GRATITUDE FOR COMMUNITY

PUUF, NOV. 27, 2022

 

Last Sunday evening, I sat nervously in my car, parked on Duane next to Astoria’s Garden of Surging Waves, thinking about the Colorado Springs massacre the night before when a crazed shooter had mowed down those dancing and celebrating at Club Q, killing five and wounding many others before a former military man wrestled his gun away and a drag queen stomped him with her high heels.

My “name-sister” Christina Mae Ketcham, sponsor of the vigil to commemorate Transgender Day of Remembrance and the many lives cruelly taken, had requested police presence for our vigil, but I hadn’t caught sight of anyone in uniform at that moment, so I waited till 7 o’clock and then made my way to the entrance to the Garden.

Lit by candles strewn about the walkways, the Garden took on a reverent atmosphere, and when I saw Christina, Tessa, Marco, spouses of transmen and women, and many friends, plus Officer Chris O’Neary in attendance, I knew I was entering a safe space and a space that had been sanctified by hope and love.

I was grateful for this gathered community.  And during that hour of quiet reverie and song, I felt my anxiety abate, my sense of connection increase, and my resolve to continue my support and love for our many Q-community friends and neighbors.

Gratitude---not just gratitude for Christina’s bringing us together, but gratitude for a former soldier who couldn’t stand it and risking himself, wrenched the gun from the shooter’s hands.  Gratitude for the Drag Queen who took the opportunity to stomp the shooter with her high heels.

What does “community” mean to us?  The dictionary would tell us something about people united in a common cause.  The vigil last Sunday night was a community that formed for an hour, united in their love for those who suffer for their gender or sexual identity, angry about the senseless loss of life, fearful for the dangers that may lurk in hidden places, but determined to continue to work for the cause of freedom for all.

Where else do we find community?  I’d like to suggest that our coffee klatches offer a sense of community, folks gathering in their own neighborhoods, talking about the conditions where they live, what the solutions might be, the ideas brainstormed for addressing some of those problems.  But these communities might not exist except for their common roots in the Pacific UU Fellowship, here on the Lower Columbia.

 I just love attending our coffee klatches.  No matter who is there on any given date, our enjoyment of each other’s presence is tangible.  Our quieter members offer their ideas, which they might not do so readily if it were a larger, less connected group.  Our more outgoing members keep the conversation going. 

There is a sense of belonging, I think, that affects most of us---evidence of that, for me, lies in the willingness to let me know that trauma just wasn’t going to work for us, a message relayed quietly, respectfully, and earnestly. That kindly communication from members of the larger community of PUUF was effective and it changed my trajectory from trauma to gratitude for the respect and caring others showed for my misjudgment.

I don’t know if you read through the November edition of News from the Pews, which is the chronicle of the goings-on in the coffee klatches.  At the end of each month, I list the topics and ideas that came up during the coffee klatch.  And it strikes me that among the ongoing themes that arise, we often turn to social justice concerns.  Our coffee klatches are not just socializing moments!

Here's an excerpt from the Astoria CK:  (We) opined upon the issues of local right-wing politics, the gun legislation on the ballot, and the ever-present challenges of racism and antisemitism, plus the dangers of Christian Nationalism.

The Peninsula folks started out talking about racism and white privilege which soon developed into deep concern for the peninsula’s problems with meth addicts, squatters in RV’s and other homeless folks, moving from disgust at the trash and ugly dwellings into a larger consideration of how these problems develop. 

Our Tillamook county friends considered the personal issues of ageing, of losing one’s spouse, of the decisions that need to be made about relocating, downsizing, living with one’s children, the mingled grief and relief that comes with some losses in life.

And the South County group had lots to talk about as well:  the slash pile fires for starters, and then a wide-ranging discussion of rent increases, right to work laws and how they were related to slavery and other workers’ issues, the Great Resignations of health workers, teachers, and others.  And capitalism’s hold on the world’s economy, particularly “the 1619 Project” and its Capitalism chapter.

(By the way) If you’re not currently attending your local coffee klatch, you’re missing out on some pretty interesting conversations!  If you’re not on my mailing list for CK’s and would like to be, please let me know!  And we have goodies!

But to return to the theme of Gratitude for Community and how we express that gratitude to our PUUF community and to the larger communities in which we live---

One casualty of the pandemic was our forced ending of much of our social justice outreach and the committee which proposed and carried out projects.   

What would you think about re-energizing that committee and undertaking some interesting social justice projects and outreach?  It could be done in a couple of ways:  reaching out to the area in which each CK is located, with the Peninsula finding a project that benefits the residents on the peninsula, for example.  OR finding a project that could include the whole Lower Columbia area.

Let’s talk about some of the thoughts I’ve presented and see if we can come up with some workable ideas.  We’re a little rusty in the social justice department, at least in terms of boots on the ground, but we all seem to have strong opinions about what is wrong and how we feel about it.  Next step, of course, is how do we act on those opinions and feelings?

Anybody want to start the discussion off?  (Veja, will you manage the microphone for folks to use?)

Discussion ensued.

         In closing, I’d like to offer a recipe for feeling and expressing gratitude:

1.    Look for opportunities to be grateful

2.   Say it out loud----“thank you trees, or car that didn’t 

3.   Thank the universe, the powers that be, or God, if that works for you.

4.   Pay attention to what it feels like for you to be grateful.

5.   Be aware of the gift your gratitude gives to others.

Amen, Shalom, Salaam, and Blessed Be.