Friday, February 15, 2013

Taking It Home for Sunday, February 17, 2013

Spirit Play (4-5 year olds)

This week’s story is “My Many Colored Days,” a Yellow promise story, which is our 5^th principle – yearn to accept and learn about ourselves and others. This story is all about feelings – exploring the full range of our feelings, and accepting them all as part of us.

Wondering Questions:

I wonder if you have ever seen any of this before?

I wonder which part of this story is the most important?

I wonder which part you like the best?

I wonder where you are in this story?

I wonder if there is a part of the story that we could leave out and still have a story?

I wonder if you have felt any of these feelings before?

I wonder if you have thought of your feelings as colors?

I wonder what it would be like if any of these feelings went away, what would it be like if you never felt happy anymore? Or Mad? Or cool and quiet?

I wonder if you like some of these feelings more than others?

I wonder if it is OK to be angry and mad sometimes as long as you feel this way without hurting anyone?

I wonder if there are other feelings that aren’t on the underlay?

Grades K-2: Wonderful Welcome

Taking It Home, Session 5: The Gift Of Invitation

Come, come, whoever you are,

Wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving....

— Rumi

IN TODAY'S SESSION...

When children opened the Wonder Box today, they found a goblet, symbolizing the cup for Elijah that is part of the table setting at a Jewish Passover Seder. We talked about the intangible gift of invitation and explored a variety of ways we use the gift of invitation to let people know they are welcome.

EXPLORE THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Talk about...

At this age, children do much of their "inviting" in the context of family. Talk about how your family uses different ways to show you are welcoming others with invitation. Be aware of ways you model invitation for your child(ren), including ways you show welcome to new people in your congregation and your neighborhood.

EXTEND THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Try...

This session may give your family the impetus to invite friends for a meal who have never been to your home before.

FAMILY DISCOVERY

Do you have neighbors you have never met? As a family, reach out in invitation to a neighboring family.

Grades 3-5: Love Will Guide Us

Taking It Home, Session 1: Love Is Like a Seed

Love is the vital essence that pervades and permeates, from the center to the circumference, the graduating circles of all thought and action. Love is the talisman of human weal and woe — the open sesame to every soul.

— Elizabeth Cady Stanton, women's civil rights activist in a speech given in 1860

IN TODAY'S SESSION... the children heard the story of "The Everything Seed," which describes the origins of our universe in metaphoric language. We discussed the idea that love was included in that original "everything seed" and learned that love is a guiding force for Unitarian Universalists. Participants created universe seed art representing the love and creativity within our universe.

EXPLORE THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Talk about... theories about how the universe came into being, such as the Big Bang. Talk together about the awesome aspect of our universe's origin. Take turns naming things that were contained in the original, strange ball of matter which exploded to become our universe.

EXTEND THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Try... learning about seeds together. Dissect a seed and see what is inside. If possible, look at seeds under a microscope. Plants some seeds and watch them grow. Help your child create their own indoor or outdoor garden.

Family Adventure. Go on a walk to find as many seeds and seed holders as you can and try to identify the types of plants they will become.

Family Discovery. To learn more about seeds, watch the Scholastic video The Magic School Bus Goes to Seed. Or, read, The Magic School Bus Plants Seeds: A Book About How Living Things Grow or The Magic School Bus Gets Planted: A Book About Photosynthesis, both by Joanna Cole.

To hear about the universe's origin in metaphoric language, read together The Everything Seed (www.uuabookstore.org/) by Carole Martignacco (Minnesota: Beaver's Pond Press, 2003). Another book to read together is Born with a Bang: The Universe Tells Its Cosmic Story: Book One by Jennifer Morgan (Dawn Publications, 2002).

A Family Game. In the African game Mancala, two opponents try to collect the most seeds by taking turns dropping seeds into small cups carved into a board. The goal is to capture as many of your opponents' seeds as possible. Purchase Mancala at a toy and game store or play a version online (www.lookoutnow.com/game/mancala.htm) .

A Family Ritual. Start a yearly tradition: Plant a garden together. Create a ritual for the planting. For instance, you might read the story "The Garden," from the book Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel, or sing "The Garden Song" by David Mallett, recorded by many artists. You could gather water from rivers and lakes that you visit over the course of the year and use it to water the newly planted seeds.

Middle School: Riddle and Mystery

Taking It Home, Session 5: Out of Nothing

Out of the stars in their flight, out of the dust of eternity, here have we come.

— Robert T. Weston

Talk about the quote. When you think about how life began, do you go all the way back to the stars?

WHAT WE DID TODAY

Today's Big Question is "How did life begin?" We saw that science is one of the best UU Sources to help answer that question, and we heard an answer in the story of evolution. We broadcast a WCUU show about life as a great wonder of the world, and we took a stand to show what we think about the beginning of life.

ANSWERING TODAY'S BIG QUESTION

How do members of your family feel about the theory of evolution? Do all of your relatives feel the same way? How about your friends? Talk about the Source that explains the beginning of life best. Is it religion? Science? Your own experiences and inner feelings?

SEE A SHOW

Watch a DVD called "The Awakening Universe." It is a capsule summary of the past 14 billion years prepared by Thomas Berry and based on the work of cosmologist Brian Swimme. Your congregation or your local library may have a copy, or you can find it online for your family to purchase. You will hear this narration, near the end:

The universe arose and gave rise to the galaxies. The galaxies gave rise to the stars. Our sun gave rise to the earth, and the earth gave rise to life and to all that we are. And now it is causing us to awaken from our dream of lonely isolation so we may rejoin the great community of life and take on our part in the stupendous unfolding story. As Thomas Berry says, "This is our great work."

What does that mean to your family?

SHARED SEARCH

Go together to a place that makes you or somebody else in the family think about how life began. Maybe it is a starlit field, or the shore of an ocean. Maybe . . . but you decide.

PHOTO CHALLENGE

Photograph something that makes you think about how all of life began. It could be something outdoors, such as flower buds on a tree. It might be a book inside your house. Get a camera and decide what calls to you.

FAMILY FAITH IN ACTION

The story of evolution not only explains how life began, it also demonstrates how strongly we are connected to all other life on the planet. Encourage your family to deepen their relationship with another life form. You could do this by caring for plants in a garden, spending more time with pets, or building birdhouses.

Family Information for Sunday, February 17, 2013

Hello Friends and Families of Westside!

What a great, sunny weekend we’re already having!

ANNOUNCEMENT:

1. CHILDREN’S CHOIR: Hello families of young singers! Liz Bucklew and Lisa Maynard are putting together a children’s choir again for a couple of upcoming services.

· March 10: The choir will join speaker/singer Nick Page in one song at this multigenerational service.

· March 31: The choir will sing something special for Betsy’s official installation as our Director of Religious Exploration – note that this is Easter Sunday.

We hope your elementary or middle school child would like to participate! We’ll rehearse from 12 to 12:30 on March 3, 17, and 24. Please try to make all three rehearsals, but if you can’t, we’ll have sound files so you can practice at home. We’ll also have a short rehearsal around 10 am on March 10 and 31. Please let Lisa (l.maynard@comcast.net) or Liz (liz.bucklew@becu.org) know if your child is interested. Thank you!

THIS WEEK:

Story Time: This week our children will share a story and snack together. Please let the teachers in the class know if your child has a food allergy.

Spirit Play: This week’s story is “My Many Colored Days,” a Yellow promise story, which is our 5^th principle – yearn to accept and learn about ourselves and others. This story is all about feelings – exploring the full range of our feelings, and accepting them all as part of us.

Kindergarten through Second Grade: “Wonderful Welcome”: This week’s class in the Wonderful Welcome curriculum is about the “The Gift of Invitation.” The Wonder Box has a goblet in it, which will be used to teach the kids about the Jewish tradition of placing a goblet on an empty seat at the Passover Seder table at Passover to welcome an unknown guest. After hearing a story about how this is referred to as inviting “Elijah” (a prophet), everyone will look for pictures to make a collage of other ways that we can communicate an invitation.

Third through Fifth Grades: “Love Will Guide Us”:

We’re shifting to a new curriculum for this class. Windows and Mirrors was not at the best level for this group of kids. Our new curriculum is called “Love Will Guide Us.” In these lessons, we’ll learn to seek guidance in life through the lens of our Unitarian Universalist Sources, with an emphasis on love. Together we will ask questions such as, “Where did we come from?” What is our relationship to the Earth and other creatures?” “How can we respond with love, even in bad situations?” “What happens when you die?”

In this week’s session, “ Love is Like a Seed,” the class will talk about love as an unseen, guiding force unfolding in the universe, and learn about the six Sources of our UU faith.

Middle School: “Riddle and Mystery”: This week’s lesson in the Riddle and Mystery curriculum is titled “Out of Nothing.” This week’s big question is “How did life begin?” Last week the class thought about God’s existence from a perspective of faith and belief. This week they apply science to the question of how life began. The kids will talk about the scientific method, the theory of evolution, and where they stand on the origin of life.

High School: “Our Name is Earl”: This week the high school class will talk about obsession. In this episode of “My Name is Earl,” they’ll see how Earl allows his goals or his path to interfere with his life and the lives of others. While it’s wonderful to have dreams and goals (as we discussed in the last session), it’s sad when they take over our lives and we lose sight of everything else.

Youth Group will meet in the Social Hall from 7:00pm to 8:30pm, primarily focusing on the upcoming morning service for March 3^rd. Shelby and Suki will be advising this week.

See you Sunday!

Betsy

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Taking It Home for Sunday, February 10, 2013

Spirit Play (4-5 year-olds):

This week children worked with the story, "Drop of Honey,"an Indigo promise story – Insist on a peaceful, fair, and free world for all. In this story, a queen learns that it’s important to attend to even the small stuff with the intent to contribute to a peaceful, fair and free world. Her first reaction to spilling a drop of honey from her rice cake is that it was not her problem. Ultimately, it led to disaster in her kingdom. We want the kids to leave this week with a sense that the little things they can do to be kind and fair with one another are important!

Wondering Questions:

I wonder which part of this story is the most important?

I wonder which part you like the best?

I wonder where you are in this story?

I wonder if there is a part of the story that we could leave out and still have a story?

I wonder if you have ever tasted honey?

I wonder if you have ever not wanted to do anything like the queen?

I wonder where the Spirit of Love and Mystery is in this story?

I wonder if this lesson reminds you of any of our other Unitarian Universalist Promises?

Grades K-2: Wonderful Welcome

Taking It Home, Session 4: The Gift Of Kindness

So many gods, so many creeds,

So many paths that wind and wind,

While just the art of being kind

Is all the sad world needs.

— Ella Wheeler Wilcox, American poet (1850-1919)

IN TODAY'S SESSION...

When children opened the Wonder Box today, they found a Golden Ruler. This symbolizes the Golden Rule, one of the most famous of Jesus' teachings: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." The children learned that versions of the Golden Rule exist in many different religions. According to Rev. Sophia Fahs' telling of the story, "The Very Short Rule," contemporaries of Jesus expressed frustration at having to remember so many rules. Many were poor and had to work very hard for a living. They did not have the time or education to remember all the rules in their faith. Jesus taught that even following all the biblical dictates would not necessarily make someone a good person, but following the Golden Rule contained the essence of a faithful life.

EXPLORE THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Talk about...

How the Golden Rule applies in your family.

EXTEND THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Try...

Put the Golden Ruler your child(ren) brought home on the refrigerator for everyone to see. See who can say "the very short rule" while standing on one foot.

A FAMILY RITUAL

Tell the family you will all keep alert for people being kind. When someone is caught being kind, they get a hug from the family member that "catches" them. For example, if someone cleans up the living room without being asked you can say, "Hey, I caught you being kind! You get a HUG!" Or, when someone sees an opportunity for kindness, they can grab the Golden Ruler and say, "Hey, let's treat others as we want to be treated." When siblings are bickering might be a good time to do this. They might even try it standing on one foot.

Grades 3-5: Windows and Mirrors

Taking It Home, Session 4: Building A Community Of Forgiveness

The practice of forgiveness is our most important contribution to the healing of the world.

— Marianne Williamson

IN TODAY'S SESSION...

We affirmed the value of forgiving people who break the rules of a community. We explored the idea of expressing righteous anger when we have been hurt by someone, seeking that person's sincere apology, and then letting go of the anger by offering sincere forgiveness. The practices we used in this session can be used in daily life.

EXPLORE THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Talk about...

Ask your child what they found most meaningful about their religious education session today—having this conversation directly afterward tends to yield the most information. You might ask, "What do you think about forgiveness?" Ask them whether and how they have been hurt by someone whose apology they seek. Ask them what it would take for them to forgive that person. Ask them what practices they learned today that might help them. Share about a time you have sought forgiveness when you knew you had hurt or wronged someone. Share about at time you forgave someone else. Be honest about how forgiving and seeking forgiveness have been challenging or rewarding for you.

EXTEND THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Try...

Have each member of the family write a forgiveness letter to someone else. Invite everyone to prepare by writing their feelings of hurt or betrayal first, then writing an imaginary apology from the person who hurt them. These writings should stay private; it may be a good idea to rip them up.

Then, each person writes a sincere letter of forgiveness, or a letter that says they want to forgive the person (but are not yet ready). If there are young members of the family who haven't learned to write yet, ask them to talk about forgiving someone who hurt their feelings. Share the forgiveness letters with each other. Affirm that forgiveness is important for a healthy family.

FAMILY DISCOVERY

Find out online what a group called the Worldwide Forgiveness Alliance (www.forgivenessalliance.org/day.html) does to promote forgiveness, including a day in August for local celebrations of forgiveness and a web page of " forgiveness heroes (www.forgivenessalliance.org/heroes.html) ."

Middle School: Riddle and Mystery

Taking It Home, Session 4: Thinking of God

What we are is God's gift to us. What we become is our gift to God. — Eleanor Powell

Tell the truth, have you ever found God in a church? I never did. I just found a bunch of folks hoping for him to show. Any God I ever felt in church I brought in with me. And I think all the other folks did too. They come to church to share God, not find God. —Alice Walker, The Color Purple

Talk about the quotes. Does the first seem to work just as well if you substitute "Great Mystery" or another word or phrase for the word "God"? What do you think about the second quote? Why do you come to church?

WHAT WE DID TODAY

Today's Big Question is "Does God exist?" We talked a little about the national motto on American money — "In God we trust." We learned about some words connected with God ideas, and we heard the God ideas of some young UUs from Maine. We made a UU tent for WCUU, and talked about the different God beliefs we might find under such a tent. We ended up thinking about our own private "yes" or "no" answers to questions about God.

ANSWERING TODAY'S BIG QUESTION

What do family members and friends have to say about the question: "Does God exist?" Do members of your immediate family share the same ideas about God? How about your extended family? Different family members might define the word "God" differently or might use another word to describe something in the universe that is larger than us. Does your family include theists, who believe in God? Atheists, who say there is no God? Agnostics, who say they do not know? Do you pray as individuals or as a family? Do the different parts of your family talk with one another about God? Think about the family members whose ideas you think you know. Do any of them agree, or are they all different? Does that matter? What does matter about God beliefs? (Being comfortable with your own beliefs? Accepting that other people have different beliefs?)

SHARED SEARCH

Go together to a place where you or someone in your family experiences a sense of the holy or sacred, or very special place that makes you or they think about God, the eternal or the Spirit of Love. That might be your church. It might be a lake, or a mountain that fills you with awe, or maybe a place in your house where a family member prays or meditates.

TOUR YOUR TOWN

Drive or walk together around your community. Look at the different places of worship or religious buildings. Which say something about God on the outside? How do their messages make you feel? Do you want to go in? Stay away? Why?

PHOTO CHALLENGE

Photograph something in your house that makes you think of God. Maybe it is a book, like the Bible. Remember, thinking about God is not the same as believing that there is a God. Everybody has to think about God sometimes, because the idea of God is all around us.

FAMILY FAITH IN ACTION

Can your family think of a Faith in Action project that has something to do with God? Maybe it is as simple as telling a few other people that you are in a religion where people are free to have their own God beliefs. What else can you think of?

Family Information for Sunday, February 10, 2013

Hello Friends and Families of Westside!

Things are hopping in our classrooms on Sundays! Read below to find out what's going on for children and youth in our community, and for this coming Sunday.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

1. CHILDREN’S CHOIR: Hello families of young singers! Liz Bucklew and Lisa Maynard are putting together a children’s choir again for a couple of upcoming services.

· March 10: The choir will join speaker/singer Nick Page in one song at this multigenerational service.

· March 31: The choir will sing something special for Betsy’s official installation as our Director of Religious Exploration – note that this is Easter Sunday.

2. Pick-Up from Classes: Our classes are designed to be about 50 minutes in length. Our pick-up time is 11:50am. The two classes that need attention at this time are our K-2 and Grades 3-5 groups, in the classrooms on the third floor. Middle and High School youth are free to meet you in the Social Hall once their classes have ended. Young children can be picked up on the first floor between 11:50 and 12:00.

a. K-2 in the Cloud Room – These teachers are planning to close a little earlier, and to engage the kids in an activity at the very end of class that is less structured. They welcome you to enter the classroom at 11:45, even if the door is closed, to visit and pick up your child. We would like to move the crowds from the hallway into the classroom. You do need to sign your child out.

b. Grades 3-5 in the Youth Room – Please wait outside the classroom until the class has ended. You also need to sign your child out. However, if you are comfortable meeting your child downstairs in the Social Hall, please sign a release form with the teachers.

3. Chalice Palace: Friday, February 15^th is our next Chalice Palace night! This is a great opportunity for children, youth and adults to try out and share their talents and new things they’ve been learning (starting an instrument, or telling stories…). It’s a long-standing multigenerational event in our community that truly supports each of us in finding the courage to present and perform to give joy to others. Encourage your child(ren) to sign up for Chalice Palace during the Social Hour, or contact Linda Anderson (linda587@comcast.net) to put your name on the list.

4. Youth Visioning Summary: Summaries from our Youth Visioning session in January are available on the greeter’s table. Be sure to see where we are in identifying our priorities for the growth of our youth programs!

5. Spring Semester Curriculum: You can learn more about the spring semester focus for your child or youth in several ways:

· Our RE blog at www.wsuureligiousexploration.blogspot.com

· A WSUU RE spring prospectus from the greeter table at church

· The WSUU web site at http://www.wsuu.org/curricula.php

· Your DRE! Contact me any time at 410-274-2018, or dre@wsuu.org

THIS WEEK:

Story Time: This week our children will share a story and snack together. Please let the teachers in the class know if your child has a food allergy.

Spirit Play: This week’s story is “Drop of Honey,” an Indigo promise story – Insist on a peaceful, fair, and free world for all. In this story, a queen learns that it’s important to attend to even the small stuff with the intent to contribute to a peaceful, fair and free world. Her first reaction to spilling a drop of honey from her rice cake is that it was not her problem. Ultimately, it led to disaster in her kingdom. We want the kids to leave this week with a sense that the little things they can do to be kind and fair with one another are important!

Kindergarten through Second Grade: “Wonderful Welcome”: This week’s class in the Wonderful Welcome curriculum focuses on “The Gift of Kindness,” an important topic for all of us! Learning to live the gift of kindness in a very concrete way can be powerful for our little ones. This is a lesson they can truly understand, and their insight about the value of kindness can be a foundation for many other gifts we talk about, including remembering the gifts already introduced. For example, forgiveness comes more easily when you apply kindness and the golden rule. In their Wonder Box, the kids will find a golden ruler, and they will bring the golden rule home with them.

Third through Fifth Grades: “Windows and Mirrors”: This week’s lesson in the Windows and Mirrors curriculum is “Building a Community of Forgiveness”. This is such a deeply important topic, with a wonderful introduction – “The practice of forgiveness is our most important contribution to the healing of the world.” And the kids will learn that our faith community is a perfect place to practice! In this class they will learn about stories of forgiveness, talk about where they might want to offer forgiveness, and practice three parts of moving to forgiveness – recognizing your feelings, knowing the response you would like, and offering your forgiveness sincerely.

Middle School: “Riddle and Mystery”: This week’s lesson in the Riddle and Mystery curriculum is titled “Thinking of God.” This week’s big question is “Does God Exist?” One of the heavy-hitter questions! The core of this lesson is to understand that there are many varied beliefs about God, and varied approaches across religions. And to take the time to reflect on our own individual beliefs, and to be able to articulate them, knowing that they’ll change over time. This class will end with a media broadcast again (this happens every week), this time taking place in an International Camp of Faith.

High School: “Our Name is Earl”: Our next class is February 17^th, with Suki and Jeff who are going to focus on creating a new covenant.

Youth Group will meet in the Social Hall from 7:00pm to 8:30pm, focusing on membership in the YAC (Youth Adult Committee), and planning their upcoming morning service for March 3^rd. Shelby and Suki will be advising this week.

See you Sunday!

Betsy