Road Trip for the Soul!!!

       

 Tomorrow I will be heading up to Ferry Beach in Saco, Maine.  The actual departure will be no doubt harried. On a ‘regular day’ I seem incapable of leaving the house without running back in at least once for something I’ve forgotten.  Planning for an entire weekend increases the odds of it being at least two ‘run-back-ins’ if not more.  To be fair, it’s a lot to think about.  Sleeping bag? Air mattress? Bathing suit? (Yes, you read that correctly!) Glow sticks for the late night youth sharing circle on the beach? Bananagrams? Toll money? Singing bowl?  Robe & stole? Graham crackers+chocolate+marshmellows? As I said, a lot to think about!  All important ingredients to help make our annual UUCM retreat, an actual treat for our souls.

Road trips for the souls can take time and effort but they are so well worth the effort.  They needn’t be trips to Maine, however.  They needn’t even involve a car.  They only require the delivery of yourself to ‘that place,’ even if it’s in your own backyard!

 I love the outdoors but I can count on one hand ‘those places’ that own a piece of who I am.  One is Lighthouse Beach in Annisquam (Gloucester, MA).  My soul takes over my body as soon as my feet hit the path and suddenly I find myself on the rocks, my shoes somehow shed and my feet moving me effortlessly to the sand and sea.  My soul humming its way into song and then flight! Another is our property in Michigan.  My soul begins a slow hum as we turn onto Zue Road.  As we pull into the driveway it begins to sing.  As I my feet land upon the dirt driveway and head in any direction – orchard, forest, corn field, garden, yard or grape arbor, my soul soars.   There are other places, each engaging my soul in different ways.  Familiarity inviting newness. Newness tickling an already happy soul.  Each place claiming me as much as I claim my spot within that special, sacred slice of the universe.  Special because we’ve claimed one another as home. Sacred because there my soul leads, letting my body and mind tag along.

And so, tomorrow I will scurry about, running in for ‘last’ things.  I’ll head north. Somewhere on Route 95, after the tolls & after the rest stop, my soul will take notice.  I will relax a bit into knowing that whatever I’ve brought I’ve brought and whatever I’ve forgotten, I can do without.  Worry about logistics won’t leave entirely but will fade. And the hum will begin, becoming louder as we exit into Saco.  When we turn the corner by the shuffleboard court and glimpse the ocean, the hum will turn into soul song.  As we pass the marsh grass and channels that wind out to the shore the song will grow strong.  As the door opens and the sound of the powerful waves reaches my soul, I will let go.  Moments later I’ll find myself on the beach, shoes left far behind. My feet will be in the water. My arms will hang loosely by my sides.  The wind will push at my opened hands. My face will lean into the sun and sea spray. And my soul will soar. And I will be glad.

~May your days include many trips for your soul ~

If We Mean What We Say ~ UU Principle #1

If We Mean What We Say ~ (An excerpt from a sermon series exploring the 7 principles of Unitarian Universalism http://www.uua.org/beliefs/principles/ )

If We Mean What We Say ~

(An excerpt from a sermon series exploring the 7 principles of Unitarian Universalism http://www.uua.org/beliefs/principles/. Image by fabulous UU Tim Atkins!)

“Inherent worth and dignity of every person.”  We tend to always read this principle as being about how we view and treat other people. We use it to fuel our efforts to impact change for ‘other’ communities. It is the subtext of all of our justice work.  Using that principle as an anchor we have made great strides in making more of our spaces accessible. We have journeyed further in understanding how racism is embedded in our system, benefitting some and harming others. We have learned to value multi-generational community, and in particular, our youth. This principle is at the heart of our efforts around securing equal rights for people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning. All of these are good, honorable. Important.

But there is a more powerful way we are called to let this principle change us and through us, our world.  It requires enormous intentionality. It requires that we first apply the principle to ourselves.  That we embody the respect in a manner that alters us.  That we look in the mirror and say “There I am. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy.”

“ There I am. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy.  There I am. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy. I will make mistakes today. I will blunder. I will take responsibility for my mistakes. There I am, flawed, beautiful, worthy. I will do good deeds today. I will show up. I will try to add goodness and beauty to our  world.  There I am. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy. I will say the right thing today. I will say the wrong thing today. Either way, I will speak up.  There I am. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy. This day is a gift and out into the world I go. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy.”

And if we can do that…. Here’s step 2.  Before you leave that mirror say “I will encounter others. They are flawed. They are beautiful, they are worthy. They will make mistakes today. They will blunder. They may or may not take responsibility for their mistakes.  There they are.  Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy. Some will do good deeds today.  They will show up.  Some will try to add goodness and beauty to our  world.  There they are. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy. Some will say the right thing today.  Some will say the wrong thing today. There they are. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy.  Mine. 

This day is a gift to all of us and out into the world we go. Flawed. Beautiful. Worthy. All.

And then ….. at THAT moment, you know THAT moment, when someone has just said the absolute WRONG thing and you knew it was coming, because you know them so well OR someone has disappointed you in a large way OR someone just slammed into your car in the parking lot ------ instead of reaching for time-worn habits that involve harsh words or gestures, reach instead for three words: Flawed. Beautiful.  Worthy.  And if you can, stretch for the fourth ~ Mine.

       If…..if we mean what we say, we need look no further than the mirror each day.