Thank you, thank you, for the gift of 6 weeks of sabbatical time this summer. I am back, firmly in place, once again. I will take a little time in mid-October to go to Atlanta to visit my mother; I wanted to wait until the thunderstorms that plague the southeast calmed down, along with the huge amount of holiday/summer traffic that faces anyone driving south, to abate, as I do need to drive and have my car in Atlanta.

The past weeks have given me many gifts of time, peace, and the ability to renew myself as I did “normal” things without needing to worry much about schedules and appointments. Space opened up for prayer and meditation, processing and visioning. I thought a lot about the next stages of what will happen in downtown Rochester and how the newly formed streets, sidewalks, and landscaping will affect Calvary. I realized that I am feeling very impatient with the loud and disruptive work around us, and then was given a gift from the Holy Spirit: the grace to come to terms with the reality of NOW and to let go of the past, and stop worrying so much about the future. In planning programs and liturgy, classes and priorities, we all need to continue our work that God has given us to do, to continue to be an oasis of hope, healing, inclusion, and love for our congregation and for every person who walks through our doors or sits in the Oasis Garden. And, to do so to the best of our ability with our deep richness of people, talents, skills, and gifts in this congregation.

I am excited to continue our journey together. The Holy Spirit is very present here, and in faith; let’s follow where she is calling us to be!

In gratitude,

Beth+