October 2015

Theme: Impermanence

In her poem, The Ponds, Mary Oliver contemplates the reality of life’s impermanence.  Awareness of life’s impermanence presents us with a spiritual challenge. We can succumb to the lure of denial or the the fatigue of resignation and live our lives pretending we’ll live forever or that nothing we say or do really matters.  Or we can seek and find acceptance and live in ways that express and make the most of life’s finitude.   

Questions for Reflection

Read Mary Oliver’s The Ponds (click title)

What are ways that you succumb to the lure of denial or fatigue of resignation concerning life’s impermanence?

How do you or how might you move toward acceptance of life’s impermanence?

October 2015
Theme: Impermanence

 Impermanence and Acceptance

 Do you miss something that is lost or changed?

What would you like to accomplish by your next birthday?

 What is something that is hard for you now?

 When is it hard to be a friend?

Who is someone you’d like to be friends with?

Heart Talk-A Great Adventure

I ask a lot of questions both in my role as religious educator and as a parent. Thoughtful questions are a great way to inspire thinking and conversation, investigating and sharing and learning about each other.

Heart Talk is a spiritual practice though which we can share our hearts and feelings. It can help connect and enhance communication and relationships amongst our family members. You will find, right here on LOVE UU each month, several themed questions that can get you started. You might print them out and keep them in the car, or at the dinner table or in your living room. You might add more questions and put them in a box or a jar for random drawing. You might place a heart sticker under someone’s glass at dinner and let them draw a question. Or tape a question to the salt shaker for the first person who uses it. Or decorate your table with a question written on paper toweling. Or write one or two words of a question on each persons’ napkin.

Let’s be sure to take every opportunity to open up the hearts of ourselves and our children!

Big Blessings,

Laurel