USH-Enews for June 11 , 2009 Print Only Edition

USH-Enews is a weekly email newsletter produced for members and friends of the Unitarian Society of Hartford. The USH web address is: http://www.ushartford.com/ Check at the end of this USH-Enews for information on submissions, subscriptions and escape from the mailing list. And, to read the monthly Meetinghouse Messenger (newsletter) on the web or to find past issues of the weekly USH-Enews click here.

Sunday - 14 June - GLBT Pride Sunday - Come celebrate with the members of our Interweave Sub-Council. This theme-team service will highlight the commitment of our Welcoming Congregation. No matter who you are, no matter who you love, you are welcome here, and as our talented Chancel Choir will sing, Everything's Possible!

Our Good Neighbor Collection this week is to benefit True Colors, Sexual Minority Youth and Family Services of Connecticut. Their ambitious mission is: "True Colors works to create a world where youth, adults and families of all sexual orientations and gender identities are valued and affirmed. We challenge all forms of oppression through education, training, advocacy, youth leadership development, mentoring and direct services to youth and those responsible for their well-being." True Colors Please give generously in support of this fine cause.

Music – "Everything Possible" is a beautiful song, a lullaby, about fully accepting our children and offering them complete freedom to become themselves.

You can be anybody you want to be - You can love whomever you will - You can travel any country where your heart leads - And know I will love you still

Fred Small, a folk singer and songwriter who is now a UU minister, composed this song which has become an unofficial anthem for the GLBTQ community.

Harry Potter Summer Program - We will continuing our summer class schedule. Worship will begin at 10 AM, and after the Time for All Ages, all children will be invited downstairs to Classroom D for Mythology of Muggles class! Come experience the magic!

Registration for 2009-2010 - In an effort to reduce our carbon footprint, the Religious Education registration process will be electronic this year! In the next few weeks, families will receive an email document to be filled out and returned electronically to register their children for classes next year. If you are concerned that the office does not have your most updated email address, please email Gail at: DRE@ushartford.com. - Gail M. Syring, DRE

DRE Monthly Column - When I was a child and had to do something unpleasant like going to the dentist or having a shot, my mother would remind me that “this too, shall pass” by suggesting a time limit. “By three o’clock, this will all be over and we will go get some ice cream.” As an adult, I still find that placing boundaries around frightening events is helpful. “It will only last an hour. I can tolerate anything for an hour. This time tomorrow, this will all be over. And then I’ll have some ice cream.”

More challenging are the events in our lives that cannot be limited by time. Trying to gather up the ends of grief, or illness, or financial difficulty can be agonizing and often fruitless. How does one breathe through those moments that seem to have no beginning and no end? At times like these, I find myself returning to the five ideals (or principles!) of Reiki, a Japanese energy healing technique that has been a primary part of my spiritual practice for ten years. At once universal and individual, these ideals help me to put my arms around my most enigmatic troubles.

Just for today, I will let go of anger.
Just for today, I will let go of worry.
Just for today, I am filled with gratitude.
Just for today, I will devote myself to my work.
Just for today, I will be kind to all living beings.

Imagine with me a finite, manageable period of time ahead when our focus is on gentleness for ourselves and each other. Just for today. Imagine a way that we can hold each other with kindness. Just for today. Imagine seeking that place within where we know we are held. Just for today.

And then we will go have some ice cream. - Gail M. Syring, DRE

Music for You to Give and Receive at the Meeting House—This Fall! We will have several opportunities for guest musicians to share their art during worship in the coming year, beginning in September. If you, or anyone you know, (like some of our youth, for example!) enjoys playing an instrument or singing, and would like to explore the possibility of doing something during a Sunday service, either solo or with a group, Mattie and I would like to have a chance to talk with you about this special way of being in ministry at USH.
Please email us, by July 1, and we'll be back with you quickly. Rev BJ Mattie

Beginning with our “Ingathering Service” on September 13, there will be "Morning Songs" in the Sanctuary, led by our soprano soloist and cantor, Melissa Page. Beginning 15 minutes before the service start time, we will sing one or two favorite hymns, and be introduced to any unfamiliar hymns for that day or upcoming worship services. Feel free to pick up a hymnal and join the morning song as you enter, or just sit and feel the spirit among and between us. There will be at least one "Morning Song"’worship service each month, to be announced in USH-Enews at the beginning of the month.

Beginning on October 4, and every "first Sunday" thereafter through June, 2010, there will be a “Chapel Sing” after coffee hour in our own Payson Miller Chapel, for 30 minutes. You may call out your favorite hymns, and we will become more familiar with songs in the UU Hymn supplement as well.
Rev BJ and Melissa look forward to having you join us as we continue making Joyfuul Sounds of the Spirit at USH. You can hear Melissa sing for a benefit in East Hartford this Thursday evening (see flyer) or next Thursday evening at the Park Road Play House Cabaret. - BJ

Gregg Levoy Talks on Callings - “Wow!” was how author Gregg Levoy began his sermon as the USH’s pulpit guest last Sunday. This was his reaction to our weekly lighting of candles of memory and hope. He continued, “I love this ritual; it’s the first time I’ve seen it done.”

And “wow!” was the congregation’s reaction to Mr. Levoy’s fascinating “sermon” which combined pithy statements, lots of humor, and examples from his own experiences as he explained some of the messages in his well-received book, Callings: Finding and Following an Authentic Life.

When he was a young reporter for the Cincinnati Enquirer, he said, a smooth-talking member of the Barnum and Bailey Circus persuaded him that riding bare-back on an elephant (reached by climbing a 12-foot ladder), hanging on for dear life to the creature’s flapping ears and leading the circus’ opening parade would add to his story. It did.

And he learned a lot during that harrowing ride, he said. He learned that following your calling is simultaneously nerve-wracking and thrilling. He discovered the willingness to go for a big ride. And, he said wryly, “My soul does not seem to care what price I have to pay to follow my calling.” Hanging on to an elephant “tends to create turmoil in your life…courage and anxiety are joined at the hip.”

Heroism can be defined, he stated, as “the ability to tolerate paradox.” At the same time, you want both to follow and to avoid your calls. You need the ability to stretch yourself wide enough to accomplish competing energies. Friction, tension and disturbance are “yeast for the bread” and promote growth, Mr Levoy suggested.

As an example of the paradoxical nature of the call to serve, he told of a time when he volunteered to play with dogs at an animal shelter, only to learn that each week half of the dogs he loved and fed and played with ended up in the land fill. This led to important discoveries about the “art of loving and letting go…holding on tight with an open hand.”

Discussing money, he said it is not only important, but it is also emotional. Look at the words we use to describe it—bonds, shares, trusts, maturity, appreciation… premature withdrawal.

“All calls, to some degree, are ultimately calls to serve,” Mr. Levoy said. “The challenge is to reconcile your visions with your resources.” Our individual work is the work of the world. He cautioned that if we don’t make mistakes repeatedly, then our whole effort is probably a mistake. Our small steps are the big picture; our small steps are the callings.

Reverend BJ, who met Gregg Levoy for the first time last Sunday but has been using his book for years, said, “Any book can be a sacred text,” and that she can open his book to any page and “find a prayer.

Following the service, Mr. Levoy led a four-hour workshop based on his book and intended to help participants recognize a true calling and learn how to translate it into action. - Kayla Costenoble

Callings Workshop Encourages an Authentic Life - After the service, on a beautiful Sunday afternoon, more than 45 members and friends of USH hunkered down in the Fellowship Hall and explored their own callings in an intense four-hour workshop. The workshop was interactive, fast-paced, emotional—and funny.

“Most people will not pursue a calling until the fear of following it is exceeded by the pain of not following it,” said Levoy. “If your horse dies, get off!”

Levoy defines a calling as something to do (change careers, have a child) or to be (more creative, less judgmental).

Levoy began by asking participants to answer a series of probing questions to help identify our own callings. Over the next few hours, we reviewed ways to avoid following a calling (“the voice of No”), talked about what “the voice of Yes” might say, acknowledged that following a calling often results in disapproval of others, and discussed the sacrifices and rewards involved in pursuing a calling. Mixed in were some intense partner and small-group exercises. Finally, we brainstormed some concrete steps to begin following our callings.

A balance of the spiritual and the practical, Gregg Levoy’s Callings workshop was worth trading a sunny Sunday afternoon for the prospect of a more authentic life. - Sarah Gilligan

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Did You Know? - Green Sanctuary Sub-Council -

GHICEJ Members - Please Join Us for Hartford Clean up Day - When: June 20th from 9AM to noon;

What Else is Happening & Announcements

A Budget Briefing - for the congregation on Sunday, June 21 after the 10AM service and the memorial service for Jane Willits. Probably by approximately 12:30 PM. (Please note this hearing was previously scheduled for June 18th and has been rescheduled)

Making Melody in Our Hearts - On June 28, here's your chance to join Joyfuul Noise in singing several simple meditative chants during worship. We will gather as an "instant choir" at 9:15 that morning and learn several short pieces which we will sing as repetitive meditations during worship, as an experience of some of the dynamics which our speaker, Susan Huntington, will mention in discussing healing arts.

We hope to see you there!

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Alliance Picnic - All women of USH are warmly invited to the annual Women’s Alliance picnic on Wednesday, June 24, with rain date of June 25. Thanks to Linda Ericson-Ebel, member of the Wood Pond Association, for graciously arranging this event.

The picnic will be from 11 AM to 2 PM; unfortunately, 40 people is the site limit, so sign up quickly. Deadline is Sunday, June 21.

Bring your own picnic, with something to share – snacks, dessert, your choice! Beach rules specify no glass nor breakable containers, so please pack paper and plastic. And we must carry out all which we carry in.

Swimming is available at the sandy beach, but there are no changing rooms other than a port-a-potty, so dress in layers if you want to swim. Warning ~ the water might be cold!

You may sign-up on the list on the Alliance standing bulletin board in Fellowship Hall or by calling Linda at (860) 561-0399. Questions? Ask Linda.

We can carpool with our picnics to the lake from the USH parking lot or Linda’s house. Indicate interest in carpooling on the sign-up sheet or when you call to sign-up.

Here’s looking forward to a wonderful time of friendship, fun, and food in a pleasant lakeside location! Hope to see you there!

Announcing Summer Small Group Ministry - beginning July 1st More

New Sermons posted on the Web. Go to the source! Memorial Day Sermon

Lamps & Linens Needed for My Sister's Place - Collection will be on the 14. More

Adult Programs - Even though there will not be a Programs Registration Table during the summer, we would like to hear from you! Looking ahead to programming for the fall, perhaps you or someone you know has a special interest and would like to offer a class or workshop.

To obtain a Program Proposal Form, you may go to http://www.ushartford.com./ From the Spiritual Life pull down menu (on the left side of the home page), click on Adult Programs. In the first paragraph, click on download the form in Microsoft Word. The form is also available at the USH office. The Proposal Form should include a detailed paragraph about the program that can be used for promotion. Please email the completed Proposal to Nancy Reed or Janice Newton by Monday, August 10 so that your proposed program can be reviewed and included with the other 2009 Fall Programs for Adults and Families.

To register for the Summer Small Group Ministry (SGM), please call the church office at 860 233-9897.

Many thanks to all of you who planned and participated in the 2008-2009 Fall and Winter/Spring Programs for Adults and Families.

Caring Network - If you're doing anything you know you can do, you're not doing anything. W.D. Snodgrass. - If you know of any member experiencing some difficulty, please contact Diana Heymann, Chair of the Caring Network heydiana(at symbol)comcast.net 860.461.0908 or call the office so we can provide some assistance. A wide range of community services is also available to those in need by calling InfoLine at 211. Please contact Diana if you are able to volunteer your services.

On the Calendar

Thursday, June 11
5:00 pm NVC, David
7:00 pm Rental, Ballou

Friday, June 12
5:30 pm Dinner and Movie, Fellowship Hall

Saturday, June 13
10:00 am Rental, Chapel
5:00 pm Nappi Piano Recital, Sanctuary

Sunday, June 14
8:45 am Building and Grounds, Murray
9:00 am Music rehearsal, Sanctuary
10:00 am WORSHIP, SANCTUARY
11:00 am Coffee, Fellowship Hall
3:00 pm Rental, Chapel

Monday, June 15
7:00 pm Rental, Ballou

Tuesday, June 16
6:00 pm Worship Associates, Ballou
6:45 pm Caring Network, off site
8:00 pm AA, Fellowship Hall

Wednesday, June 17
5:45 pm Meditation and Dharma Gathering, Emerson
7:15 pm NVC Practice Group, Emerson
7:30 pm Choir Rehearsal, Sanctuary

Thursday, June 18
5:30 pm NVC Gathering, Minister’s Study
6:30 pm Finance, Library

Sunday, June 21
9:00 am Music rehearsal, Sanctuary
10:00 am WORSHIP, SANCTUARY
11:30 am Willits Memorial, Sanctuary
12:30 pm 2009-2010 Budget Briefing, Fellowship Hall
3:00 pm Rental, Chapel

italicized entries are non-USH events.
Please notify Brian Mullen of all additions or changes to the calendar. Follow this link to all our scheduled events!

Further Down The Road (About 30 Days)

Reminder: Retreat Scheduled in October - LADIES, mark your calendar now and save October 23-25, 2009 for a retreat to Senexet House in Woodstock, CT. The Unitarian Alliance Ministry to Women will host the event and all women are invited. Details will be published in September.

Nuts and Bolts: The member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association covenant to affirm and promote: the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equity, and compassion in human relations; acceptance of one another and encouragement of spiritual growth in our congregations; a free and responsible search for truth and meaning; the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process, within our congregations and in society at large; the goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; respect for the interdependent web of all existence, of which we are a part.

Generally, USH-Enews will be posted on Thursday. Send email related to the USH-Enews to dcnewton at ushartford.com If you have announcements or articles you wish to be published, send them along with the subject line USH-Enews by 4:30 PM Wednesday evening. Comments are always welcome. If you wish to have your name removed from the distribution list or have learned of the electronic publication and wish to have your email address added, just ask. © Unitarian Society of Hartford