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Bridging / Thoughts on Reopening — UUS:E Virtual Worship, May 17, 2020

05/17/20 by

Friends: You can watch the video of our May 17th service, including our bridging ceremony,  on the UUS:E Youtube channel.

The text to Rev. Josh Pawelek’s homily is here:

I want to share a few thoughts on what it means for us to get back to normal. By “us” I mean not only those of us in this service – but us as the wider communities of Manchester and Greater Hartford, us as the people of Connecticut, us as a nation.

Earlier we conducted our bridging ceremony. I want to offer congratulations again to John, Sarah, Nate and Mason. And I want to affirm that it’s a very strange and unnerving time to be bridging into young adulthood. The University of California announced this week that it would only be offering online learning for the coming academic year. I suspect each of you will be encountering similar decisions by the schools you are planning to attend this fall. There are many unknowns, and yet one thing we do know is that you will not be launching into young adulthood the way high school graduates always have. Please know that whatever happens, we are here for you. We are committed to supporting you, along with all the other UUS:E young adults who are experiencing disruption at this formative time in their lives.

What about the rest of us? What kind of future are we bridging into?

On Thursday the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Safe Congregation Team released guidance on how to safely return to in-person congregational gatherings. While that guidance is not definitive for us, we need to take it seriously. And the bottom line is sobering. They recommend not returning to regular in-person gatherings until May of 2021. In making this recommendation they are asking us to account for the most vulnerable people among us – not only in our congregation, but also in the wider community. That is, if our UUS:E community were to gather too soon and become instrumental in the spread of a new outbreak, it would not only negatively impact our people, which for me is unacceptable; it would negatively impact people in the wider community. That is also unacceptable. The UUA’s guidance is grounded first and foremost in “our abiding care and concern for the most vulnerable, inside and outside our congregations” and the “recognition that we are part of an interdependent web and, as such, our risk-taking and our protective actions affect far more than just ourselves.”[1]

We won’t be re-opening any time soon, which means we’re going to have to be innovative and creative in all the ways we offering programming, and especially in how we keep our congregational community connected. And when we finally do re-open, we will not be the same community. This social distancing time is going to change us. We are not bridging back to our old ‘normal.’ Something new awaits. We will discover this ‘something new’ as a congregation over the coming year.

The UUA’s guidance flies in the face of the widespread impulse to re-open the country. Connecticut begins re-opening on Wednesday. Other states have already begun re-opening, even states where the infection rate is still on the rise. Here’s my question: Are those in charge of re-opening taking the most vulnerable people into account? Are those in charge of re-opening acting out of an “abiding care and concern for the most vulnerable?” Do those pushing the hardest for re-opening recognize “that we are part of an interdependent web and, as such, our risk-taking and our protective actions affect far more than just ourselves?”

Ten days ago I was in a meeting with clergy from the Greater Hartford Interfaith Action Alliance. It was so striking to hear urban and suburban faith leaders compare notes on their experience of the pandemic. Case in point: the membership of our largely white, suburban congregation has had very little exposure to the coronavirus, and only a few positive tests. We have had no deaths. Yet my colleagues serving largely black, urban congregations report widespread infection and multiple deaths. One highly community-oriented pastor said he was getting at least a phone call a day to conduct a memorial service for someone who had died of Covid-19. Other pastors reported widespread food insecurity and economic hardship. The pandemic has exposed beyond a shadow of a doubt the many race-based economic, social and health disparities in our nation. The high infection and death rates among people of color aren’t a novelty. They are a clear-as-day symptom of the old normal. On the GHIAA call this pastor, speaking through quiet tears, said “we cannot go back to that.”

Friends: I don’t know what the future holds. None of us does. But as a society we cannot bridge back to the old normal. We cannot go back to being the wealthiest nation in the world without understanding that for that wealth to exist the way it does, tens of millions of low-wage workers, immigrants, undocumented people, Black and Latinx people must live with intolerable insecurity, just a breath away from economic ruin or personal health crisis or both.

We’ve been trying to help, raising money to address food insecurity, to support undocumented people facing ICE proceedings, to support domestic workers who’ve gotten sick, and now to support non-union rest stop workers who’ve lost their jobs. These efforts matter because they help vulnerable people survive the pandemic. But let’s be clear: they don’t change the old normal. Are we ready to be in the fight for a new society?

I hope we are. The old normal was a moral failing on the part of our nation. Now, with the coronavirus, it’s a moral catastrophe unfolding before our eyes. We cannot go back to where we were. In all your conversations about re-opening, and in every interaction you may have with officials who have a role to play in the re-opening, demand two things:

All re-opening decisions must be grounded in a demonstrable and “abiding care and concern for the most vulnerable.”

All re-opening decisions must start from a “recognition that we are part of an interdependent web and, as such, our risk-taking and our protective actions affect far more than just ourselves.”

If these values can be brought to bear in the re-opening phase, we will be on our way to a better future for everyone. In my view, fighting for this future now is a moral imperative. May we find our way into this fight.

Amen and blessed be.

 

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Epidemics, Violence and Healing: Women in Indigenous Communities

05/03/20 by

Virtual Worship at UUS:E, Sunday, May 3rd, 2020, with special guest speaker, endawnis Spears of the Akomawt Educational Initiative.

Watch the service on YouTube here.

This morning’s opening words are “Poem 31” from Lifting Hearts Off The Ground: Declaring Indigenous Rights in Poetry by Lyla June Johnston (Diné/Tsétséhéstáhese/ European lineages).

This morning’s story is Jingle Dancer (by Cynthia Leitich Smith, illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu).

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In Search of Compassion in Challenging Times — UUS:E Virtual Worship — April 26, 2020

04/26/20 by

Read the text to Penny Field’s homily on compassion:

In Search of Compassion in Challenging Times         

I want to begin by sharing a personal story: Paul and I began sheltering in place on March 12. I had a lot of fear of getting the virus and having complications so I didn’t want to need to grocery shop for several months. I did a big grocery shop on the 11th and the house was well stocked but very soon after I noticed that I was thinking about food all of the time. I noticed how worried I felt about how I would keep getting fresh greens without going to the store or what we do if we ran out of this or that. Or what if the food supplies dried up? I could not stop thinking about food. I intellectually knew that we had plenty and I didn’t need to worry but some part of me was thinking about it constantly. And then I would feel a huge wave of shame about the fact that I have so much privilege, I have plenty of food, I have an extra freezer filled with great things and I’m still feeling this anxiety. What’s wrong with me?

I’ve been thinking a lot about compassion in these days of the coronavirus. What exactly is compassion and how can we all experience more of it? Compassion is a bit of a tricky word. It’s one that we think we understand the meaning of but often, when asked to define it’s hard to articulate what we understand compassion to be. Usually, people use words like “sympathy” or “empathy” or talk about the feeling of wanting to help those less fortunate. But I think it’s more than that.

Sympathy, and even empathy, place the person feeling that as separate from those receiving it. Aww I feel sorry for you!  Let me help you with that! Of course, wanting to help is never a bad thing but true compassion is something different. Something more. Kristen Neff, one of the first researchers in the field of self-compassion, has developed a definition that I think does a very good job capturing the true meaning of the word. She defines compassion as the ability to hold suffering with loving kindness

This sounds simple but it’s harder than you might think. To hold suffering with kindness we first have to really notice and acknowledge the suffering. Opening up to the awareness of someone else’s pain can feel quite uncomfortable. It’s why so many people walk by the homeless, the mentally ill, the panhandlers, and completely ignore them or have a judgement like: I’m not giving them money, they’ll just buy drugs. To be mindful of the suffering is to really see the human being and to acknowledge their pain: That must be so hard! Something terrible must have happened to that person that they are in this situation now. Truly being mindful of suffering can be very challenging.

And for some of us, we may be able to be present with other people’s suffering and even able to offer help but can’t seem muster much compassion for ourselves and don’t even think to try. How many of us are harshly critical of our own pain and have trouble being kind to ourselves? We might confuse self-compassion with feeling sorry for ourselves or we have a loud inner critic that thinks we can somehow “should” ourselves into better behavior. There I was in my anxiety about if there would be enough food for me during this pandemic and what did I say to myself? I said, “What’s wrong with me?” instead of “Wow. This feels really scary and it’s hard to be this afraid.”

To hold suffering, others’ or your own, with kindness not only requires really noticing the pain but it also calls us to pay attention to how we all suffer and how your suffering is or easily could be mine. This is our opportunity to reach for connection inside of the suffering. The Latin root for the word compassion is PATI, which means to suffer, and the pre-fix COM means with. COMPATI literally means to suffer with. Compassion brings people together in the suffering.

This, too, can be really hard. It’s so human to want to be separate from others’ suffering. It feels safer to think: That could never happen to me or If so and so would just stop doing that they wouldn’t be in that trouble. It’s a survival instinct to protect me and mine from perceived danger and often, other people’s suffering is perceived as a danger so we don’t habitually look for how that trouble could so easily also be ours. But if we can notice suffering and look for how we know that pain too, or how it’s so human to suffer in that way, then we are reaching for the invisible string that ties us all together.  We are choosing love as our religion.

This truth that we are all connected, what UUs name as the interconnected web of life; that we all suffer in strikingly similar ways, has never been so apparent as now, during this global pandemic. We are suffering the shared trauma of a completely unknown future. So many of the feelings associated with this time are shared by everyone, even if the actual day to day realities are radically different.

If you are someone who has a home and is able to shelter in place that does not mean you don’t have fear about the future. If you are able to work from home, that does not mean you don’t have fear of financial insecurity. If you are sheltering with family or friends, that does not mean you are not lonely or missing connecting in person with people. If you are fortunate enough to have a well-stocked pantry, that does not mean you don’t suffer from food insecurity.

And if you have feelings of guilt about your privilege you are not alone. It’s human and so many of us share those feelings and we can begin to practice compassion for ourselves. Can we notice our fears, our grief, our anger and can we acknowledge how human those feelings are? Can we then hold those feelings with an attitude of kindness as opposed to guilt or self-criticism?

Because I have a regular compassion practice, eventually I was able to make space for and truly notice and sit with my anxiety about having enough food. When I did that, I realized that my fear was deeply connected to childhood and ancestral issues. My mother was a depression baby and she raised me with all kinds of deprivations around food. Everything I wanted to eat was either too expensive or too fattening. This had a huge impact on my relationship with food and so the ability to be generous with food and have access to a wide array of delicious things for myself and to share with others became a big part of my identity. Of course I would have fears around food access.

And as I sat with that, I remembered that my mother’s mother escaped the pogroms to travel alone to the US, and that her mother lived in poverty in a shtetl somewhere in Eastern Europe. I began to understand that as a Jew, there was likely true food insecurity back to times of my earliest ancestors. That recognition allowed me to release the shame about my own fears and opened the door to a deep feeling of connection to all of the people who are suffering from actual food insecurity during this time of the pandemic. From a place of true compassion for myself and others, I could make donations to several local food banks and participate in a local initiative to bring food to the homeless. I could hold the suffering with kindness and feel my common humanity.

Whatever you are experiencing during this time, I wish for you the ability to practice true compassion for yourself and others. Whatever you are feeling, whatever you are struggling with, it’s human and we all have those feelings. If we can be mindful, pay attention to pain, to fear, to grief, to boredom, and remember our common humanity, we can truly feel that invisible string that connects us all and with kindness we can, be gentle with ourselves and from that place, reach out to those in need as if they were our own loved ones. As the Brandy Carlile song says:

we can be each other’s wheels and road

for each other’s heavy load,

see us through thick and thin,

for love and loss until the end.

Amen and blessed be

 

 

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MOre Covid-19 Frequently Asked Questions

04/21/20 by

Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19

  “Shared expectations lead to predictability.”

 

11      Q: What is the best way to sanitize money?

          A:  The consensus is that money is not an important vector of infection for coronavirus-19!  Each sub-microscopic virus particle, called a virion, is 1/10,000 of a millimeter wide.  This is so small it can only be seen using an electron microscope.  If a virion had eyes, which of course it doesn’t, it would find dollar bills quite porous – a honeycomb of spaces between fibers.  There is a greatly reduced concentration of virus on the top surfaces for humans to carry to their mouth, nose or eyes.  In addition, bills placed in ATM machines, have been counted and sorted by machine, and moved in large stacks, greatly minimizing the surfaces any aerosoled virus would contact.

The NIH has defined the viability of virus on cardboard (and paper) as lasting up to 24 hours, and on hard metallic surfaces for up to 3 days.

For people who want to be extremely over-cautious, use a hand sanitizer before and after placing bills into wallets and purses or simply set them safely aside and leave them there for a few days.

For coins, consider leaving them at the store as change for use by others.  If metallic coins are brought home, consider disinfecting them using a bleach solution (1/3 cup of bleach to 1 gallon of water).

Again, it is important to stress the consensus: money is not an important vector of infection for COVID-19. 

 

12      Q: What is the controversy about using an approved drug to treat COVID-19?

          A:  Hydroxychloroquine is also known by the brand name Plaquenil.  It is an established, approved prescription for treatment of malaria and some symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and autoimmune diseases.  Laboratory testing has indicated the possibility of effectiveness against COVID-19.  But Deborah Birx, MD of the president’s task force has publicly stated that efficacy in test tubes doesn’t mean it will work in humans.

Small human studies in China and France showed conflicting results.   One showed a “good prognosis” and the other showed “no evidence of rapid antiviral clearance or clinical benefit.”  Yet, president Trump repeatedly promotes this medication as a “game-changer.”  On April 3, 2020, the FDA issued an “emergency use authorization” (EUA) for trial testing of the drug as a last resort treatment of COVID-19 patients.

Cited in this EUA are several contraindications including the presence of vision and heart abnormalities, and abnormal liver or kidney functions.

In spite of additional doses of the drug being manufactured for this testing,  there are now shortages available for traditional treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and lupus patients.  Test results have yet to be evaluated.  Politicians have falsely stated this testing “has given good results,” “and even can be used to prevent the disease in hospital workers.”  These are false conclusions because testing is limited to “last resort” use on patients who are near death.  Scientists and experts encourage everyone to wait until clinical trials are over and facts are known.

 

13      Q:  For some time now there has been a promise that a vaccine will be available in from 12 to 18 months.  When did this period start? When can we expect it to be available?

          A  The development of a vaccine for COVID-19 must go through three separate phases of clinical development before it can be approved.  Each requires a minimum time to be completed.  If any negative findings emerge within a step, additional time will be needed to rectify the problems found.

The clock has already started.  Many countries are separately at work to identify treatment and vaccination products.  Any vaccination safely replicates the disease in an individual leading to their immune system generating specific antigens that would be available if the virus later infects the person.

The first challenge is identifying that the trial vaccine is safe.  Can it introduce the disease in a healthy individual without actually infecting them?

The next challenge is to determine if the trial vaccine generates the requisite antigens.

The third phase involves thousands of people given the trial vaccine and evaluating them over months to determine if immunity is actually provided before it is then approved.

Only then will production of the trial vaccine be undertaken over time to produce the hundreds of millions of doses required for the public to receive it.

 

  1. Q: It is widely assumed that someone who has recovered from COVID-19 has immunity and could later safely return to work.  Is this true?

A:   A mid-April finding by the World Health Organization (WHO) puts this assumption in doubt!  Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, who is the WHO’s technical lead on COVID-19, stated that recent findings evaluating immunity suggest different immunity levels exist from previously infected patients.  “Right now, we don’t have a full picture of what immunity looks like,” Dr. Van Kerkhove said.  “And until we do, we can’t give a complete answer.”

Many of the serology tests being developed are pinprick blood tests that measure raised levels of antibodies used in the body to fight against the virus.  It is now reported there is no evidence that this testing can effectively determine levels of immunity in the population.  “These tests will be able to measure the level of antibodies, but that does not mean that somebody with antibodies is immune.”

And with the lack of a coordinated federal program for testing, many companies are selling testing kits that are not approved by the FDA!  It is suggested that many such kits are giving false negative results – people are identified with antigens that in fact they do not have.

These findings raise questions on developing a safe vaccine that provides immunity.  It cautions that groups should not rush to return to normal assuming those with antibodies can safely return to work.  To do so before science verifies the level of immunity may place these people at risk of suffering a second attack of COVID-19.

Scientists are working now to study this issue of immunity before any vaccine reaches that third phase of testing.

15      Q: I saw something on the Internet that said hair dryers could be used to destroy live virus on objects and surfaces.  Is this true?

  1. There is a lot of misinformation on the Internet and social media.  Hair dryers and several herbs to destroy the virus or reduce the chance of infection are among these.  There are also many scams trying to feed on people’s fears to make money.  Private sale of face masks guaranteed to filter COVID-19 and specific foods and “medicines” guaranteed to prevent symptoms all can be bought with “free delivery” offered as an incentive

Some sites are even falsely using the CDC emblem or logo to mislead the unwary.  Double check any information before you decide to either make purchases, give credit card information, or practice the recommended activities.  For example, one can Google “What is the CDC guideline for using hair dryers?”  After looking at several sites that don’t identify such a guideline, you will actually find one that states this rumor comes from as an unauthorized video and suggests this advice should not be followed!

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We Can Make Face Masks #3

04/17/20 by

Hartford Hospital staff-person, Melissa Tranberg, writes:

On behalf of Carol Garlick, Vice President, Philanthropy and all of us at Hartford Hospital, I would like to extend warm thanks for your thoughtful gift of gloves, wipes, dressing trays, and homemade masks. As our staff battles the COVID-19 outbreak, your gift will help them care not only for the safety of our patients and our caregivers, but of the greater community. We could not be more grateful.

Stay safe and be well,

Melissa

For all of you who are sewing face masks, here are some tutorials you may not have seen yet….

Best way to make bias ties for mask…no tools needed.

How to make adjustable ear straps if you don’t have elastic… (You can use t-shirts, paracord, etc.)

As always, if you are making face masks and you’d like to donate them to Hartford Hospital, please know you can drop them during the week in the bin outside the entrance to the UUS:E office.  They will be picked up at 3:00 on Sunday afternoons. Furthermore, if you yourself are in need of a homemade face mask, some of the UUS:E sewers are willing to send one or two to you. Contact Rev. Josh at his home office (listed in the UUS:E Directory) and we can get a face mask to you!

 

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More Covid-19 — More Frequently Asked Questions

04/14/20 by

Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19

  “Shared expectations lead to predictability.”

 06      Q: Why is the 6-foot social distance rule so hard to apply?

A:       We are creatures of habit.  Our environment is organized allowing us to habitually be close to others.  Unless you constantly think about it, this environment will make it difficult to walk and stand among others at a distance.  Some examples include:

  • Most sidewalks are narrow encouraging people to walk side-by side.
  • Store aisles do not allow people to pass with distance between.
  • Floors at checkout counters have restricted space.
  • People standing in line 6 feet apart to enter a building will have others cutting in front of them.

The only answer is to constantly assess each situation and manage risk by standing aside, waiting, or finding other routes to prevent crowding.  Governor Lamont recently stated guidelines for all retail stores to address some of these usual problems of spacing.  Even then, you may discover new problems when shopping.  Thinking about them early will prepare you to react appropriately instead of habitually.  By creating one-way traffic up and down store aisles, passing carts coming the other way can be eliminated.  But we all have found someone ahead blocking the aisle while carefully selecting an item – and we quickly and closely pass by.  Are we now willing to pause and wait?  If we ourselves want to stop to find the right product and people are behind us, are we willing to walk ahead to come back up the aisle so others won’t have to pass us?  If lines are painted on the floor 6 feet apart, how will you react when you find several people ahead of you standing in the one space between lines?  Will you just ignore them and line up behind them anyway?  Or, in case they were unaware of this spacing requirement, would you speak pleasantly to them as a reminder?  Another new recommendation is for stores to limit the number of shoppers to 50% of a store’s total capacity.  Many stores have elected to limit the number to much less – say 30% of even 20% of the usual traffic.  Once inside, if you feel really crowded, would you leave and shop elsewhere?  If you waited outside to get in, would it be harder for you to leave immediately to find a less crowded store?

There is no “right answer.”  But thinking it through, we all can make safer judgements to stop acting out old habits.

07      Q: We hear there are different Covid-19 tests available (or not available!).  Why is this?

A: To effectively manage this pandemic, two different sets of information are required.  These are the presence of live virus in a person, and a later determination that the person has recovered from the disease.

Diagnostic: the “COVID-19 RT-PCR” was the first test we were told about.  This determines if the patient is infected and contagious. A mucous sample is swabbed and taken to a laboratory.  In a series of steps, this sample is tested for the presence of the genetic template that causes the virus to replicate itself inside cells of the infected person.  A genetic map is created of any ribonuclear molecules present.  This map is then compared to the genetic map of a known coronavirus-19 sample.  A positive result shows the person was infected and had live virus cells at the time the sample was taken.  If negative, it does not indicate their future status if they later become infected.  This test in the laboratory takes several hours.  A large batch of samples can be combined, but even then, there’s a long delay to learn of a positive result.

On March 27, 2020, the Food and Drug administration issued an “Emergency Use Authorization” to Abbott Laboratories for trial use limited to hospitals and laboratories of its rapid testing kit, “ID NOW.”.  This test also amplifies the nucleic acid in samples taken, and analyzes if it is specific to the coronavirus-9 pathogen.  But this is done in a small portable unit located at the testing site.  A full laboratory is not required.  Positive results are available in 5 minutes; negative results take longer, up to 13 minutes.  This test is not yet approved, and requires FDA evaluation before it can have widespread public application.

Diagnostic testing is most useful to identify anyone with COVI-19 requiring isolation from those not infected with coronavirus-19.  (Note: the term COVID-19 names the disease caused by the coronavirus-19 virus.)  When tests are not available, all admissions have to be considered highly infectious.  This results in stockpiles of personal protective equipment (PPE) being rapidly depleted.

Diagnostic testing is also required for wide-spread public testing to identify those not showing symptoms but may be shedding virus leading to their being quarantined.

Testing for antigens: The other test is to take a blood sample and test the serum for the antibodies that show the person had previously been infected with coronavirus-19.  This is not used as a diagnostic tool as many tested positive would already have recovered.  This test helps to more accurately identify the population of previously infected patients.  Public health officials can than more accurately map the geographic locations of the epidemic to predict future outbreaks of the disease.  Because of the apparent immunity in those who have recovered from (or “resolved”) their disease, this test would be necessary to identify individuals who might be able to return to work early.

08      Q: It’s so confusing!  First, they tell us not wear facemasks in public unless we are sick.  Now we hear that if we do wear facemasks, it might be helpful?  Why is this?

A: We have all learned that surgical face masks, and the specialized N95 masks protect the wearer from having virus particles reach their nose and mouth. Early on, fearing hoarding by the public, CDC recommended that medical facemasks not be worn by healthy people.

Evidence has increased that infected people “shed” infectious virus particles before they show symptoms.  If these asymptomatic people were wearing a cloth covering over their mouths and noses, the resulting aerosol of infectious spray will be disbursed over shorter distances.  Considerations include:

  • Face coverings do not need to be sterile. Do not use medical facemasks designed for use by healthcare workers!  These are in critical shortage.  You can make your own fabric face covering.
  • Use of face coverings do not substitute for social distancing and washing hands. They only provide the same protection as when among infected people with symptoms who are wearing a face cloth.
  • One advantage is that reaching up to touch the face as a habitual action will touch the cloth, reminding them of this habit without actually touching their mouth or nose.
  • Another advantage is that others may initially assume you are infected and move away making it easier to maintain the 6-foot separation.
  • What do you do if you see someone not wearing a cloth face covering? If they don’t understand its purpose, would you pleasantly remind them they should wear one for your (not their) protection?  Would you speak to someone else nearby wearing one stating your appreciation for protecting others?  This new guideline is hard to reinforce when some of our political leaders have openly stated this is only a recommendation – that they will not personally use a face cloth.  Group reinforcement may help this recommendation become universal.

09      Q: Why do some grocery stores open early and limit shoppers to only those over age 60?

A:  This idea was originated by grocery stores as an idea to encourage older people to feel safe shopping for food.  Many (but not all) stores offer access to stores after the areas have been disinfected overnight.  Also, these early shoppers would avoid being surrounded by a larger group of shoppers of all ages – including children.

There are several issues emerging indicating this might not be such a good idea.

First is the notion that not all stores are following the same procedures.  Most stores may disinfect their shopping cart handles, but some may not.  Other options not universally followed by grocers would be spray disinfecting the aisles, and wiping all counters, open shelving and checkout areas.  Fewer stores will actually disinfect the separate cans, jars and packaged goods on the shelves.

Another concern is the assumption that none of the older shoppers are not infected and shedding virus without showing any symptoms.   This might not be true!  The greater the numbers of older individuals coming in to shop, the denser that group will become.  This places the greater number of people who are at risk of complications in one confined place.

Perhaps the better advice would be simply to let others do the shopping for you.

10      Q: Family members are used to closely sharing space as a group.  How and when should social distancing and continuous hand washing be carried out at home?

A: When living as a family unit, people are used to sharing space, hugging each other, and doing many other activities that place each comfortably in close contact.  It is important to understand that the coronavirus-19 particles do not act differently among families than in the population.  Whenever a member of a family goes out of the house to shop, to work, or do any other activity, the virus will behave the same as if they were a total stranger out there.

For the family member going outside, be rigid in following the standard guidelines.  Keep at least 6 feet away from others.  Whenever possible, wash your hands and use hand sanitizer.  You are not just protecting yourself, but your whole family.  Consider using a cloth face covering and encourage others to do the same to avoid infection from anyone without symptoms.  In an office or other locations where possible, disinfect surfaces (door handles, tables, chairs, computer keyboards, phones, etc.) before touching them.  After leaving, wash your hands and use hand sanitizer.  On returning home, leave outside any packages or shopping bags containing items purchased.  These can be sanitized before being separately brought in.  Once inside, again wash hands or use hand sanitizer, then disinfect all door knobs and surfaces you touched coming in.  Consider washing clothes if you were unable to follow the social-distancing guidelines.

For all family members at home: be patient!  Encourage and support each other to follow the coronavirus-19 guidelines.  Consider the person who is returning from outside as possibly infected.  Washing hands, using hand sanitizer and disinfecting surfaces should not be ignored.  “Old habits are hard to break!”

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“Hope Is….” — UUS:E Virtual Sunday Service, Easter, April 12, 2020

04/12/20 by

Friends:

The UUS:E virtual Easter Service, “Hope Is….” can be viewed at here.

Here is the text to Rev. Pawelek’s Easter homily, “Tending to Bodies.”

It is Easter morning. As the story goes, it is now the third day since Jesus has been crucified, his body stashed in a nearby tomb hewn into the rock.

In the New Testament book of Mark we read: “When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3 They had been saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?’ 4 When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. 5 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. 6 But he said to them, ‘Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.’ 8 So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.”

These are ancient words, written most likely in the fourth or fifth decade after Jesus’ death. Every year, as I read these words at Easter time, I listen carefully for what they might be saying to us across the millennia. What I notice this morning is that the three women who go to the tomb aren’t looking for a resurrected Jesus. They aren’t hoping beyond hope that somehow he has risen from the dead. No. They are going to the tomb to anoint his body with spices. In the wake of a terrible death—a state-sponsored execution—in the midst of what for them could be nothing less than an unbearable trauma—they are doing something simple, something ritualistic, something cultural, something people in their world normally do when a loved-one dies, something profoundly human: they are going to the tomb to anoint his body with spices. Nothing extraordinary. Nothing heroic. Nothing dramatic. They are tending to their beloved’s body.

As they approach the tomb, wondering who can help them roll away the stone, they find that the stone has already been rolled away; Jesus’ body is gone; a young man in a white robe who is not Jesus—we never learn who he is—tells them Jesus has been raised. Resurrection! New Life! A spring-inspired word! Hope beyond hope!

Next year I might read these words differently, and differently still the year after that. But this year, this Easter, coming in the midst of this coronavirus time, this quarantine time, this lockdown time; coming in the midst of this unnerving, anxiety-producing, sleep-denying, utterly frightening global pandemic, the ancient gospel writer tells us, tend to the body! Tending to the body is a critical prelude to “he has been raised.”

Tend to the body.

Tend to your own body – give it what it needs. Tend to the bodies of your loved-ones—whether they are halfway across the room from you, or halfway across the country from you. Keep social distance, yes, but tend to the bodies of your neighbors. Tend to the bodies of the most vulnerable, those who cannot leave their homes, those who have no home, those who are at high risk if they contract the virus. Keep social distance, yes, but end to the bodies of those who have lost work, or who don’t have enough food and other supplies, or who must work in dangerous situations without sufficient protective gear. Tend to this church body as you are able. Tend to the body of the larger community as you are able. Nothing extraordinary. Nothing heroic. Nothing dramatic. Simply tend to bodies however you can. That is all Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome intended to do in the midst of their trauma. That is what we need to do in this moment. In fact, it may very well be all we can do.

And perhaps an unexpected, awesome and, as the writer says, terrifying revelation is waiting for us too. Some version of “He has been raised!” Life again! A spring-inspired word! Hallelujah!

When we carefully and intentionally tend to bodies at a moment such as this, I believe we touch the spirit at the heart of Easter. We help ourselves and others who have fallen into fear and despair regain grounding. We help ourselves and others who have lost faith in the goodness of humanity know and trust that there is still decency in the world. We help ourselves and others know that we care for one another, that our connections are strong, that it’s OK to ask for help, that we will not abandon anyone if it is in our power to help. For me, this year, this morning, tending to bodies is the message of Easter. That’s how we help bring ourselves and others out of our tombs. That’s how we and others proclaim resurrection! Life again! Life anew!

Tending to the body. That’s what brings hope in a moment such as this!

There are some pictures on our website—some of you may have seen them in the eblast yesterday—of Hartford Hospital workers wearing face masks that UUS:E members made in their homes. The workers gave us permission to share the pictures. The people who made the masks were tending to the workers’ bodies even though they didn’t know for sure who would ultimately wear the masks. The person who delivered the masks to the workers was tending to their bodies. The workers who wore the masks were tending to their own bodies, which in turn enables them tend to the bodies of patients in the hospital.

Those of you who are helping out with food drops are tending to bodies. Those of you who have indicated you are willing to help are tending to bodies. Those of you who are keeping touch with members and friends of our congregation are tending to bodies. Those of you who are sending cards to those who have lost loved-ones to Covid-19—you are tending to bodies. Those of you who have donated to MACC and Hartford Deportation Defense—you are tending to bodies. Every time we do these simple, human things—these unheroic, unexceptional, undramatic things—we tap into the spirit at the heart of Easter. We speak a spring-inspired word. We say “Yes” to life. We say “Life Again!” We say “Life Anew!” Like the three women at the tomb, we may be awe-struck in this moment. Like the three women at the tomb, we may be terrified in this moment. But like the three women at the tomb, in these very simple actions we also find hope when we least expect it.

My message to you this Easter morning: Be like the women at the tomb. Tend to bodies. That is what we must do now. That is our path out of our own tombs. That is our path to new life. That is our path to hope.

Amen and blessed be.

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Covid-19 — More Frequently Asked Questions

04/07/20 by

Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19

  “Shared expectations lead to predictability.”

01      Q: How can I protect myself if someone else gets groceries for me?

A: When you or others bring groceries to your home, leave them outside until you are ready to safely disinfect the items.  Remove each product from shopping bags and using a standard disinfectant, wipe or spray the outer surfaces of each plastic, metal or glass product container, leaving the surface appearing “wet” for at least 10 seconds.  Place on a clean disinfected surface.   Pour or dump items such as bread, cereal and crackers in properly cleaned storage containers, safely placing the wrappers and coverings aside.  Thoroughly wash all fruit and vegetables with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.  Valuable suggestions and methods to carry out these important procedures are discussed and demonstrated in this 13-minute video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=sjDuwc9KBps&feature=emb_log —JPhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=sjDuwc9KBps&feature=emb_logo

 02      Q: I sent my family and friends the 13-minute video on safely unpacking groceries.  My son tells me not to do this – it has been debunked.  He sent me back an Internet article saying the CDC does not recommend sanitizing groceries nor does the World Health Organization.  The FDA stated there is no evidence of human or animal food or food packaging being associated with transmission of the coronavirus.  Is this true?

A: It is true that neither the CDC nor the WHO specify groceries in its recommendations for sanitizing.  But that doesn’t mean they recommend not doing it!  They also haven’t specified sanitizing automobile steering wheels, computer keyboards, and tray tables.  But all of these are covered under the broad guideline defining the need to disinfect “surfaces.”  It is also true that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not reported any studies of virus contamination of food.  But the absence of such studies doesn’t prove that food can’t be contaminated.

Following these conclusions that protective actions are not necessary can be quite dangerous.  Consider the following.  A cereal package was handled by a stocking clerk loading store shelves while coughing.  If we believe the scientific fact that this virus remains viable – can infect others – on cardboard for up to 24 hours, why would anyone assume that handling that carton a few hours later at home was safe?  Until proven otherwise, we have to assume that all surfaces can be contaminated by coronavirus-19.

03  Q: How long does coronavirus-19 remain infectious on different surfaces?

A: Many early reports answered this question with widely differing time intervals.  To clarify this scientifically, the National Institute of Health in March 2020 published the definitive answer:

  • “In aerosols for up to 3 hours”; (this refers to airborne particles)
  • “On copper for up to 4 hours”;
  • “On cardboard for up to 24 hours”;
  • “On plastic and stainless steel for up to up to 3 days.”
    • Per previous guidance – all “hard surfaces” are in this above group.)
  • In a related earlier study, similar coronavirus particles remained infectious for 2 years or more when frozen.

These data guides us in how best to schedule disinfecting surfaces.

04  Q: If you send out for prepared meals, should we worry that the delivered food may be contaminated with coronavirus-19 particles?

          A: The safest prepared food to order from others is likely cooked and “served hot” meals.  Have these delivered and left outside with no personal contact.  Remove cardboard or paper containers placing the meals on clean dishes and bring inside.  Wash hands or use hand sanitizer.  Using a microwave, reheat the food until steam is visible.  Heat destroys virus particles.  Cold meals including salads cannot be microwaved, washed with soap and water, or have disinfectant chemicals put on them.  Existing research doesn’t yet provide a definitive answer, but indications are the risk is probably quite low.

05  Q: How did authorities come up with 6 feet as the distance for “social- separation?”

A: We are asked to follow many guidelines, but are given minimal information why these rules were developed.  One leading way infection occurs is by hand contact with the virus on surfaces, then touching the face.  The other common way of transmission is direct contact with the virus suspended in the air.  There is a greater risk of infection when the virus particles are in greater concentration.  We hear that an infected person releases the virus when they exhale the virus “droplets” that come in contact with a healthy person’s mouth or nose.  The term “droplets” can be misleading – it implies visible specks of water that quickly drop to the ground.  A more accurate term is often used: “aerosol” transmission.  Breathe on a mirror, and the invisible aerosol mist appears as a visible patch of condensed moisture.

When anyone infected coughs or sneezes, a denser aerosol spray of microscopic virus particles is discharged over greater distance than when breathing normally.  They float in the air, and drift away becoming increasingly less concentrated over time and distance.  Consider this “thought experiment” (you don’t need to actually do this while shopping!)  Using a spray can of room air freshener, point it away from you and release a short split-second puff of spray.  Imaging walking forward and note how long you can go before you can’t smell the resulting spray.  Next, imagine spraying another short puff into your bent elbow.  Note how closer to you the scent remains – how aerosol particles are more confined in their density and spread.   Imagine that the distance you can smell the aerosol odor as the same distance that coronavirus-19 particles are spread in concentrations that enable them to infect you.

Many situations influence the concentration and spread of this aerosol.  Outdoors, especially when there is a breeze, these distances are nearer the source.  In a living room with the windows closed, they concentration may be farther away.  Rather than asking us to remember and calculate for each situation we may be in, authorities have agreed upon the distance of 6 feet separation as being uniformly safe for different situations.

 

 

Filed Under: Emergency Preparedness Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

We Can Make Home Made Face Masks for Medical Workers

04/01/20 by

Have time to sew? Have the requisite materials on hand?

As we’ve been hearing on the news, medical providers are running low on personal protective equipment due to the surge in Covid19 cases. The shortages include face masks. If you have time to sew, and if you have the requisite materials on hand, please consider producing face masks.

If you produce some face masks but aren’t sure what to do with them, let Rev. Josh know at (860) 652-8961.

 

Filed Under: Emergency Preparedness, Previous Events Tagged With: , , ,

Deepening Connections — Virtual Worship, March 22, 2020

03/22/20 by

From Rev. Josh:

For those who are interested, the story Gina read, Tom Percival’s Ruby Finds a Worry,” can by viewed here.

I mentioned a March 12th New Yorker article by Robin Wright which you can find here. (Thanks to Nancy Pappas for suggesting this article.)

I shared some suggestions for conversation questions from New York Times Style section  columnist Daniel Jones’ 2015 piece, “36 Questions that Lead to Love.” You can read that article here.  (Thanks to Beth Hudson-Hankins for suggesting this article.)

And here are the words to my prayer:

This is so hard. We are praying. We are praying that our prayers may do some good.

We are praying for health care workers. We are praying prayers of profound gratitude for their heroic efforts not only to address Covid19, but to respond to all the other health concerns that don’t go away simply because we’re living with a pandemic. We know they are already overworked, stretched thin, carrying their own fears and anxieties. We pray that they may stay strong, stay healthy, get the resources and rest they need to continue in their incredible, life-saving work.

We are praying for first responders. We are praying prayers of profound gratitude for their heroic efforts to respond to emergencies in the midst of a pandemic. We know they are already overworked, stretched thin, carrying their own fears and anxieties. We pray that they may stay strong, stay healthy, get the resources and rest they need to continue in their incredible, life-saving work.

We are praying for everyone whose work supports food production and food distribution, but most importantly we are praying for grocery store workers at Stop and Shop, Big Y, Shopright, Priceright, Highland Park Market, Whole Foods, Aldi, C-Town Supermarkets, IGA, Shaws, Price Chopper, BJ’s, Costco and all the rest. We have such gratitude for those workers keeping shelves stocked as best they can, cleaning, helping. We pray that they may stay strong, stay healthy, get the resources and rest they need to continue in their incredible, life-saving work.

We pray for all those who have lost jobs, who have had to close down businesses, who have had to lay off staff, who have lost regular income. We are praying for all those who are trying to figure out childcare now that their children are home from school. We pray that they may stay strong, stay healthy, get the resources and rest they need to continue making their way, day-to-day, finding solutions to perplexing problems.

We are praying for all those who are and will be sick with Covid19. We are praying for the families of those who have died.

We pray that our efforts at social distancing will help, will help limit community spread, will help “flatten the curve,” will help save lives.

We don’t know what impact our prayers may have, but we know that as we pray, we orient ourselves toward doing what we need to do for ourselves, our families, our neighborhoods, for the most vulnerable in our region. May our prayers center us, ground us, calm us, and enable us to endure this crisis with grace, dignity and love.

Amen and blessed be.

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