Messages from 2021 (Page 2)
Held Together
This week, Rev. Lee shares stories of things that are held together in unconventional ways. She shares stories from a colleague who have a late 90s Suburban – now held together with duct tape as more and more systems fail over the years – and a colleague who keeps what remnants she still has of her baby blanket in a small ceramic container. We find ways of holding things together when they mean something to us. Held Together [00:00:05] Speaker1Thank…
Chances Are
This week, our Message begins with a story about Beethoven. Rev. Ken remarks on how apropos our new message series, “God Laughs,” is this week, since we are not gathered together in Bell Hall like we were just a week ago. This message seried gets its name from a Yiddish proverb “We plan, God laughs.” He talks about the importance of keeping covenants with one another, even though we realize that plans may fall through. This was demonstrated recently when…
WellCome Back Sunday
Rev. Lee begins by remembering how much has changed since the beginning of the pandemic, and holding space for the people we’ve lost. She also talks about the song we sang during service, “Hard Times.” It tells us that the answer to hard times is to dance. Rev. Ken also speaks. He shares a post from an Episcopal priest who commented on their own husband’s twitter post thinking he was a “random stranger,” for lack of paying attention. He emphasizes…
Happy
Chris begins this week’s service by talking about the nature of happiness. He highlights the Kurt Vonnegut quote “If this isn’t nice, what is?” He also brings up the concept of tragic optimism, which means being clear-eyed about a situation, while remaining hopeful. He concludes with The Five Remembrances of Buddhism. He goes through each and explains how – even though some of them might seem gloomy on the surface – they can hold the key to happiness. Happy [00:00:00]…
Minari
This week, Rev. Ken begins by talking about he voices of loved ones on answering machines. Minari is a movie about a Korean family’s move to rural Arkansas during the 80s, and Rev. Ken remarks on how poignant it was to watch this movie during the pandemic, when hatred against people of asian descent is still continuing. Ultimately, this is a movie about connective love in the midst of discouraging circumstances. Also shared is a Twitter thread that went viral,…
The White Lotus
Rev. Lee begins with speaking about last week’s in-person service. She also speaks to the times we’re living in right now: parents deciding what to do about school, and all of us watching the scenes in Afghanistan unfold. In talking about this week’s series, The White Lotus, she remarks upon the different ways in which we try to escape. Sometimes they’re healthy and sometimes they’re unhealthy – but all are temporary. She asks us to consider how we react when…
Avatar: The Last Airbender
This week, Carol Breslin, our YouthSpirit Director talks about the themes and meanings in the much-loved Nickelodeon series, Avatar: the Last Airbender. Miss Carol and the YouthSpirit kids have been watching this series together throughout the summer, and linking the 7 UU Principles to lessons learned in each episode. Avatar: the Last Airbender START OF TRANSCRIPT[00:00:00] Speaker1The following is a message from Wellspring’s congregation.[00:00:06] Speaker2Some of you may have seen this viral post from just this week, that’s real life…
The Wizard of Oz
Lee revisits one of the classics this week by talking about The Wizard of Oz. At its heart, this is a story about a girl who experiences trauma (literal head trauma, in her case) and spends much of the rest of the story trying to determine when and how things will feel safe again. This is very much what we’ve experienced in the pandemic. She also talks about the meaning of the Arabic word “Inshallah” and shares a poem contemplating…
Grease
Rodney talks about the first time he saw the movie Grease on vacation with a friend when he was 14. He mentions that when we are on vacation, we’re almost like different people. We go outside of our comfort zone, and we’re more present and mindful in our day to day because everything is new. Grease is a movie about a romance that began on a vacation. While some parts of the movie may seem silly, especially now, at its…
The Good Place
This week, Bev Fox talks to us about “The Good Place,” which is a show about life after death. Bev talks about how summer is a particularly tough time for her in terms of mental health, but while watching, she remembers the message of the show: “What matters isn’t if people are good or bad, it matters if they’re better today than yesterday.” Just like in real life, characters grapple with finding happiness in what feels like pandemonium. To end,…
Die Hard
Rev. Ken begins with a fun explanation about why Die Hard is a Christmas movie. He explains that this isn’t just a cultural Christmas movie about a family trying to come back together to heal, it’s also a theological Christmas movie. Rev. Ken points to songs like “Oh Come Emannuel,” and “Oh Holy Night.” Rev. Ken admits that the darkness and cynicism present in the movie made a little too much sense to him when he watched it in December…
Ted Lasso
Chris talks about the lessons we can learn from the comedy series, Ted Lasso. Beginning with a personal story about joining a soccer team, he goes on to celebrate the idea of a “beginner’s mind” as shown in the series. Have a small snack nearby for this message. There’s a bit of interaction requested. Ted Lasso [00:00:00] Speaker1The following is a message from Wellspring’s congregation.[00:00:05] Speaker2So way back in the 1980s, when I did my student teaching, I was asked…