Words of Wisdom?

Reposted from April 17, 2024

The Hopi Indians of Arizona believe that our daily rituals and prayers literally keep this world spinning on its axis. For me, feeding the seagulls is one of those everyday prayers.

                                                                                                 — Brenda Peterson

Let this thought sink into your consciousness as a belief. Right now. Take a deep breath and believe that our practice of prayer and ritual keeps the world spinning. I’ve read this quote before, but I read it from the safe distance created by the intellect. I simply didn’t allow it to deconstruct my view of science and physics. I didn’t allow it to transform my ordinary day into a day of reflection. I certainly didn’t allow it to shine a light on how often I fail to practice prayer or ignore all the opportunities to create healing rituals.

If our prayers and rituals are pushing this world round and round, then we have a deep responsibility to examine the habits and routines of our daily lives. There are no disclaimers or excuses attached to this belief. The survival of our planet and those cohabitating with us depend on our ability to see the depth of the consequences of our actions and inactions.

Deep within us, when we are quiet and beyond the stresses of our days, we feel the interconnected nature of life. The gift of rain after a long dry spell, the call of birds, buzzing of bees and quiet growth of trees. If we want this planet to survive for those who will walk its pathways after us, then we must set our intentions. What do your everyday prayers look like? It’s totally up to you. It could be feeding the seagulls.

~Lisa Kiel

Reposted from April 10, 2024

Struck.

With news.

Of terrible loss.

How can this be?

Pain, fear, doubt, guilt, shame.

Deeply entwined in so many lives.

I awoke thinking myself an individual being.

Now drawn into a reality larger than myself. 

I cannot escape my part in this complex world.

——————————————————–

I am a co-creator of this vast, complex reality.

And this reality continuously pours into my life.

I move around receiving life’s free offerings.

Today, life gives; today I experience

Pleasure, love, safety, joy, gratitude

Freely given, humbly received.

My turn, again.

To touch.

Life.

~Bob Patrick

*I made up this poetic exercise. I invite you to give it a try.  The nine steps are nine lines that grow in number. The first line has one word. The second two, and so on until you reach a nine word line. Then, you reverse it, down to one, again. What are your nine steps into interdependence, into the interdependent web of existence?

Reposted from April 3, 2024

In the poem, “Hug O’ War” by  Shel Silverstein he writes, 

I will not play at tug o’ war.
I’d rather play at hug o’ war,
Where everyone hugs
Instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles
And rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses,
And everyone grins,
And everyone cuddles,
And everyone wins

(Shel Silverstein. “Hug O’ War.” Family Friend Poems, https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/hug-o-war-by-shel-silverstein)

I recently joined a list service called, ‘Spirituality and Practice’ and the passage for the very first post I received talked about this popular public dog park. The common area the dogs played in was built like a giant cereal bowl and the dogs were able to play contentedly off leash ‘in the bowl’. It was a regular hangout for many and the owners could sit on the edge and watch their fur babies play for as long as they wanted to with all of the best friends in joyful abandon. A quick whistle or call would bring them back up to the edge for a lovely walk home. 

One day the owner noticed his dog wandering off with another fur friend at the far edge of the area distracted by a new adventure – and when he called he realized he was out of earshot. He yelled louder for his baby to come but the animal was excited about following his friend out at the other end. Desperately now he started running to catch up when he noticed from all around the park ALL of the owners started calling for HIS dog. With their joined voices this sweet fur baby soon realized he was too far from where he needed to be and joyfully turned around to meet his owner in the middle of the dog bowl. 

Interdependence can be such a beautiful thing. 

~Lydia Patrick

Reposted from March 26, 2024

A few days ago, I was observing an online classroom. There were a couple of points where the professor was interacting with an individual student.  The student said something that I could tell the professor wanted to give some additional input to, maybe even correct. Rather than say something like: no, that’s not right.  Here’s the correct information (which a professor is in a position to do–even expected to do), she asked a question: would it be okay for you to feel/think/say ________?  Immediately the student grasped the new possibility (posed as a question) and embraced it. No one was made to feel wrong or stupid. I watch in amazement. I want to be like that!  I wrote it down so that I could further ponder that approach. 

Recently I, along with several other members of our congregation, attended the Southern Odyssey for Unitarian Universalist Leadership (SOUUL). My first meeting was with a small group where we engaged in some inspiring and provocative conversation. Sitting on the table in front of us were smooth, fist sized painted stones. We were invited to  use one of the stones as a “talking stone,” meaning that whenever you wanted to speak, you asked for the stone and held it while speaking into the conversation. I’ve used talking sticks before, but never a stone. The artwork on it was fun, and holding the weighted stone in my hands felt grounding and centering while I was speaking. It felt significant when I handed it on to someone else or received it myself. I want to try that sometime!

These are just two simple examples of something inherent in us as human beings. Both of them enhanced my life experience in some way. We learn from and are transformed by each other. Just being in proximity to other human beings who might be doing or saying something new to me immediately invites me into that new thing. For good or for ill. 

The power of transformation is in us and around us. We are changed by and changing each other all the time. Being reminded of that makes me want to pay closer attention to what I am learning and what I am showing others how to do!

~Bob Patrick

Reposted from March 20, 2024

Are you familiar with the Transformers? You know, those robots in disguise? Long before the Transformers movie franchise, there was a cartoon version that captured the imagination of my son when he was only five or six. In the show, there were cars and trucks that transformed themselves into powerful robots to fight evil robots. One year his grandparents sent him some birthday money to buy a toy transformer. The toy was above his age, but really I thought, how hard can it be?

Pretty hard, actually. When I saw the lengthy instruction booklet, I immediately regretted buying the toy. Hesitantly, I handed the car to Chris and began to study each step, aware that there were now clicking noises in the room. There were numerous steps, with a twist this way and twist and turn that way, but definitely not a twist another way. I foresaw a broken toy in our future. Finally I finished reading and turned to Chris to show him how to transform his car into its alter ego robot, but he didn’t need any help. With a beaming smile he held the robot up to me, magically transformed by his little hands, and said, “like this Mama?” Humbled, I replied, “exactly like that.”

I learned a bit about transformation that day. Transformation involves risk and simply believing in our amazing abilities to adapt and change. Sometimes transformation is best served by putting aside the instructions and experimenting on our own. How many twists and turns will it take until we ourselves are transformed from the ordinary to extraordinary? Who knows? There are a lot of unknowns in transformation. Encouragingly, the potential for transformation exists in us all. There is so much more to each one of us than meets the eye.

~Lisa Kiel  

Reposted from March 11, 2024

When I was in high school I was not popular in any sense of the word. I didn’t have any friends. I was shy and quiet. I was also an introvert. All of which I still am. I lived in my own world to escape my life. I survived my childhood and that’s all I have to say about that.

When I graduated, I had to work to support the family.  I  have two friends that I met at work. I still talk to them. I’ve known them for over twenty years. I guess when I do make a friend, it’s for a lifetime. 

I never knew what it’s like to be surrounded by friends. I don’t feel like I was deprived because I never experienced it. I was fine because being an introvert, people can be overwhelming. I preferred to be home with my children. 

Work and home was my life. Mostly work because I was a single mother. I also had to take care of my mother, nephew and sister. One day my life changed for the better. I found UUCG. I made friends. I was happy. Then I got a new job and I couldn’t go to UUCG for almost a year. Then COVID happened and nobody was going anywhere.

In 2021, I was diagnosed with breast cancer and my life changed in every way possible. Cancer transformed me into a different person. I’m still shy and quiet. I’m still an introvert but now I enjoy being around people. Mind you, I still need time for myself. People can still be overwhelming but it happens less. 

My transformation gave me a different life. I have many lifetime friends. They are there for me and I’m there for them. Most of my friends that I met are part of the UUCG community. I enjoy going to the services because I’m surrounded by friends. That is wonderful.

~Rita Romero 

Reposted from March 8, 2024 with addendum

Transformation comes out of chaos. 

Is this true? I’ve been thinking about it lately. I imagine two different scenarios which inform transformation, whether personally (e.g. health, financial, sense of purpose, search for meaning), or in larger social, cultural and political situations (e.g. wars in Ukraine and Israel-Palestine, full civil rights for women, LGBTQIA, the differently abled, Biracial, Indigenous and People of Color–addendum–political violence against a former President of the US).

The first scenario is the one where for the person or people involved, everything is in good order. There is order, organization, timing, resources, predictability–basically, a homeostasis in all things. If I as an individual am living that short of life where everything is in place, I am NOT looking for transformation. Why would I?  Everything is in place. And, if I am a part of a majority of people in a community, city, state or nation where pretty much everything is in order, why would I want things to change? I would only be looking for transformation if all those things begin to dysfunction, to fall apart–or I begin to notice those for whom nothing is in place, and that so disturbs my world that I begin looking for, working for change.

The second scenario is the one that we find after the first one has blown up. Nothing is really in order anymore. Nothing can be predicted or expected. Resources are scarce. Organizations don’t function and order has collapsed. When things are that bad, what we begin to find are pieces of our previous existence that we didn’t even know were there, all along, and from those we begin to rise up.

I know that transformation happens in the second scenario. Human history is full of examples both on the collective as well as the personal level: out of the ashes, human endeavor and creativity arise to build something new, to do better, and maybe for a while, to be better. Clearly, in that sense, chaos is required for transformation to take place.

I’m wondering about the first scenario. While most of my personal world is still in order, can I hear the call coming from those who are already in the ashes? I think (I want to hope) there is that possibility. If there is, I think it may be because compassion comes. Before the chaos. 

~Bob Patrick