Dear Ones,
When I first learned that this month’s worship theme was “Brought to You by the Letter ‘F,’” I immediately thought of the four F’s discussed in evolutionary psychology- fighting, fleeing, feeding, and… well. We’ll just say fornicating. 🙂 Understanding the Four F’s can help explain motivations behind various human behaviors, including social interactions and how we develop relationships with one another- an area of particular interest for me as the primary coordinator for Our Whole Lives: Lifespan Sexuality Education programming here at United Church of Gainesville. As wonderfully evolved human beings, though, we have the gift of language that helps us not only articulate how our bodies experience the four F’s, but to communicate with one another so we can move beyond our primal instincts to develop relationships that focus on flourishing. And fun. And fulfillment. We’re so fortunate to have this program available to us at UCG.
In January, we hosted 6 trainers from across the country, and 30 participants from six different UCC and UU churches throughout Florida, for an Our Whole Lives facilitator training. Nine members of our congregation, ranging in age from 20-80, attended the weekend intensive, an event that was a year+ in the making, having survived one postponement last summer, before experiencing a second delay in October due to hurricanes. We lost one of our trainers within weeks of our rescheduled dates, and I finalized our instructors only 10 days prior to the event. It’s moments like that when I am most appreciative of another one of my favorite F-words: flexibility!
Our church family exhibits a great deal of flexibility, of course, but one shining example is the flexibility demonstrated by our youth who attend Mystery Trip. Each year on MLK weekend, we embark on an adventure into the unknown with our high-schoolers, with an agenda shared only with their parents and chaperones- and every time, I am amazed by how they respond to this exercise in adaptability and resilience. This year’s trip included exhilarating snow tubing and ice skating at Snowcat Ridge, peaceful sunset walks on the beach, and the thrill of roller coasters at Busch Gardens- a fantastic itinerary on paper! But the best lessons in flexibility can’t be planned- like how patiently our 19 youth and 4 chaperones accepted traffic jams, navigated missed turns, adapted to accommodations that weren’t as described, and weathered the literal storms that delayed our theme park visit by several hours.
While on Mystery Trip, the group participated in an MLK Day of Service at the Tampa Heights Community Garden, where they shoveled and spread mulch throughout the garden paths and restored the 100+ year old greenhouse windows. Afterward, the garden coordinator sent me a thoughtful note expressing their appreciation for the hard work of our youth and the impact that their efforts had made on those special projects. While volunteering, I witnessed the youth working hard, but also taking care of each other- sharing warm clothes, cleaning up after one another, and offering to bring each other water. As the weekend came to a close, one of our youth commented that when they first attended these trips, it felt like there were a few clusters of friends that stuck together, but that as time has passed and they’ve gotten to know one another and work alongside each other, they’ve grown into a single group- over time, they’ve cultivated community of care.
As we drove home from Mystery Trip, Talia was responding to text messages about the inauguration, and the multitude of emotions that have come up for many of us as we think about what’s to come. . . Fear, fury, and frustration came to mind. She commented that she’d just spent the weekend with our amazing youth, and was comforted by all the great things they’ll do in the future and the impact they’ll have- that they’re already having- on their greater world. And that gives me faith- the f-word that brings us together, however known.
Whatever lies ahead, let us continue to create opportunities for us to care for each other, to offer friendship to one another, and to find fulfillment in this faith community that we’ve chosen to call our own.
With love,
Tami