Possibility
I am in my home office and, through the floor, I hear my three family members downstairs. They are expanding on a train set that had been forgotten, relegated to a corner of the basement. They are going to lay out more tracks and create multiple imaginary places, or ones from memory. A wish for simpler times, some return to joy has captivated their interest. This year has seen the father in the group move to Illinois into an apartment he inhabits half-time, alone. 2018 witnessed the now 15 year-old come out over and over as a person who is transgender with a new name, to friends, school officials, church folks, and family. The older child has discovered that his undiagnosed mental health issues required a medical withdraw-al from school while meds and treatment get sorted out. It has been quite a year.
And yet, in this moment, they are creating possibility. They are creating a little world that they can escape to, separately or together, inviting in others, where reality is suspended for a bit.
Possibility
The New Year holds all of the same troubles, burdens, challenges, and problems as 2018, but with the chance to react to them or strategize about them differently. My observation is about just one family; we all have our own stories from 2018 that are better, and worse.
As you invite and imagine possibility, where does your faith lie within those choices? More time for committee work? A possibility to get the beloved community to meet needs for an issue or a group we have not yet done, or maybe not done well?
What will you do to bring in happiness? What will you do for the growth of more justice in the world? How will you prime yourself and your loved ones to face adversity with power and compassion?
Possibility
May we see a way clear that had been blocked. A new pathway. May we see the possibility alone or with somebody else, just as long as we do see it.
In Peace with Love,
Rev. Amy