From Our Minister – Rev. Danielle Lindstrom
Christmas is my favorite holiday.
I am one of those people who ask my family if it’s too early to put up the Christmas tree, or if we can listen to Christmas music on the ten-hour drive to Thanksgiving in Michigan. I have been trying to figure out how to hang lights on the front of the Parsonage.
I take pride in finding just the right gift for my loved ones, that will somehow encapsulate both my deep love for them and mirror their sense of humor and who they are.
Then I spend weeks trying not to give hints about what I got them because I just cannot wait. And then what happens? The day arrives and then it’s over. I am left lamenting the passing of it all so fast.
So this year, I am taking a lesson from the holidays of the season of Advent and Winter Solstice.
To honor the practice of waiting.
To see the lessons we are taught in our part of the world, to be quiet, to rest as the trees and the animals rest.
To make space for wondering, grieving, and dreaming because isn’t it true that we dream at night?
We are going to need our time for rest, our time for dreams, for wondering, for imagining, so may we, in this space of busi-ness, practice what the earth is teaching us, breathe and rest.
May we hold space as a congregation for and with one another, for all that this time of year brings. Many of us are invited into a space of holding both grief, for loved ones lost, for families that aren’t what we had hoped they might be, for unmet expectations. In this complication I lift up the poem we shared in October from Donna Ashworth.
“Joy does not arrive with a fanfare
on a red carpet strewn
with the flowers of a perfect life
joy sneaks in
as you pour a cup of coffee
watching the sunlight
hit your favourite tree, just right
and you usher joy away
because you are not ready for her
your house is not as it should be
for such a distinguished guest
but joy cares nothing for your messy home
or your bank-balance, or your waistline, you see
joy is supposed to slither through
the cracks of your imperfect life
that’s how joy works
you cannot truly invite her
you can only be ready when she appears
and hug her with meaning
because in this very moment
joy chose you.”
This year, I begin December in Michigan so that I can participate in the memorial service of my beloved minister and mentor, the Rev. Colleen Squires, on December 8th. The All Souls congregation ordained me and Rev. Colleen married Matthew and I. My UU world feels dimmer with her gone. On Sunday I will be with colleagues, friends, and mentors, who supported my ministry from its very beginning. Joy will shine through in our reunions.
On December 12, at 7pm, we will hold a service to invite our grief to come and sit with us for a time, to center our hearts and our minds on loved ones lost, and to hold that space together, rather than alone, as we so often feel in times of grief. We will hold space for one another and throughout the evening will also share gratitude, making space for love to join us and carry us into the next day. I am grateful that we will be sharing this space with the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Northern Westchester. Rev. Emily DeTar-Birt and I will be co-leading. We will have musicians from CUUC and support from our Caring and Sharing team. We have invited the congregants from all five Westchester UU congregations to join us. The service will be streamed and recorded to watch later. It will be good to be together.
As we begin our holiday services, enjoy the decorated sanctuary, share cookies and the ancient rituals, may we take space for breath, to honor and share love for those passed, grace for all of the unmet expectations, and space for dreams, possibilities, hopes, and joy that somehow sparkle through it all.
~ Rev. Danielle Lindstrom