Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column
 
On February 1, we are halfway from the winter solstice (December 21, known as Yule) to the spring equinox (March 21, known as Ostara). The holiday of February 1 and the season of late winter are known as Imbolc. At this time of year, I often reflect on winter and how the Christmas holiday (around Yule) is too early. Yes, that is the darkest season of the year—but this is the coldest and the longest. It’s at this time in the winter, with all of February and March in front of us, that we could use some Christmas lights and Christmas cheer…and Christmas vacation.
 
Walking in the woods by the river yesterday, I saw two surprising things: one was a kayaker paddling in the river. I had a great view of him from the foot bridge at Mill Pond Park and stopped a minute to watch. He was paddling back and forth in the rapids there, looking playful like an otter but also very serious. Messing around in the water when the air is 35 degrees and the river was halfway frozen just last week—this takes courage and determination. I love kayaking on this river too--but only in the hot days of summer. A little later, in the swampy part of the woods by the river, I found the trails that I am used to following blocked by fallen branches and trees – the result of the heavy snow in recent weeks. In the snow I saw more animal prints than human. As I was making my way past a fallen branch, some movement caught my eye and I looked up to see a group of six or eight deer. We stood for a very long quiet moment watching each other before moving on. It was the twilight hour before sunset.
 
Imbolc is a special time of year: the dead of winter, but with signs of life. Deer in the woods. The river thawing and muddy and running high from the unusual January thaw. And we all continue to live with cold and snow and look forward to two more months of winter. I love this life in all of its seasons. May we settle into the cold; may we explore and see what is stirring in nature; may we embrace the journey of the Earth that brings us to Imbolc.
 
PRAYER:
May the river be blessed in all of its seasons: in its freezing and in its thawing, in its flood and in its low time.
May the creatures of the woods be safe and prosper.
May the trees awake again when it is their time; may the branches broken by the winter snows give way to new growth.
May we find our place in the seasons, knowing the time of rest that winter invites us into.
May nature be in balance, and may we know our place in the great sweep of time.
Blessed be.
 
Rev. Drew Frantz
January 30,2024

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column

It was about 12:30 on Sunday afternoon–the time when coffee hour is winding down and my tiredness starts to hit me. In the back of my mind I begin to think about packing up and cleaning up what I need to and heading home. I remark to one of the people who is still enjoying the coffee hour about the lovely sunshine. It’s been super cold for a week straight and the sun is a nice change. “Are you planning to go out and enjoy the outdoors today?” she asks.

“No,” I reply. “I’m thinking of going skiing tomorrow.” My thinking was that Monday is forecast to be all the way up to 32 degrees. I’ve noticed that on my calendar and planned that it will be my first day of cross country skiing this winter. The snow is great, but the last week has been too cold. I also have been worried that the dirt road into the park will be too slippery. Monday will be just right, but today – Sunday – I’m just going to go home and rest, I’m thinking. Do nothing for a couple of hours before my 3:30 meeting.

But it occurs to me quite suddenly that the weather is actually perfect today. It’s 25 and sunny. The snow is probably awesome out on the trail. And I have just the right amount of time before my next meeting–so I decide to go.

Cross-country skiing at Deerfield Nature Park is one of life’s delights. I love this park at all seasons: the trail along the river, the two swinging bridges and the covered bridge, the swimming holes I love in summer, the pine grove where I did a harvest ritual a few months ago. And then I come for skiing and the trails are transformed into snow pathways; the forest is silent and serene; the river is partly frozen with ice floating in the middle channel. The parking lot is nearly full when I arrive. On the trail everyone is friendly: they comment on the snow conditions, the beautiful weather, and the traffic of fellow skiers.

On the downhill parts of the trail I whoop with delight. On the uphills I dig in and feel my strength. It’s cold and I’m alive: outdoors with my people; out in nature enjoying the unique beauty of winter. As I write this, two days later, the weather is changing and rain is in the forecast for tomorrow. The moments that are good for skiing are indeed rare and fleeting. I’m glad that I embraced the moment I could on Sunday, instead of putting it off. May we always have the good sense and good fortune to take enjoyment in life when we can.

PRAYER:
May we remember that today is the day for living.
May we resist putting off both joy and important work for tomorrow.
God bless the river and the trees. God bless the skiers and the snow.
May we find what we love and may we do it while we can.
Amen.

Rev. Drew Frantz
January 23, 2024

​Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column
 
I was away from the congregation on New Year’s Eve, when we held the traditional “burning bowl” ceremony letting go of the old year and welcoming in the new. Therefore I was excited to hear that my men’s group in Lansing was doing a version of the burning bowl at our meeting this week. Our leader instructed us to write on a piece of paper what we are letting go of from the past year, and mine came to me quite readily: I want to let go of self-doubt and any negative self-talk that can sometimes be in my head. Any version of “I’m not good enough” or “I’m not OK” (for whatever reason) does not serve me. When my turn came, I lit my piece of paper on fire and tossed it in the bowl with the others.
 
Next it was time for us to write down something we want to bring in for the new year. Rather than a resolution, our instructions were to write 4-5 “watch words” or a very short phrase that indicates our direction and intention for the new year. This took a little more reflection for me, and ultimately I came up with three things:
        SELF-LOVE
        CONNECTED
        IN MY POWER
This paper is kept, not burned, and I have placed it on my altar at home. There was one final element to our ritual. The nine men at the meeting each got randomly assigned to another man to call and check in with. This builds further accountability and connection to the exercise: knowing that I’ll be getting a phone call from another man helps me to keep the intentions fresh in my mind.
 
I enjoy the burning bowl ceremony, as we have practiced it at UUFCM and in this slightly different version. The power of the ritual makes me feel connected and intentional and self-aware. And I reflect that these intentions – both letting go of negative self-talk and embracing self-love, connection, and personal empowerment—these intentions are daily ones. We don’t change our lives in one moment of awareness or intention, but our “Ah-hah!” moments carry us forward into the daily practice of self-improvement that is life-long. May each of us find these moments of self-awareness and intention; and may each of us find the strength to carry through with our intentions in the day-to-day cycle of life.
 
PRAYER:
Spirit of the year past, old man named 2023, go with my blessing. You are gone forever and I send away with you what does not serve me.
May we not be haunted by the past. May we let it go.
Spirit of the new year, little baby named 2024, be here now. I welcome the chance to accomplish things, to enjoy life, to love and be loved.
May we all embrace the present moment and lean into the hope and promise of the future. Today is a new day.
Blessed be.
 
Rev. Drew Frantz
January 16, 2024

​Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column
 
Recently I stood on the path by the river and saw an amazing sight: geese flying low overhead in formation. First I heard the sound of the geese calling to one another with their honking, then I saw them coming toward me in the classic V-formation. The formation is both fluid and precise, a beautiful choreography. This is what a river would look like flying in the air. The honking is their communication: the birds form and re-form; they take their places in order to conserve energy. Coming down the river, they pass right over my head. I pause a moment. The air is quiet and the winter sky is moving toward nightfall.
 
Before I can take in what I’ve just seen, looking at the V-flock of geese receding, before I can say something to the stranger beside me on the path, I hear the honking again. Turning my head, I see another formation coming towards me. From the same direction as the first one: flying up the river, straight towards me, passing over my head. The second formation is larger; the third one is smaller. In succession, five formations of geese pass over my head. I watch, I rotate my head upwards, they pass so close overhead that I can hear the sound of the wind in their feathers: a ruffling soft sound. The silence is amazing. I am fully present, alive, aware, connected. Forty or fifty birds have just flown directly over my head.
 
The geese know just what they are doing. They honk about the direction and about the formation. They form up, they take turns being the leader who works the hardest. Working together is so efficient that a goose can fly 70% farther in formation than it can on its own. Geese flying in a V-formation is majestic, casual, natural. I have a lot to learn from their example.
 
PRAYER:
God of birds and rivers, God of the sky and of my human heart:
 
May I find my place and fit into it as gracefully as the goose joining up in the V-formation.
 
May I communicate with my voice to remind the others in front of and behind me that we are moving together; that we trust the leader; that we can keep each other in the line; that we will let one another know when we have the strength to take the lead and when we must fall back.
 
May each of us find our flock and be part of the flight.
 
Rev. Drew Frantz
January 10, 2024

​Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Michigan
Minister’s Column
 
Each month in the congregation’s calendar we are called to reflect on a different theme, and January’s theme is Liberating Love. I will be exploring this theme in Sunday worship services; we are holding a Saturday retreat to rewrite our covenant as a congregation (which must be grounded in love); we are celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King (whose message and technique were rooted in love).
 
Here is what James Baldwin says about love:

​This is a beautiful piece because it says that Love is relationship, and that loving relationship means reflecting the other person. This reminds me of a practice that I learned at a men’s retreat called Path to Spirit. We sit in a circle and take turns doing a deep check-in, speaking for a few minutes about life, love, feelings, family—then we choose another man in the circle to reflect what we have just said. They paraphrase our check-in with an emphasis on what they see in us. The practice is powerful because each person gets to be heard; and the reflection feels like the love that James Baldwin is talking about.
 
Friends, partners, and co-workers in our lives can play this vital role for us, and I do call it Love. They can 
mirror for us who we are. They can remind us of our best selves. And we have to be willing to look into the mirror to receive the love. Hearing a compliment can be like that: a person is telling us their truth, that they appreciate something about us. Too often we brush off these compliments. A better practice is to stop and let it sink in. This is someone mirroring and reflecting who are, giving a chance for Love to exist in the space between us and for Love to thrive within ourselves. May we take life’s moments, and the interactions with others, as opportunities to grow Love.
 
PRAYER:
May we learn the ways of Love this day.
May we mirror and magnify the courage, strength, compassion and beauty in those around us.
May we transcend shame and sorrow to embody more fully the Love and light within us.
Blessed be.
 
Rev. Drew Frantz
January 3, 2024