Dear Ones:

Our ministry theme for November is attention. Paying attention is, at its most basic level, a spiritual practice: paying attention to your body, your feelings, your thoughts as they arise and recede; paying attention to whatever is right in front of you, whatever is happening in the present moment; paying attention to the blessings in your life; playing attention to the ugliness and pain in your life; paying attention to beauty; paying attention to evil. Paying attention in any of these ways connects us to something that matters. That’s why I say paying attention, at its most basic level, is a spiritual practice.

In her poem, “Gratitude,” Mary Oliver asks a series of questions that invite us to pay attention. She asks:

What did you notice?

What did you hear?

When did you admire?

What astonished you?

What would you like to see again?

What was most tender?

What was most wonderful?

What did you think was happening?

(By the way, this poem appears online on a number of websites. It’s worth reading. I found it here: http://www.findingsolace.org/gratitude-by-mary-oliver/.)

I offer these questions for your contemplation during the month of November. Keep a record of your answers—Daily? Weekly? After a Thanksgiving meal? After the UUS:E holiday fair? After a Sunday service at UUS:E? What do you notice when you pay attention? I’m curious. Feel free to share your answers with me.

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There are some events I’m really excited about coming up this month. These are all worth paying attention to! First, on Tuesday the 5^th at 7:00 PM, Pamela and Bishop John Selders of Moral Monday, CT will be at UUS:E to talk about the state of the

• Black Lives Matter movement. UUS:E has made a congregational commitment to BLM—please come out for this informative event.
• On Sunday the 10^th in the afternoon, the CT Council for Interreligious Understanding will host an event at UUS:E, “To Love Your Neighbor, Get to Know Your Neighbor.” We will have guests from a variety of local faith communities speaking to us about their traditions.
• On Wednesday the 20^th, the Metropolitan Community Church of Hartford will host Transgender Day of Remembrance. (See the announcement in this newsletter). This is a very important event for demonstrating our love and support for our transgender and non-binary siblings.
• Finally, on Sunday the 24^th at 4:00 pm at Temple Beth Shalom B’Nai Israel in Manchester, we will participate in an interfaith Thanksgiving Service featuring our good friend Diane Clare-Kearney as keynote speaker. (See announcement in this newsletter.)

I hope you can participate in some of these events, and the many other events happening at UUS:E in November.

With love,

—Rev. Josh