Guest Blog by Frances Loubere * It used to be the colo(u)r of a pallid sky and dog pee mixed with soggy leaves on clumps of tired snow. This was back in Birmingham, England where I grew up, and where just enough snow fell for it to be exciting, because then my father took us … Continue reading What Color is January?
Guest Blog by Kate Madson Receiving help can be challenging. I’m comfortable borrowing a friend’s trailer since I previously took care of her cat, or asking a neighbor to drop my books at the library since I would pick up his auction item at church. But sometimes reciprocity is unlikely. I can’t “repay” the companionship … Continue reading The Gift of Letting Others Give to You
Guest Blog by Katy Taylor We live in a culture of polarities that encourages us to construct polarities in our lives: good vs. bad, what I like vs. what I dislike, warm vs. cold, comfortable vs. uncomfortable, relaxation vs. work, etc. One polarity that arises this time of year is dreading the arrival of … Continue reading Winter Solstice
Guest Blog by Nan Toby Tyrrell One of the joys of being Jewish is the opportunity to stop my ordinary life on Friday at sunset and light two white Sabbath candles, repeat the prayers, and let go of the present anxieties and everyday concerns. Instead I turn my soul, heart, and mind to a higher … Continue reading Reflections on the Sabbath on the Cusp of Hanukah
Guest Blog by Kirit Bhansali Kate’s Sermon on October 25, 2020, inspired me to think more about letting go. When I asked myself, what is preventing me to let go, the answer was ego. So I wrote to Kate if she would do a sermon on Ego versus Self-esteem. She asked me to write a … Continue reading Ego versus Self Esteem
Guest Blog by the Nominating Committee In an inspiring Sunday service, QUUF member Brian Rogers contrasted authoritarian and adaptive leadership. He said, “I think of a leader not as a person at the head of a marching column of people following them. Rather, a leader is more like the conductor in front of an orchestra. … Continue reading ‘Tis the Season to Begin Thinking About Leadership Recruitment
Guest Blog by Native Connections Action Group The theme for this week is “by our truth you shall know us.” Also, this week is Indigenous Peoples Day. It is a day to honor those who have been on this land “since time immemorial.” Honoring involves understanding the truth about the history of indigenous people and … Continue reading číčməhán Trail Benches
Guest Blog by Kathy Stevenson Unitarian Universalists are known to be thoughtful, creative and interested in making improvements in ourselves and the world around us. We believe in honesty and expressing our feelings. These are positive traits. However, we can be unnecessarily hurtful if our ideas for improvement and our expression of honest emotions are … Continue reading To Be Honest AND Kind
Guest Blog by Penny Ridderbusch I once heard it said that to find out what’s truly important in one’s life, look at two things – one’s calendar and one’s checkbook. At the time I heard this, I was doing a lot of volunteering for a non-profit organization that had a profound impact on my life. … Continue reading What’s Truly Important
Guest Blog by Virginia Nixon With the COVID-19 pandemic also comes a pandemic of challenges. However, even as change is all around and we are constructing a whole new way of being in our QUUF Fellowship, some things do not change. Just as we have all adjusted to other losses and changes in our lives, … Continue reading ‘Tis a Season of Changes!
