Sian's Shenanigans

Do you ever talk to your pets or plants as if they could understand you? Name your cars? Blame Gremlins for losing your keys or stealing your socks from the dryer? We humans are odd and whimsical creatures. We imagine all sorts of strange things and it’s that wonderful? And there are lots of reasons for it. For one, humans are storytelling creatures. We see faces in clouds, patterns in stars, and personalities in pets and objects. This isn’t just…

Did you know that “Joy” is my favorite word? Years ago, I read in Marianne Williamson’s book “A Woman’s Worth” a definition of joy that resonated: “”Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are.” About this same time, a friend of mine told me she was pregnant and a wonderful feeling overcame me – a feeling that all was right with the world, because I knew she and her spouse would…

Can you believe that I’ve been with this congregation for over 11 years? I can still remember meeting the search committee, the congregation and my first day I preached (with the youth!). I admit, the first few years were tough. I had big expectations of myself, and the congregation and I were getting to know one another. It can be a tender time: it takes time to build trust. Trust that we won’t hurt each other; trust that we will…

One of my favorite poems is called “The Guest House” by Jalaluddin Rumi (12th C. Sufi Poet). It speaks to the wisdom that each of us have different “parts” – (“a joy, a depression, a meanness…”) and to welcome them all (“Welcome and entertain them all!”). That is, include them in who you are because each of these “parts” has something to teach you (“each has been sent as a guide from beyond”). But we often want to exclude these…

I love stories. Some of my earliest memories are of my father reading Winnie the Pooh and the Madeline books to me. These stories made me laugh, gave me hope, and taught me how to have courage and the joys of friendships. Stories also opened my mind to new ideas. I remember a children’s book about how the number 13 was a lucky number, not a bad one. And that witches were good, not bad. It made me think about…

As many of you know, I was up last week helping celebrate my sister’s 70th birthday. A milestone for sure! When I asked her what she would like for her big birthday, she said: “Just your presence.” It got me thinking about how many people in my life are my “present;” that is, a gift to me. I thought of my twin and her husband, my niece, my dogs, my friends, my colleagues, and, of course, my wonderful congregation. But…

If you’ve ever owned a house, you know that it’s kind of a pain. There are always repairs to be done – the roof leaks, the dryer quits on you, the dog chews up the linoleum floor… (yah, that really happened!). At OCUUC, we have a wonderful team of people who repair that which is broken. Led by Jennifer Thomas of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, they do everything from fixing gas leaks, plumbing issues, painting the building, and making…

We’ve all been told that listening and hearing are two different things; that hearing is passive, whereas listening is active. So, we can hear what someone is saying, but we might not be listening, which involves not just the words, but the emotions and ideas being expressed both verbally and physically. Listening is quite hard, actually. It requires us to pay attention to the entire person. As we take in the information from the other person, it is very natural…

The monthly theme this month is “invitation” which is, for me, at the heart of Unitarian Universalist worship. We don’t have creeds or dogmas that “tell” people what to believe. We have people sitting in our pews that have all kinds of different beliefs – theists to atheists and everything in between. So it’s important that we respect the pluralism of our faith by making everything inviting. You might have noticed that I always “invite” people to meditation or to…

Last Sunday as part of Question Box Sunday, someone asked if I loved my job. I do! I absolutely love being your minister. I don’t want to be or do anything else. And being a minister is also exhausting. Isn’t that strange? We can love something, but it can also cause us “harm” – lose energy, feel run down, even burnt out if we let it. As a minister I notice that my work is in fact never done -…

We contain multitudes. And yet we are one. It’s a strange paradox. I’m struck by two quotes I found recently. The first is from Winona LaDuke: “The first thing I am is a person… But people either relate to you as an Indian or as a woman. They relate to you as a category.” How true that is. It’s part of human nature to find those categories that we can relate to (or not), and to put one another in…

“When is enough, enough?” This question ran through my mind when in a business meeting in my 30’s, when the president of the company complained that a competitor was charging more than we were. And yet we were quite profitable, we did good work helping people, and we were respected (they were not). I asked the question to the president, and he looked annoyed and never answered. One of the challenges with capitalism, as Eric N. recently reminded me, is…