Simple Pleasures – 20/11/22
Musical Prelude: ‘Tell Me Lovely Shepherd’ – Boyce – played by Sandra Smith
Opening Words: ‘We Arrive Together Here’ by Andy Pakula (adapted)
We arrive together here:
Travellers on life’s journey.
Seekers of meaning, of love, of healing, of justice, of truth.
The journey is long, and joy and woe
accompany us at every step.
None is born that does not die.
None feels pleasure that does not also feel pain.
Numerous are our origins, our paths, and our destinations
And yet, happily, our ways have joined together here today.
Spirit of Life. God of all Love:
May our joining be a blessing;
May it bring comfort to those who are in pain;
May it bring hope to those who despair;
May it bring peace to those who tremble in fear;
May it bring wisdom and guidance for our journeys.
And though this joining may be for just a moment in time
the moment is all we can ever be certain of.
So may we embrace this and every instant of our lives. (pause)
Words of Welcome and Introduction:
These opening words by Andy Pakula, welcome all those who have gathered this morning for our Sunday service. Welcome to those of you who have gathered in-person at Essex Church and also to all who are joining us via Zoom (including our friends from Brighton Unitarians). For anyone who doesn’t know me, my name is Jane Blackall, I’m ministry coordinator with Kensington Unitarians.
Since we’ve been holding hybrid services I notice there are a few new regulars joining us online and we haven’t really had a chance to get to know each other – please know we see you and appreciate you – and it’d be great to find out more about how you found us and who you are sometime so please do drop us a line or perhaps come along to one of our small groups for a chat. Whoever you are, however you are, wherever you are, you are welcome with us, as you are. I hope each and every one of you who gathered this morning finds something of what you need here.
Today’s service is titled ‘Simple Pleasures’. The intention behind this service is that during these times when the news is a bit relentless and grim – and for many of us there are worries about the cost-of-living crisis in particular – we might be glad of a service which focuses on the little sources of uplift that are still available to us in daily life. Pleasures that we can access without spending money! So this morning we’ll hear mini-reflections from several members of the Kensington congregation – Liz, Teresa and Marianne – plus a guest contribution from Matthew from Brighton Unitarians.
Let’s take a moment before we go any further to settle ourselves, arrive, and prepare for worship. Take a conscious breath. And another. And with each exhalation let’s visualise a letting go. A setting aside of anything we don’t need to be clinging on to. We can pick it up later if need be. Let us bring our whole selves to the here and now, as we consecrate this hour with our presence and intention.
Chalice Lighting: ‘Struggle and Joy’ by Vince Bass
Let’s light our chalice flame now, as we do each week. This simple ritual connects us in solidarity with Unitarians and Unitarian Universalists the world over, and reminds us of the proud and historic progressive religious tradition of which we are a part.
(light chalice)
Every day brings struggle, every day brings joy.
Every day brings us the opportunity
to ease the struggle of another,
to be the joy in another’s life.
May this flame remind us to carry our light to each other and to the world.
Hymn 21 (SYF): ‘Come and Find the Quiet Centre’
Let’s sing together now. Our first hymn is ‘Come and Find the Quiet Centre’. It’s number 21 in the purple hymn book and for those joining via Zoom the words will be up on your screen to sing along at home. Please feel free to stand or sit as you prefer as we sing our first hymn: ‘Come and Find the Quiet Centre’.
Come and find the quiet centre
in the crowded life we lead,
find the room for hope to enter,
find the space where we are freed:
clear the chaos and the clutter,
clear our eyes, that we can see
all the things that really matter,
be at peace, and simply be.
Silence is a friend who claims us,
cools the heat and slows the pace;
God it is who speaks and names us,
knows our being, touches base,
making space within our thinking,
lifting shades to show the sun,
raising courage when we’re shrinking,
finding scope for faith begun.
In the Spirit let us travel,
open to each other’s pain;
let our lives and fears unravel,
celebrate the space we gain:
there’s a place for deepest dreaming,
there’s a time for heart to care;
in the Spirit’s lively scheming
there is always room to spare.
Candles of Joy and Concern:
Each week when we gather together, we share a simple ritual of candles of joy and concern, an opportunity to light a candle and share something that is in our heart with the community. So we’ve an opportunity now, for anyone who would like to do so, to light a candle and say a few words about what it represents. This time we’re going to go to the people in the building first, and take all of those in one go, and then I’ll call on the people on Zoom to come forward.
So I invite some of you here in person to come and light a candle and then if you wish to tell us briefly who or what you light your candle for. We’re asking people to keep their masks on for this candle lighting – please keep your masks on – if you use the hand-held microphone, get it really close to your mask, and SPEAK UP, people should be able to hear what you’re saying.
I really want to emphasise this – the people at home really want to hear what you’re saying – and if you don’t hold the microphone really close they simply can’t hear you. So point it directly at your face and keep it right up against your mask and that should do the trick. Thank you.
(in person candles)
And if that’s everyone in the room we’ll go over to the people on Zoom next – you might like to switch to gallery view at this stage – just unmute yourselves when you are ready and speak out – and we should be able to hear you and see you up on the big screen here in the church.
(zoom candles)
And I’m going to light one more candle, as we often do, to represent all those joys and concerns that we hold in our hearts this day, but which we don’t feel able to speak out loud. (light candle)
Time of Prayer & Reflection: based on words by Bruce Southworth
And let’s take those joys and concerns into an extended time of prayer now. This prayer is based on some words by Bruce Southworth.
You might first want to adjust your position for comfort, close your eyes, or soften your gaze. There might be a posture that helps you feel more prayerful. Whatever works for you. Do whatever you need to do to get into the right state of body and mind for us to pray together – to be fully present here and now, in this sacred time and space – with ourselves, with each other, and with that which is both within us and beyond us. (pause)
Spirit of Life, God of All Love, in whom we live and move and have our being,
we turn our full attention to you, the light within and without,
as we tune in to the depths of this life, and the greater wisdom
to which – and through which – we are all intimately connected.
Be with us now as we allow ourselves to drop into the
silence and stillness at the very centre of our being. (pause)
At moments like this we gather, each alone in our solitude.
May we embrace this moment, in silence, allowing
the gentle breath to clear our minds,
and soothe our weary souls.
At moments like these we try to put aside
the daily obstacles, the headaches and irritations;
we lay down our worries and open ourselves
to the pulse of Life, the flow of Life.
We may carry with us fears and hopes about health or illness,
about work or family, about success or failure;
for a moment we seek to set them aside too,
and take time to nurture our deepest selves…
We know that we need one another,
and we must keep faith with one another
if we are to keep faith with the world,
to play our part, to do the work of Love.
In this quiet time, when we open ourselves to the depths,
may we sense and know the Spirit of Life and Love within us –
ever at hand – surging and glowing, guiding and sustaining,
so the strength we need and the compassion the world needs
will come to us in our times of trial and transformation. (pause)
In a quiet moment now, let us look back over the week just gone, to take stock of it all –
the many everyday cares and concerns of our own lives – and concentric circles of concern
rippling outwards – ‘til they enfold the entire world and all those lives which touch our own.
Let’s take a while to sit quietly in prayer with that which weighs heavy on our hearts this day.
(pause)
And let us also take a moment to notice all the good that has happened in the past week –
moments of uplift and delight; beauty and pleasure; all those acts of generosity and kindness.
There’s lots to be grateful for. So let’s take a little while to sit quietly in prayer and give thanks. (pause)
Spirit of Life – God of all Love – as this time of prayer comes to a close, we offer up
our joys and concerns, our hopes and fears, our beauty and brokenness,
and we call on you for insight, healing, and renewal.
As we look forward now to the coming week,
help us to live well each day and be our best selves;
using our unique gifts in the service of love, justice and peace. Amen
Hymn (on sheet): ‘Life is the Greatest Gift of All’
Let’s sing together now. Our next hymn is ‘Life is the Greatest Gift of All’. For those of you present at the church in-person it’s on your hymn sheet and for those joining via Zoom the words will be up on your screen to sing along at home. Please feel free to stand or sit or tap your feet, as you prefer, as we sing: ‘Life is the Greatest Gift of All’.
Life is the greatest gift of all
the riches on this earth;
Life and its creatures, great and small,
of high and lowly birth:
So treasure it and measure it
with deeds of shining worth.
Mind is the brightest gift of all,
its thought no barrier mars;
It seeks creation’s hidden plan,
its quest surmounts all bars;
It reins the wind, it chains the storm,
it weighs the outmost stars.
We are of life, its shining gift,
the measure of all things;
Up from the dust our temples lift,
our vision soars on wings;
For seed and root, for flower and fruit,
our grateful spirit sings.
Mini-Reflection by Liz Tuckwell: ‘Simple Pleasures’
‘Simple pleasures’ is a topic that seems to be becoming more and more popular nowadays. My theory is – part of the interest is the concern people have that our lives seem to be ever more pressurized and commercialized. As I write this, shops have already started their Christmas sales campaigns. But also, the current economic climate and general tightening of belts is making people think more about enjoyable activities that they can do for free.
Oddly enough, not long after Jane asked if anyone would be willing to write something about their simple pleasures, I read a newspaper article on tips for couples on how to have a cheap “date night”. Apparently, the quest for this has caused charity shops to run out of their stocks of old board games, which I must admit, did make me laugh. Although playing a game of Cluedo or Boggle or going to a quiz night with your family or friends is one of my simple pleasures.
I realised when I started listing my simple pleasures that a few of them are linked to nature such as:
• watching the tree outside my house while lying in bed. I especially like watching it in the autumn, when the leaves turn from green to gold and scarlet, and orange berries cluster on the branches, a lovely contrast to the blue sky.
• or watching the cycles of the moon, from a sliver of a white crescent through to the shimmering globe of the full moon in the black night sky.
• or a walk along the seaside, whether on the beach or on the promenade, smelling the ozone, feeling the wind whip your hair about, watching the white froth of the waves, and listening to the harsh cry of the seagulls. In the south-east of England, I did use to like picking up pebbles from the beach, but I now understand that this is a BAD THING and not to be indulged in anymore.
Another simple pleasure is that of reading a favourite novel that I’ve read many times before but know that I will enjoy reading it once again. I’ve read Pride and Prejudice many times, but it never fails to entertain me or take me to another world. And at the moment, when life is quite stressful due to an overrunning building project at my home, I find taking a long soak in a warm bath really helps to reduce my stress levels. I also think that simple pleasures help to keep me from becoming too despondent and helps to shore me up against the cruelty and sadness of the world and stops me falling into cynicism or despair.
Mini-Reflection by Jane Blackall: ‘Permission to Enjoy Yourself’
Thanks Liz. I wanted to follow up on your reflection by acknowledging that, for some of us, there might be a little bit of internal tension that gets in the way of us enjoying these ‘simple pleasures’. I mentioned earlier that the motivation behind this choice of topic was that life is so hard for so many, and the news is so relentlessly grim, that it seemed a good moment to remind ourselves of all the little sources of uplift, comfort, and consolation that are often still available to us even in these times when everything seems to be falling down around us.
But sometimes I find myself thinking – even if it’s just a little fraction of my brain or a barely conscious feeling – I find myself thinking something like ‘I shouldn’t really be indulging in such frivolous things while all this terrible stuff is going on in the world’ (whatever the specifics of the latest terrible stuff that we’re hearing about might be). I guess the thought behind this thought is that there’s so much work to be done, so much injustice to be fought, so many people who need care, and maybe I should be giving more of my attention to these pressing needs rather than my own pleasures. There have definitely been times in my life when I’ve had a sense – even if it’s only temporary – that it’s somehow indecent or improper to be enjoying myself while others are suffering. These thoughts are not entirely without merit. They’re a tug from the conscience reminding us not to turn away entirely from harsh realities. But I’ve put a quote from Frederick Buechner on the front of today’s order of service (and these words are on the Kensington website along with the whole text of the service) which put them in perspective.
He says: ‘The world is full of suffering indeed, and to turn our backs on it is to work a terrible unkindness maybe almost more on ourselves than on the world. But life indeed is also to be enjoyed. I suspect that may even be the whole point of it.’ Words from Frederick Buechner.
So this mini-reflection is almost a permission slip – addressed to myself and anyone else who feels the slightest qualm about making time and space in their lives for pleasure – we are still allowed to enjoy ourselves. Those of us who are activists in any sense, we who are concerned with making the world a better place, and standing up against the myriad injustices we are all too painfully aware of – let’s also be aware that activist burnout is a thing – and that we need to step back and recharge on a regular basis for all this activism to be sustainable. Even if we can only manage micro-moments of pleasure in our day – sitting quietly at the back door, or on the balcony, with a nice cup of tea – or letting our hair down and dancing round the living room to some classic pop tune of our choosing – these pleasures are a vital part of what a balanced life is all about and we mustn’t deny ourselves.
I wonder if any of you have read ‘Pleasure Activism’ by adrienne maree brown? I won’t be sharing any of the more juicy aspects of that book this morning – I’ll leave that for your own reading! – but I wanted to close this mini-reflection with her wise words. She writes: ‘Pleasure reminds us to enjoy being alive and on purpose… Pleasure—embodied, connected pleasure—is one of the ways we know when we are free. That we are always free. That we always have the power to co-create the world. Pleasure helps us move through the times that are unfair, through grief and loneliness, through the terror of genocide, or days when the demands are just overwhelming. Pleasure heals the places where our hearts and spirit get wounded. Pleasure reminds us that even in the dark, we are alive. Pleasure is a medicine for the suffering that is absolutely promised in life… Pleasure is the point. Feeling good is not frivolous, it is freedom.’ Words from ‘Pleasure Activism’ by adrienne maree brown.
Meditation: based on words by adrienne maree brown
So let’s take those ideas into to a time of meditation. I’m simply going to repeat a few of those thoughts from adrienne maree brown and invite you to spend time reflecting on the sources of pleasure in your own life. This will take us into a few minutes of shared silence which will end with the sound of a bell. And then we’ll hear some relaxing music, a familiar tune, from Sandra. So let’s each do what we need to do to get comfortable – adjust your position if you need to – perhaps put your feet flat on the floor to ground and steady yourself – maybe close your eyes. As we always say, the words and music are just an offering, feel free to use this time to meditate in your own way.
adrienne maree brown reminds us:
Pleasure helps us move through the times that are unfair,
through grief and loneliness, through the terror of genocide,
or days when the demands are just overwhelming.
Pleasure heals the places where our hearts and spirit get wounded.
Pleasure reminds us that even in the dark, we are alive.
So as we move into a few minutes of shared silence now,
I invite you to consider the sources of pleasure in your own lives,
and to imagine ways in which you might make space for pleasure in the days to come.
Period of Silence and Stillness – end with a bell
Musical Interlude: ‘My Favourite Things’ – Coltrane – played by Sandra Smith
In-Person Reading: ‘Love What You Love’ by Erika A. Hewitt (read by Jane)
This reading, by Unitarian Universalist minister Erika Hewitt, begins with a tweet by someone called Mr Cooper, who – back in 2018 – wrote this. He said: “Could we, without relentlessly criticizing, let people have their pumpkin spice, and avacado toast, and their fandoms, and their Dungeons and Dragons, and their too-early-Halloween-decorations, and whatever little harmless things in which they’ve manage to find a tiny shrivelled flower of joy?”
Erika Hewitt continues: To date, about 300,000 people have liked this tweet. I did too. I’m all in favour of allowing people their “tiny shrivelled flower of joy”—what I imagine as small hearth fires that we each build to keep our spirits warm in a cold world.
Surprise: it didn’t take long for the Twitterverse to pile on Mr. Cooper for spelling “avocado” wrong. He patiently thanked his critics for “helping me to know that I’ve made a mistake,” declining to point out the irony in his suffering the very type of relentless criticism whose moratorium he’d been pleading for. (His follow-up tweet said: “We’re all just trying to survive.”)
Who among us doesn’t know that critique, criticism, and assessment are norms of our culture? I’m not talking about affectionate teasing between friends; I mean withering comments and performative boredom looking for an audience. “Oh, is sportsball happening?” asks one person, knowing their friends are thrilled by the World Series nail-biter game. “Ugh. You can’t listen to Christmas music yet,” moans another, as some of us are already weighing when to put out our light-up Christmas llamas. (side note: the author of this piece, Erika Hewitt, says “Yes, you read that correctly: I have two light-up Christmas llamas. Their names are Biff and Nestor.”)
It makes us feel powerful to be in the judge’s seat, I suppose, and some of us are wired to be the outlier, the nay-sayer. But there are days when the culture of knee-jerk critique makes me sad. I notice lately that I hold my small, harmless pleasures close, lest an online friend spit into the small hearth fire that I’ve tended into a reliable source of warmth.
I’m trying to practice aggressive non-judgment about how you, me, and all of us choose to warm ourselves. Who cares if your harmless pleasure bores or disinterests me? We’re all imperfect, and the world can be such a barbed place. We’re also merciful—or can be. We can be cheerleaders for simple joys (even when we don’t share them) and compassionate about the fact that we’re all just trying to survive.
Erika Hewitt concludes with a few words of prayer:
Love Who Holds Us All, on some days this earthly existence is hard.
Thank you for our capacity to be comforted, dazzled,
and delighted by harmless pleasures and small joys.
Help us keep faith with the 11th Commandment:
Thou shalt not yuck someone else’s yum. Amen.
(pause)
We’re now going to hear three more mini-reflections via video: Teresa Baldwin will tell us about exploring the city and its history; Matthew Chambers (from the Brighton congregation) will speak about the pleasure of making music; and Marianne Harvey will close with thoughts on the joy found in her garden (including a poem about the garden’s pleasures in summer).
Video Reflection: ‘Exploring the City’ by Teresa Baldwin
Good morning. My simple pleasure is exploring the original City of London. It all started off innocently. Using Google Maps I’ve learned that there are turquoise icons. These show you places of cultural or historic relevance. In quiet times I would start investigating the turquoise icons on my phone and save them. One day I went near the Barbican to find a Banksy that was inspired by a Basquiat exhibition. I was so intrigued that I had been walking by this and had never looked up to notice.
Many a Saturday I would meet with a friend at Liverpool Street. If the weather was good, we would wander and talk. We started noticing churches and reading their bios. Then I started going without my friend because I would spend so long just wandering around without a plan. I enjoy walking around the City on the weekends looking at the architectural features, like carvings of lion heads and cherubs. The more I walked around the more I started to get interested in what had happened in all these alleys and interesting twisting streets. Next was taking a walking tour hoping to get answers to my nerdy questions about what I was seeing.
That walk got me even more interested in the history of the City. But it was a visit to The Museum of London where I started to ask, “why is Moorgate called Moorgate? Was there a settlement of Moors here?” An African, Roman general had founded Londinium. So, I was intrigued. For the record it was named Moorgate because there were muddy fields but I didn’t know that. It was the spark that got me to continue around the City finding the sites of the original Roman and Medieval Gates. Once I did that walk of the Gates, I found a real passion for just wandering and learning incredible historical tidbits each time. Now when I have some time at the weekend but unsure what to do, I get my comfy shoes and head for the City. It never disappoints.
(This is followed by short video clips Teresa has taken showing the historic city wall and the gate opposite the Tower of London.)
Video Reflection: ‘Making Music’ by Matthew Chambers
Hi I’m Matthew and making music is a simple pleasure that I really enjoy; whether it’s on my own – it can be a really meditative experience, a great creative outlet. Or, if it’s with others, it’s a great means of connecting, of creating a sound that’s bigger than ourselves individually. It’s fantastic as part of my group to play tunes that we’ve played for perhaps many years and can be hundreds of years old; there’s a great pleasure in that alone. So, I’d really recommend thinking about some making music in whatever way; whether it’s learning an instrument or singing – which can be hugely therapeutic in all sorts of ways. So, that’s my simple pleasure.
(This is followed by a short clip of Matthew’s band Skylark playing ‘Lord Haddo’s Favourite’).
Video Reflection: ‘Enjoying My Garden’ by Marianne Harvey
When I first saw my garden many years ago, it was the month of May and every bush was in bloom. It was raining a little and the scent of flowers was overwhelming. That had to be my garden! The house had been owned by an Italian gentleman and he had designed it as a formal garden with cypresses and roses. Gradually the cypresses went as they looked too funeral to me and the roses are still here today. Under my gentle nudges the garden is now more bohemian-style and the result of many irresistible visits to garden centres and swops with friends and neighbours.
Today, it teems with wildlife of all kinds, birds, frogs, insects, worms, squirrels -and foxes under the tall pine tree. My daughter’s Wendy house now holds large bags of sunflower seeds for winter. The garden is labour intensive but I would not have it any other way and it lifts me up as soon as I open the curtains. I cannot imagine living without its smells, noises and all the shades of green it plays with. Last but not least, it is home to our terrible two: Poppy-Three-Bells and Teddy Bichpoo. Their endless demands and frolics occupy much of the day and provide endless little pleasures all day long.
The garden is a source of much inspiration and here is a poem I wrote this summer entitled ‘As it happens in the garden’
The heat has reached thirty degrees Celsius.
Under the sycamore, the bottom of the garden
is lunar parched, rain cannot filter through.
Nearer where I sit with my blank sheet of paper,
The rose tree is pushing a second flush of buds;
It’s too early for plops pops from the tiny pond.
Something’s amiss, the parakeets are in full voice
Squawking, cawing with crows above, competing
with the grinding road digger in the distance.
Ah there you are my black bird, where were you
those last few days? I missed your call and called,
you, but the Buddha faithful to himself said nothing
his smug stony face oozing serenity on its pedestal.
Poppy-cat and her nine bells catnap under the table,
A smell of dry grass invites itself to the scene;
My neighbour gets her watering can out
I know that familiar sound as it fills with water
A rumble of gurgles trickles and splashes.
Oh a white butterfly, thank you for coming by!
And a bee! A wasp? No, it’s a beeeeeee
I admire her courage when so heavily laden
She still scoffs more of my flowers’ pollen,
More of what we need to keep it all going.
At the back, the wild flowers patch is a mishmash,
A mess to live with until autumn, when seeds
will safely be buried away from hungry beaks.
The sun is too strong on my white page,
I can barely read my notes scribbled hastily;
I go back inside where the washing machine
Mumbles left, mumbles right, before all hell is
let loose with the last cycle’s mini earthquake.
Time to ignore what needs to be done,
I have a poem to write before tonight’s deadline.
Hymn 90 (SYF): ‘Let Us Give Thanks and Praise’
Time for our last hymn: ‘Let Us Give Thanks and Praise’. It’s number 90 in your hymn books, and the words will also be up on screen, so once again feel free to sit our stand as you prefer as we sing.
Let us give thanks and praise
for the gifts which we share,
for our food and our friendship,
for water and air,
for the earth and the sky
and the stars and the sea,
and the trust we all have
in God’s love flowing free.
Give a shout of amazement
at what life can bring,
put your heart into raising
the song all can sing.
What a world we could build
with our minds and our hands
where the people live freely
and God understands.
Let us give of our best
with the tools we shall need,
use our eyes, hands and brains
so that we may succeed.
Inspire us to cultivate
what we have sown
so that nature and nurture
make a world we may own.
We adore you, great Mother,
O help us to live
with a love for each other
that each one can give
let the pain of our brothers
and sisters be faced
and the healing of all souls
on earth be embraced.
Sharing of News, Announcements, Introductions
Thanks to Liz, Teresa, Matthew and Marianne for your reflections on this theme. Thanks to Ramona for tech-hosting and Jeanenne for co-hosting. Thanks to Sandra for playing for us. For those of you who are at church in-person, Patricia will be serving coffee, tea and biscuits in the hall after the service, if you want to stay for refreshments – thanks Patricia – and thanks Marianne for greeting. We are looking for more people to help with coffee and greeting so please speak to Liz or Marianne if you can volunteer. There will be virtual coffee time on Zoom too so do hang around for a chat.
After the service, for those here in person, you can stick around and sing with Margaret at noon. Even if you think you can’t sing, Margaret is a miracle-worker, and will help you find your voice.
We have various small group activities for you to meet up. Coffee morning is online at 10.30am Wednesday. There are still spaces left for our Heart and Soul gatherings (online Sunday/Friday at 7pm) and this week’s theme is ‘Belief’. Our service next Sunday will be hybrid once again, and it’s the first Sunday in Advent already, when our theme is ‘Be Prepared’. Details of these activities and all our other events are on the back of the order of service and also in the Friday email.
Looking further ahead – we’re going to have our traditional candlelit Christmas Eve service – and Heidi has kindly offered to organise dinner at the Mall Tavern, the pub across the road, after that service for anyone who’d like to join her so please do get in touch with soon so she can book up. And looking even further ahead I’m planning to offer a workshop on New Year’s Eve – an online mini-retreat from 2-5pm – where we can reflect on the turning of the year. Get it in your diaries and I’ll let you know how to sign up a bit nearer the time. All are welcome so tell your friends.
The congregation very much has a life beyond Sunday mornings; we encourage you to keep in touch, look out for each other, and do what you can to nurture supportive connections.
I think that’s everything. Just time for our closing words and closing music now.
Benediction: based on words by Charles A. Howe
And so our gathering ends; may we go forth
thankful for the life that sustains and renews us,
receptive to the grace that surrounds and surprises us,
and attentive to the gifts and possibilities that surround us along the way. Amen.
Closing Music: ‘Enjoy Yourself’ – Sigman – performed by Sandra Smith
Jane Blackall and Congregation Members
Sunday 20th November 2022
