Thanksgiving is coming!

Over the past few months, I have come
to realize the depth gratitude I feel for this beloved congregation. Gratitude
is such a profound emotion, and a life lived through a lens of gratitude can
bring into focus such beauty and kindness and wonder.

Speaking of
which,
Thanks go out to: Bonnie and Clara
Pierone, Tami Kendra, Erica Steakley, Star Irvine, Wendy Hawker, Meghan Pinson
and Nicole Thibadeaux for set up, clean up, snacks, and materials for our Day
of the Dead Remembrance on Oct 30.

Our tradition of decorating an altar
for displaying pictures and mementos, of making sugar skulls, lighting candles
burning incense and placing marigolds, is very important. But more than that, we
share stories about those loved ones and ancestors who have died, but whom we
very much wish to keep in our memories. We so rarely talk about death in our
culture, and yet death is a profound mystery and is so critical for us to
consider, as we build our personal theologies.

This past Sunday, as even some of our
youngest children spoke, sharing a few thoughts about a beloved pet who has
passed away, or a grandparent, or an ancestor of whom they have heard stories, I
was struck by how honest and reverent our conversation was. We laughed at some
funny things, but mostly I think the kids were treading very carefully through
strange and unfamiliar territory. I tried to express how much I appreciate
hearing the names of the people and pets who are pictured in the photos we
bring. How important it is to remember, and keep the stories alive.

We did not have enough time to do the
remembrance justice. Particularly for the older kids, who brought questions
about suicide and the pain of the death of a child. We will visit this topic
with our older kids in our classrooms on future Sundays, but I hope our families
will continue the conversation at home.

Speaking of
which,
The perfect time to enjoy telling and
retelling family stories is Thanksgiving, when many extended families are
gathered or long distance phone conversations happen. Did you know that the day
after Thanksgiving has been designated the National Day of
Listening?
Yep. It's time to hear about the Great
Depression, about life before television, and
Woodstock, and cars without seatbelts...first hand!
From the people who lived it! Time's a wasting, and there is no truer way of
traveling back in time, than on the memories of someone who has lived a long
life.
Here's a helpful link if you are not
sure how to get the conversation started:

http://nationaldayoflistening.org/

Also for Thanksgiving...here is a game that was taught to me by 3
sisters who were in my Sunday school class long ago. Their names are Anika, Hope
and Sophia, and this is how you can entertain yourselves while waiting for
Thanksgiving dinner to get cooked:

10
Turkeys
Draw ten little pictures of turkeys,
each on a separate 1 or 1 1/2 inch piece of stiff paper or
cardstock.
Choose someone to hide all the turkeys
inside, in plain sight, while the other players hide their eyes. All the
turkeys should be clearly visible without moving anything. Once all ten have
been positioned, the rest of the players begin searching for them. Players
collect the turkeys as they discover them, and once all ten have been found, a
new turkey hider is chosen.
A simple game, but sometimes a stubborn
turkey requires everyone in the house to find
it.

And on a mundane
topic:
Until now I've kept office hours at
church on Mondays and Wednesdays and have worked 5 hours a day, Sunday through
Wednesday. Leaving me Thursday and Friday to be an artist and
Saturday to be with my family.

I am finding that folks want to be able
to work with me later in the week, so here is my new
schedule:
Director of Religious Exploration
hours
Sunday 9 AM till
1 PM at church
Monday work from
home
Tuesday and
Friday 9:30 till 2:30 usually office hours at
church

Wednesday and
Thursday I'm an artist
Saturday I goof
off with Scott and the kids.

Respect!
Jill
Herbertson
Director of Religious
Exploration
jherb10@aol.com