Blog Archives

Journey Toward Wholeness What Can I Do? Watch two short videos

11/26/2020

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On this week where we focus on gratitude we recommend watching two short videos:

Never forget dismantling white supremacy culture is spiritual work grounded in our values & principles. From First Unitarian Church of Chicago "Who Is Freedom For? A Reading for Thanksgiving" (4:14)
And, a radical vision a future without oppressive systems: "A Message From the Future II: The Years of Repair" (8:57).

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Pantry Distributes 8,000 Pounds of Food the Saturday Before Thanksgiving

11/24/2020

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Donated turkeys distributed the Saturday before Thanksgiving.

By Maureen McNair
Last Saturday, the pantry held its largest food distribution to date. We gave away over 8,000 pounds of nutritious food. We distributed a variety of kinds of fresh produce, milk, yogurt, cheese, meat, poultry, shelf stable food such as cereal and pasta, and about 500 pounds of food donated by Starbucks. We also had the largest number of people come to the pantry for food. The prior week, we distributed food for over 150 heads of household, providing food for about 600 people. Last Saturday, we provided food for over 190 heads of household, providing food for about 800 people. Our pantry guests repeatedly express how thankful they are that we have this food distribution. One woman told me about her family emergency and how important we are to her. I want to pass on the gratitude I hear about to you. I am not completely sure why we saw such a huge increase in one week. But, I have a couple educated guesses.

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The Latest on SOLACE (Souls Offering Loving and Compassionate Ears)

11/23/2020

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SOLACE is a visitation program that comforts and supports persons held in immigration detention, tells their stories, and advocates for humane immigration policy. SOLACE offers a friendly visitor to end the isolation and affirm the dignity and worth of those who request a visit. Many people I've spoken to did not know we were back in as a presence at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. This is our 3rd life as SOLACE. We have to keep reinventing ourselves as we've been suspended three times. Two times because they changed the paperwork and agreements we needed to sign to enter the Detention Center? which would effectively have taken away our First Amendment rights. There were many visits to Congressional offices both times to find a way to get back in, as well as phone calls, and needed visits to pro bono attorneys. UURISE (Unitarian Universalist Refugee and Immigrant Services and Education, Inc.) was one of the organizations we consulted with about this.

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"Moments" a poem by Pam Bates

11/23/2020

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That moment
When you see someone
You haven't seen in awhile!
You both look up
You recognize
Behind your masks, you smile
And then you both
Move awkwardly
As if to share a hug
And stop
Asif a wall were there
So you don't spread the bug
That moment
When you hear that camp
Is cancelled for this year
You know that
It's the right choice
But you can't hold back a tear
That moment
When your child asks
"Can I go see my friend?"
You weigh the risks
You share your fears
They ask, "When will this end?"
That moment
When you hear the news
Someone you know has died
You wish that you
Could be there
For the family as they cry
That moment When you see someone

Who will not wear a mask
Your anger
overwhelms you
Why is this too much to ask?
That moment
When a co-worker
Hugs their child while you're on Zoom
Everyone
Smiles a little
Even once they've left the room
That moment
When your quiet time
Gazing at the clouds
Is fractured by
The sound of someone
Talking much too loud
A family
Passes, laughing
at their dog, they say hello
A child
Stops and says
"Nice birds" and then they go
That moment
When you know our lives
Will never be the same
And if they could
Would that be good?
Or would it be a shame?

Pam Bates identifies as a mom, a UU, and a permanent student of life, humanity, and divinity.

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"One Way" - a poem by Harry Griswold

11/23/2020

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Here's a wonderful new poem from Harry Griswold, one of our members. It is entitle "One Way".

We're UU's, we tolerate,
we try not to impose
just one point of view,
but for this year of
Covid Thanksgiving
we hope you
won't travel
won't gather in groups
won't hug
won't jabber
around the table
with your mouth and
everyone else's open.

It's a great chance
not to have to listen
to your brother-in-law
or weird uncle Leo
who Grandma thinks
may have been
mixed up at birth.
There'll be fewer fights
and a lot less passing
of the sweet potatoes
someone has coughed in,
plus a lot less chance
of handing around
a potentially deadly virus.

So while we UU's try
not to impose any one
point of view
we think this year
there's only one way
to be safe, we hope
you'll stay home
and give up happy things
you'd rather be doing,
give up the people
you'd rather be with
to help increase chances
they'll all be around
for next year's gathering
when we can
stuff the thanks back
into Thanksgiving.
~ Harry Griswold

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Journey Toward Wholeness: What Can I Do? Listen to Brittany Packnett and Rev. Emily Hartlief

11/22/2020

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Following the leadership of BIPOC folks & admitting we can (& do) harm others are important learnings. Gain some insights by listening to:

Brittany Packnett's TED Talk "It's About Time to Value Young Women of Color in Leadership" (9:34).
Our former Intern Minister, Rev. Emily Hartlief's sermon "The Courage to Be Wrong" (20:42 but especially 0-5:56 & 11:52-13:44).

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TRUTH Act Forum Report

11/19/2020

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From our partners at the San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium (SDIRC):
"Thank you to everyone for your hard work in making the 2020 TRUTH Act Forum a success! Collectively we:

Got the Board of Supervisors (BOS) to hold an evening meeting.
Got the BOS to translate the announcement into 4 different languages and to have Spanish interpretation. The Sheriff also translated their presentation and statistics into 5 languages.
Held a car caravan of 20 cars and had incredible media coverage
Had multiple SDIRC members and partners interviewed by the media
Submitted over 82 eComments
Had 113 people register to give public comment live during the meeting

Amazing work, everyone! This sets a really solid foundation for our 2021 campaign - to #StopICETransfers!"

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