Dear UU Parents and Guardians,
It would be lovely if you could join us for our weekly gatherings! Here is what is currently being offered: *Sunday School * Approximately: 30 minute program geared towards K-5 but open to all ages Sundays at 11am Please email me for the link Yoga with Maggie this week!!! This summer you will find: Drag Queen Story Hour, Yoga with Maggie, and the Pioneers Park Nature Center as well as guests from our very own UU volunteer pool of caring adults. Each week is something different! *Middle and HS Zoom * Is taking a break during August! Join us again in September. Look for a message about a parent orientation. *Parent and Guardian Chat: * The chance for parents and guardians to just get together and Every other Thursday 8pm and every other Wednesday noon Wednesday July 29th at noon Link: https://zoom.us/j/474526337 Password: lovemykids Thursday August 6th at 8pm Link: https://zoom.us/j/866583131 Password: lovemykids *New Youtube links for this week!* Music with Miss Molly: https://youtu.be/MPurYox_-5Y Story with Miss Heather: https://youtu.be/KIQYg3ig9v8 Story with Ms Alexa: https://youtu.be/9IOgwLvMM-g Chelsea's Meditation Video: https://youtu.be/PBP0b1rBFB4 Theme this week: Getting Through Tough Times (Dragonfly Meditation) Story "The Lotus Seed" Words from Sumi Loundon Kim: Just as in meditation, everyday life presents difficulties that we can identify and incorporate into our practice. When we're not enjoying our work, or our partner is upset, or something doesn't go our way, these are times we take up the challenge as an opportunity to practice mindfulness in our responses, to exercise right speech, or to take a breath and respond with patience. In these moments we are building up our spiritual muscles for 'the big time'. Learning from these small difficulties prepares us to be more skillful for the hardship that's truly devastating or catastrophic. As with weightlifting, we train frequently with the lighter weights so that we can lift the huge weights when needed. If we think back on the key moments in our lives when we grew significantly, we may find that most often these times are linked with difficulty. In fact, there seems to be a direct correlation between the degree of our suffering and how much we learn and grow. It's not that we should be asking for trouble - we shouldn't go out of our way to make ourselves suffer. Rather, when suffering arises, we can ask how we can learn from it, allowing the suffering to work on our heart and to help us mature. The Lotus Flower The relationship between a wise and compassionate heart and suffering is illustrated in the iconographic image of the lotus flower. The flowers grow in muddy swamps, yet the lotus, resting on the surface of the water, glows with color and beauty. Likewise, it is from the mud and swamp of our lives that we find the energy and nutrients to open our hearts. In that way, we can actually feel gratitude for the suffering in our lives, because it is through these experiences that we learn to be more awake, compassionate, and free. Reflection: These are DIFFICULT TIMES (such an understatement). I honestly keep hearing my mother's advice repeating over and over, "Just breathe". What else can we do??? I personally feel so powerless often. Yet, here many of us are, faced with such huge decisions to make coming up. How will I balance work and family? How do I navigate this pandemic? How do I stop feeling so lonely? How do I make a choice about school for my children this year? There is a LOT on our plates. We're in this together, my friends. I have no advice besides to, 'just breathe'. I'm here if you want someone to talk to. Discussion Questions 1. When difficulty comes up in your life, what are your typical strategies for dealing with it? 2. Share a moment that shifted how you thought about the experience of suffering. How did your relationship to suffering change in that moment? 3. What have been some key transformative moments in your life? Were they in connection to an especially challenging situation? Resources: Mindfulness during a pandemic: https://www.latimes.com/lifestyle/story/2020-03-24/meditation-tips-coronavirus-crisis If anyone is considering homeschooling this year, you may want to check out this UU facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/unitarian.universalist.homeschooling/
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Dear UU Parents and Guardians,
It would be lovely if you could join us for our weekly gatherings! Here is what is currently being offered: *Sunday School * Approximately: 30 minute program geared towards K-5 but open to all ages Sundays at 11am Email me for the link Drag Queen Story Hour this week!!! Mrs. Yuka will be doing an amazing lesson and story and I hope you will join us! This summer you will find: Drag Queen Story Hour, Yoga with Maggie, and the Pioneers Park Nature Center as well as guests from our very own UU volunteer pool of caring adults. Each week is something different! *Middle and HS Zoom * We are now combining with Omaha youth groups and this will be offered *Wednesday* nights 7-8:30pm Come meet some other cool UUs! Email me for the link *Parent and Guardian Chat: * The chance for parents and guardians to just get together and Every other Thursday 8pm and every other Wednesday noon Wednesday July 29th at noon Link: https://zoom.us/j/474526337 Password: lovemykids Thursday August 6th at 8pm Link: https://zoom.us/j/866583131 Password: lovemykids *New Youtube links for this week!* Music with Miss Molly: https://youtu.be/pCXtZKL7fy4 Story with Miss Heather: https://youtu.be/rSfP1tkuWXI Chelsea's Meditation Video: https://youtu.be/PBP0b1rBFB4 Theme this week: Mindfulness of the Senses (Apple and Raisin Meditations) Words from Sumi Loundon Kim: Because we are so busy as parents, we usually just give our kids half of our attention - and when we're using the computer, even less. Our kids know when we're not truly present with them: haven't we all heard them ask a question over and over again until they got a real answer? This can make children feel ignored or that their needs aren't important. What would it be like to turn off our automatic 'uh-huh' and 'mmm' responses and take a more decisive approach to responding to requests for attention? As soon as I ihear one of my children ask a question, I will either stop what I'm doing to give my child my full attention or I will say, "As soon as I'm done with this, I will hear what you have to say." Consciously directing our attention, which is strengthened in formal meditation practice, helps others feel more fully acknowledged while also giving ourselves space to focus on what's at hand. Reflection: Okay, so I love these meditations, and the discussion questions and reflections from Sumi Loundon Kim. However, this last one totally made me feel guilty. I know I am often dismissive while on the computer. I am often multi-tasking. It's pretty often my children are pulling at my leg for a snack while I am finishing an email. I know that I need to be better about wrapping up work after my children get home from school. Admittedly, I also know that I will sometimes 'check out' and zone into Facebook or a news article when I could/should be playing with my children. Many of us may be in this position even more as we explore work from home and juggling children and remote learning. Progress, not perfection, right? The hope and intent to be more mindful of what happens, and when, and the hope to make a change for the better DOES matter. I try to make up for it later with trips to the lake where I keep my phone in my pocket except to take photos, or when we go to the zoo and I focus entirely on the little people in my life instead of the animals. Please know that I am here for you if you want to talk. Small changes. This is a hard time that we're in. Please reach out if you want another parent to relate with during this time. Discussion Questions 1. What ways can you envision extending mindfulness through your senses in your home? 2. Which of your senses do you think you are most attuned to in regard to your children and family life? Least attuned to? 3. What are some common moments at home in which you have automatic responses to requests for your attention. Dear UU Parents and Guardians,
It would be lovely if you could join us for our weekly gatherings! Here is what is currently being offered: *Sunday School * Approximately: 30 minute program geared towards K-5 but open to all ages Sundays at 11am Please email me for the link Yoga with the amazing Maggie Pleskac this Sunday! Please wear comfortable clothing and bring a yoga mat if you have one. This summer you will find: Drag Queen Story Hour, Yoga with Maggie, and the Pioneers Park Nature Center as well as guests from our very own UU volunteer pool of caring adults. Each week is something different! *Middle and HS Zoom * We are now combining with Omaha youth groups and this will be offered *Wednesday* nights 7-8:30pm Come meet some other cool UUs! Please email me for the link NEW The Central East Region is creating CommUUnity Creek, an Online Middle School (for youth who graduated from 6, 7 or 8th grades this spring and are entering 7, 8 or 9th grades this fall) Adventure, August 3-7 Conferences for middle school students are SUCH an amazing opportunity to get to know other UUs around the country. Learn more here: https://www.uua.org/central-east/events/youth/middle-school-virtual-summer-camp-experience-820?fbclid=IwAR1V0xM9rM7WrHTRi8REKGNFr9yZAff68pM_RNt0fEvg25KnELSkUlPR55U *Parent and Guardian Chat: * The chance for parents and guardians to just get together and Every other Thursday 8pm and every other Wednesday noon Thursday July 23rd at 8pm Link: https://zoom.us/j/866583131 Password: lovemykids Wednesday July 29th at noon Link: https://zoom.us/j/474526337 Password: lovemykids *New Youtube links for this week!* Music with Miss Molly: https://youtu.be/d_TajNsTe40 Story with Miss Heather: https://youtu.be/BTvcfwGPmZg Story with Ms Alexa: https://youtu.be/7COjJqqNDso Chelsea's Meditation Video: https://youtu.be/CnrXlxHL7GE Theme this week: Effort Reflection: I'd like to share with you a story which I use often when I lead my teacher trainings. When we were at Faith United Methodist Church while our own building was under construction, I stepped into a classroom when a teacher told me they were struggling with a student. I came into the class to find the student had his head on the desk and was not engaging in class. He had been pounding his fist on the table. He had tears in his eyes. The teacher told me, "He's being difficult. I don't know what to do because I have all these other children to work with". The assistant at the time also was busy with the other children. I took the boy outside of the classroom. I know that sometimes simply changing the environment can help. "What's going on?" I asked. "I'm ready to listen to you." What he said next has stuck with me for years. "I just wanted my picture to be perfect". This hit me right in the heart. How often have we worked on something and tried and tried and just couldn't get it 'perfect'? It is a long life lesson to let things go. To recognize that sometimes we need to practice before we get something done the way that we want it 'just right'. Or, to simply realize it is something we may never perfect. I used to practice piano and eventually gave up. I couldn't read music. It just wasn't my thing. However, for a long stretch of time, I practiced dance for hours and hours every week. I never was 'perfect', but at one point when I was taking 8 classes per week, I like to think that I sure was doing a great job. More than anything, it FELT good to do it, no matter how 'perfect' the moves may have been or not. The moral of the story is two fold. A child can teach an adult just as much if not more than adults can teach children. Also, that an adult simply asking, "What's going on?" can make a big difference (we never know what is going through their minds). However, to the point of the theme of 'effort', I am always reminded that perfection is rarely attainable. Words from Sumi Loundon Kim: Mindfulness, as developed by meditation, allows us to identify various states of mind, while ethics and wisdom discern their wholesomeness or unwholesomeness and determine how to work with them. Kindness ensures that we don't feel judgemental about the unwholesome states we identify. Patience lets us not rush to dismiss these states from a place of suppression or denial, but rather make the important effort to welcome these states into our awareness and work with them. SOmetimes acknowledgment, reflection, and insight are needed. Our faculty of wisdom helps guide us to knowing what the appropriate course of action is to take with difficult mind-states. Discussion Questions: 1. What level of effort are you putting into developing your spiritual life right now? That of your family? How might you adjust this? 2. Children have a wide range of dispositions, just like adults. One child may be a high achiever, so much so that they need our guidance so as to learn not to take things so hard, that failure is a teacher, that who we are is not solely defined by achievements, or that establishing ourselves socially isn't always found in performance. Another child may be more defeatist or self-limiting. For those children, we may tack toward teaching the value of persistence, perseverance, or grit, that commitment to a team or activity is beneficial, and that practice can be a joyful experience. In this way, what children need from us differs based on their personality. What are the dispositions of your children? How are you working to teach them what a balanced effort means? Dear UU Parents and Guardians,
It would be lovely if you could join us for our weekly gatherings! Here is what is currently being offered: *Sunday School * Approximately: 30 minute program geared towards K-5 but open to all ages Sundays at 11am Email me for the link Yoga with the amazing Maggie Pleskac this Sunday! Please wear comfortable clothing and bring a yoga mat if you have one. This summer you will find: Drag Queen Story Hour, Yoga with Maggie, and the Pioneers Park Nature Center as well as guests from our very own UU volunteer pool of caring adults. Each week is something different! *Middle and HS Zoom * We are now combining with Omaha youth groups and this will be offered *Wednesday* nights 7-8:30pm Come meet some other cool UUs! Email me for the link *Parent and Guardian Chat: * The chance for parents and guardians to just get together and Every other Thursday 8pm and every other Wednesday noon Wednesday July 15th at noon Link: https://zoom.us/j/474526337 Password: lovemykids Thursday July 23rd at 8pm Link: https://zoom.us/j/866583131 Password: lovemykids *New Youtube links for this week!* Music with Miss Molly: https://youtu.be/7VF7Q8HpdA8 Story with Miss Heather: https://youtu.be/J0Y9pS61hKc Story with Ms Alexa: https://youtu.be/CBSIWiASIUY Chelsea's Meditation Video: https://youtu.be/q5zyP5fXqoU Theme this week: Walking Reflection: Ever since March and we started being inside more often, I have taken walks as part of my way to de-stress. I often have the children with me, but sometimes I walk on my own. With how often we are inside these days, walking has been a really great respite from being stuck indoors. I have also often brought my camera along. Taking moments to appreciate the sounds and sights of nature have helped me calm down and refocus my perspective. A simple shift of environment can do a world of wonders. Words from Sumi Loundon Kim Walking meditation is one form of practice easily integrated into your home life. Here is an inspiring excerpt from senior meditation teacher Kamala Masters on practicing walking meditation as a young mother: (My teacher) noticed that I walked through the hallway from my bedroom to the livingroom many times a day. The hallway was only about ten steps long, and he suggested it could be a perfect place to do walking meditation....He gave me some simple instructions. "Every time you step into this hallway, see if you can use the time as an opportunity to be present with the simple fact of walking. 'Just walking.' Not thinking about your mother, or about the children...Just experience the body walking....Do this without judging, condemning, or criticizing. In a simple and easy way, bring your attention back to just the walking, noting, 'stepping, stepping, stepping.' Your practice in this hallway will be a wonderful training for you. It will also benefit those around you because you will feel more refreshed." It didn't seem like much of a spiritual practice, but every day as I walked back and forth through the hallway on my way to do something, I would have a few moments of clear presence of mind - unhurried, unworried, at ease with life for a precious ten steps. When we are with our children, we can verbalize what we are noticing. For example, while ona walk, we can say, "I smell rain drying from the sidewalks," "I see the sunlight touching the leaves on the tree," or "I hear cars passing by." Children, following our example, begin saying what they are noticing. This practice has the double benefit of increasing our own awareness as well as that of our children. Discussion Questions 1. How do you think walking meditation can help us work with our anger? 2. Is there a stretch of your house where you can practice walking meditation, particularly as part of your daily routine? 3. What is particularly enjoyable about walks you take around your neighborhood? Another article suggestion: Parenting during a pandemic is not easy. 'Parenting With Heartbreak' https://www.uua.org/re/blog/parenting-heartbreak?fbclid=IwAR3jtvvM0LuTqRYpXKchTepwseoWNWfsehElPnkhOfJniA0Nt_z7qgk24Fw Dear UU Parents and Guardians,
It would be lovely if you could join us for our weekly gatherings! Here is what is currently being offered: *Sunday School * Approximately: 30 minute program geared towards K-5 but open to all ages Sundays at 11am Email me for the link Lesson with the amazing Morissa Raymond this Sunday! This summer you will find: Drag Queen Story Hour, Yoga with Maggie, and the Pioneers Park Nature Center as well as guests from our very own UU volunteer pool of caring adults. Each week is something different! *Middle and HS Zoom * We are now combining with Omaha youth groups and this will be offered *Wednesday* nights 7-8:30pm Come meet some other cool UUs! Email me for the link *Parent and Guardian Chat: * The chance for parents and guardians to just get together and Every other Thursday 8pm and every other Wednesday noon Thursday July 9th at 8pm Link: https://zoom.us/j/866583131 Password: lovemykids Wednesday July 15th at noon Link: https://zoom.us/j/474526337 Password: lovemykids *New Youtube links for this week!* Music with Miss Molly: https://youtu.be/RxEVqtzh-5I Story with Miss Heather: https://youtu.be/qwyzjXblnQY Chelsea's Meditation Video: https://youtu.be/iLqmymH0SHk Theme this week: Staying Calm Amidst Stress Reflection: Last week my tire kept losing air. I took my car into a tire shop for them to put a patch on and remove a nail. I drove home assuming everything was fixed. The next morning, I had to take the cat to the vet. My daughter loves seeing the cats at the vet's office, so I let her go into daycare later than usual and come with me. Cat, baby, and 3 year-old in tow, I drove down the street towards the vet's office. A mile down the road my tire went flat. The patch hadn't worked. I sprained my ankle a few weeks back and it was still healing. In the chaos, I had failed to remember to put my ankle brace on. In the joy of summer, I had worn a short summer dress. I now found myself on the side of the road (thankfully) using my air compressor, totally in pain, revealing my back side to the cars passing by, and listening to a hot, crying, baby and cat and whining 3 year-old in the car. I then cautiously drove to the tire shop for them to do the repair. I brought my whole circus inside. No one was too happy to be there. The cat and baby continued to cry. The 3 year-old tore through every magazine, touched every surface, and talked to everyone who walked through the door. What helped me get through that day? Breathing and gratitude. It sounds cliche, but I think I might have lost my mind had I not remembered to take a whole lot of deep breaths through the process, and remind myself 'it could be worse'. I also had to laugh at myself and the situation. I took a photo to remember the moment and add to my baby's digital baby book. This is what parenting looks like sometimes. Yet, thankfully, my car was still driveable. I had a carrier for my cat that kept him safe. I had remembered the baby carrier and had both hands free. I had remembered my credit card. The 3 year-old had used the toilet before we left. I had remembered to charge the air compressor a few weeks back. There was a lot to be grateful for, even in a stressful situation. If we take a step back, and breathe, we can often find these moments as 'they are what they are' and move forward even possibly with joy. Words from Sumi Loundon Kim "As parents, we often misattribute our child's behavior as the cause of our stress. But we know that on our 'good' days we are not so bothered if they make messes or get their clothes dirty. On our 'bad' days, though, we get terribly irritated and start chastising our children, saying 'How many times have I told you to eat with your chin over your plate! Now you've stained your shirt and it's going to be impossible to get the stain out." But it's not our children who are the real source of our stress: it's our relationship to what's happening. How can we work with this? The most immediate way is to ask ourselves when we feel stressed out, "Can I relate to this in a different way?" Discussion Questions 1. What's your image of inner peace? Do you think that's realistic 2. Think of one routine activity that you will practice mindfully this week. What will you choose? 3. Does any specific hindrance-sleepiness, restlessness, desire, aversion, or doubt - come up in family life for you? How do you work with that? Is there one hindrance that predominates in your own children's behavior? 4. Have there been any stressful moments in your family recently? Thinking back on a particular moment, can you observe any distinction between what was happening, in and of itself, and your reaction to it? Is there something you would have done differently? 5. How about that stressful moment from the perspective of how you are relating to it? Would a different interpretation or relationship to what was happening have changed your experience of it? Another article suggestion: Parenting during a pandemic is not easy. 'Parenting With Heartbreak' https://www.uua.org/re/blog/parenting-heartbreak?fbclid=IwAR3jtvvM0LuTqRYpXKchTepwseoWNWfsehElPnkhOfJniA0Nt_z7qgk24Fw |
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AuthorChelsea Krafka is the Director of Religious Growth for the Unitarian Church of Lincoln. Archives
August 2021
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