“I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time trying to outwit Nature and spent more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority.” ~ E.B. White
If 2021 has taught us anything, it’s that despite our best efforts, Nature is in charge. Unfortunately, most people tend to remember all the bad aspects that Nature produces from severe weather patterns with destructive temperatures and storms to devastating diseases. People tend to never remember the good stuff – the beauty of fresh fallen snow, the sweet smell of newly turned earth in spring, the wonderful sensation of feeling the warmth of the sun on your face while simultaneously feeling the cooling breezes on your body. So, as we head into 2022, we need to ensure that we don’t let the challenges that we will face in the upcoming year (and there will be challenges) overshadow all the good things that the UUFP has to offer.
As I write this column in mid-December, COVID-19 cases are on the rise which includes an increasing presence of Omicron cases. The board continues to review the case numbers for our area on a weekly basis such that we can make the best choices to keep the members and friends of our fellowship safe and healthy. I also receive email updates from other presidents of other UU Board of Directors. It seems that we are in line with the majority of other UU churches in that we offer services on multiple platforms including in-person. It was recently announced that we were cancelling coffee hour since people were taking off their masks to eat (kind of hard to eat with a mask on) and socialize and it was felt that this behavior was putting people at risk in the current COVID-19 environment. Guess what… Other UU churches have done the same thing. I would love to tell you that we will continue to offer in-person services, however, I and the Board need to respect Nature and wait and see how the next few weeks and months play out. But remember to not lose sight of the positive!! Last time we stopped in-person services, we stopped services altogether. This time, if we need to stop offering in-person services, we won’t miss a Sunday Service; we will still be offering our services online and on our YouTube channel. We just need to take another cue from Nature, and just go with the flow. Wishing you all health and happiness in the New Year.
In gratitude, Linda K