After the Sunday service couple of weeks ago, I asked my son how his Religious Exploration class went that day. He is in the Earth group, and he has been enthusiastic about sharing their plans for garden spaces on UUCG’s grounds. This particular Sunday he told me that they had started seeds in planters that they made from old water bottles and tee shirts. I asked my son what kind of seeds he had planted. He responded that he hadn’t planted any seeds himself; he had worked on assembling the planters, filling them with soil, and adding water. Others in the group had done the actual planting.
The powerful metaphor of creating containers and healthy conditions for seeds that other people plant struck me immediately. This is part of being in community – we are providing a fertile, healthy environment for the seeds that we as a group decide to sow and nurture, even though we as individuals are not always the ones choosing the seeds and doing the planting. For example, I am so proud of what we have accomplished in becoming a Welcoming Congregation. I was not part of the small, dedicated group of people who planted that seed and organized the process, but I am glad I could be part of the fertile community doing the work together. I feel similarly about the Green Sanctuary certification we are now undertaking. That was not my seed to sow, but I do feel that I have played my part in building a community that is ready to receive it, tend it, and watch it blossom.
I hear from my son now that the Earth group’s seeds have already sprouted and the baby plants are doing well. I hope they continue to thrive. I have so much gratitude for the container this community provides, and the seeds I have seen sprout and grow and thrive here.
Paige Varner
The Words of Wisdom? is a publication of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Gwinnett.
Nicely put Paige!
Your article in my “Words of Wisdom” email really resonated in me. What a wonderful tribute to your Church and your Congregational Community. You truly have found your home. Thank you for reminding all of us that this is the type of community we should be striving for and working towards.
I just want to share that although seeds may not have been planted directly that day by your son in his group, he has certainly been firmly and beautifully rooted in his music he shares with me and so many others during Music Nights and in our Sunday services. His gifts cause me to want to re-harvest and care for the seed of music that was placed in me so long ago. My garden is still there- I can see it now, it just needs pruning (practice!!!!) and watering (playing with others regularly) to find that joy again. Thank you.