board during this week’s service and explore together how we’d like to live into it in the coming months. I hope you will attend in person or on Zoom and share your ideas about the work we could do together.

-If you are eligible, please make and execute a plan for casting your vote! 

-Housing is already an issue our congregation commits to working on. If you would like a plan for something challenging and engaging to do on November 6, you could attend the panel discussion being hosted by Vine Street Christian Church that evening. See the ad below or find more information here.  (Don’t you miss Demetria Kaladimos?) (Email if you want to sit with me.) 

Yours in knowing who we are, 
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org 

Friends,

You’ve noticed, haven’t you, the distinct turn toward autumnal weather? I love this time of year, and this year in particular, it seems to be quite intensely a time both of letting go (like the leaves) and of taking stock, laying in stores, and making preparations for the next season (like the squirrels!). 

I hope you’ll take a little time to reflect on how letting go is showing up in your life right now–notice, acknowledge, grieve if necessary, and offer a gesture of gratitude. 

And, I hope you’re finding significant ways this season to be engaging the present in ways that will make our shared futures richer and more sustainable. In case you need suggestions, I have a couple (or three):

-Early voting starts today in Davidson County! Unitarian Universalists deeply support the practice of democracy, and in the United States, the most basic democratic process is voting. I make it a point to vote every time I have the chance. (I think it counts as one of my spiritual practices.) I often like the festival-like atmosphere of voting on election day proper, but sometimes (like this year) the stakes feel so high that I vote early, just to be sure nothing unexpected happens to prevent my participation. Please have a plan for casting your vote, and check in with those around you if you can offer support. 

-If you vote early (or even if you don’t), you might enjoy spending part of Election Day volunteering in support of the democratic process. Here’s an opportunity that landed in my inbox yesterday that looks promising (and non-partisan, plus they’ll feed you!):  https://www.mobilize.us/civictn/event/721205/

-If you’d like some expert-led, nonpartisan education around important issues of reproductive health specifically in our state, Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and Northern Mississippi is co-sponsoring an online webinar this evening at 7 pm. (I’ll be at the Board meeting, so I hope someone will go and tell me about it!) Register here.

Yours in letting go and getting ready, 
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org 

P.S. I just learned that while I was composing this note, our amazing administrator, Kris Thresher, has been in line to vote in Williamson County–Yay, Kris!

Beloveds,

Hurricane Helene left a wake of death and extensive damage across multiple states in the southeast. As I write, we are waiting to see what damages Milton will inflict. Recovery from these storms will be costly and will take years. Immediate needs are, and likely will be, immense. 

In times of disaster, it can be hard to know how best to help. The Unitarian Universalist Association has a Disaster Relief Fund, which provides direct assistance to congregations and their members, friends, and community partners. Those of you who remember Tennessee tornado damage in 2020 will remember that our two local UU congregations received a grant from this fund to share with the Nashville community. Similarly, there are UU congregations in the areas currently impacted by these hurricanes.

 As you consider where to direct your giving so it will have the most impact, please consider donating to the UUA Disaster Relief Fund. Recently, the demand has outpaced the availability of funds, which are replenished only by the generosity of people just like you and me – members of a community of faith in a relationship of covenant with each other. We need each other when disaster strikes. Giving generously to support our fellow UU’s is a tangible way of living our values of generosity and interdependence. It also lets our fellow UU’s know they are cared for and held in a web of love during an incredibly difficult time. 

To make a donation, Simply follow this link:  https://www.uua.org/giving/areas-support/funds/disaster-response

Yours in in faith and love, no matter the weather, 
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org 

“Sometimes you hear a voice through the door calling you... 
This turning toward what you deeply love saves you.”
–-Rumi

Dear Ones, 

Wow, it’s October! (If I had a favorite month, it might be this one.) Even though it doesn’t feel much like fall today, I always look forward to the coming of cooler weather and longer evenings. (I know evenings have the same number of hours year-round, but I prefer having some dark time to settle into before I must go to sleep or face the consequences the next morning!) 

We’ve had a busy late-summer-early-fall these last two months, haven’t we? I feel like the start of this church year was yet again a new time, with new patterns and programming to figure out. Sometimes I long for some recurring patterns of church life to settle comfortably into (like the lengthening darkness of fall & winter nights), but I think there is so much change in our world at all levels from personal to global that some of my expectations (and perhaps yours, too) of repetition and familiarity may need to be released. 

A nice time to be reminded by a very old, cherished voice (that of 13th-century Persian poet/mystic/theologian Rumi) that love turns us toward new doorways that lead somewhere worth going. 

Yours in listening with and for love, 
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org 

Beloveds, 

I am spending much of this week thinking about the Climate Justice Revival in which GNUUC, along with many (hundreds!) of our sibling UU congregations across the continent, is participating. I hope you’ll be able to join us for some part or parts of this weekend, and if not, we’ll be thinking and reviving throughout this church year and beyond. (read more below) Here’s how you can get in on the fun and learning this weekend:

-As usual, we will gather in person and on Zoom for our Sunday morning service. This week’s service will take advantage of rich resources gathered, created, and distributed by the UUA to participating Revival congregations to help us celebrate our commitments to create climate justice and to build a world in which all can thrive. 

-On Saturday, (9/28) we will gather from 10 am until 2 pm to build connections, imagine new possibilities, and enjoy each other’s company and support as we listen to each other, learn a few things, and consider next steps. 

Registration is required for Saturday’s Revival Workshop, and lunch will be provided. (The workshop is geared to adults and older youth.) 

Registration deadline: FRI, 9/27, at noon; email gnuuc@gnuuc.org to register. 

Yours in imagining and creating, 
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org 

"... everybody’s trying to figure it out."
~ Poi Dog Pondering, “Everybody’s Trying”

Friends,

This time of year during a general election year always feels (to me) especially full of so, so many types of figuring things out. So many pundits, pollsters, forecasters, reporters, supporters, and observers and planners and … and … and. So much calling for my attention, not always in ways that serve me in discerning how best to act on my values. 

If you need it, I offer you permission–or better yet, encouragement to permit yourself–to let go of any sense of needing to figure out or follow every.little.thing. 

Please be thoughtful, but know that thinking well about a few things will take you (and all of us, as a society) further in the direction of living our values than following every conversation and worrisome detail. It’s good to be informed, but it’s even better to live from your center, for which you’ll need to pause to rest and be quiet enough to hear yourself.

Yours in the grace of centering, 
Rev. Denise
RevDenise@gnuuc.org

P.S. Please do figure out your voting plan for the US general election! (This is how we practice democracy.) Now is a good time to make sure you’re registered to vote, as well as to consider when and how you’ll cast your vote. Extra credit: check to see if your friends/coworkers/neighbors need help or encouragement.