Families at Home: September’s Theme is “Embracing Possibility“

Our UU faith in practice and action:

• Water Ingathering: On September 12th we will have our annual Water Ingathering tradition! This is when everyone is invited to bring water from various places, whether from halfway around the world, the local lake your family has been visiting for generations, or even your kitchen sink. The water symbolizes our favorite places, our favorite things to do, or how we live our daily lives. These are the things that sustain us and they are all around us. When we all bring our little bottles of water and combine them into our special bowl, we are adding symbols of ourselves and we can imagine that we all help sustain each other’s lives too. The combined water is used throughout the church year when we have baby dedications, when senior youth are bridging, and other special ceremonies and rituals.
  • As a family, decide where you will gather your water. When you fill your container (you don’t need much; even an ounce is good) talk together about what gifts each of you offer our community just by being your selves. And how does our church and the people in it help to sustain or buoy you?
• Covenanting: Every year when we start new programs, we begin by creating covenants in each group. Covenanting is an important UU tradition. A covenant helps us decide as a whole group how we want to be together. When friction arises, we can revisit the covenant we made together to see where we are not meeting the agreements and then come back into a peaceful place. If there is not an element in the covenant that addresses the problem then we can work together to add something that will help. Your family can create a covenant for the same reasons! 
  • Here’s a helpful example from a UU family who created a covenant together: https://www.uua.org/leadership/library/parenting-pandemic/family-covenant
  • Also from the UUA website: “Try… creating a family covenant. Take some time to explore ways you want to behave with one another. Keep in mind that a covenant does not provide rules (“no hitting”) so much as ways of engagement (“treat each other with respect”). Light a chalice to lift the moment from the ordinary to a place of importance. Brainstorm ideas for your family covenant, and then combine the ideas to write a three- or four-line covenant. Create colorful posters to display the covenant around your home.”

Chalice Lighting for mealtimes this month:

“Welcome Home”

By Rachel Rott

Welcome home…
There is, in this place, the possibility of healing, of repair, of making things right: within ourselves, between us, and with the wider world.