getting there.

It's been a pretty good day, as far as my goals are concerned. I woke up and had breakfast with my husband at home, vegetarian breakfast burritos. Yum! Then, he stayed home and learned to play 'Waste,' by Phish, on the guitar. I went by myself and tried a new (for me) Unitarian church (although it is kind of a religion-less church). If you don't know, Unitarianism has been around forever (Henry David Thoreau, Thomas Jefferson, and later Sylvia Plath). It's a really need 'religion' that welcomes all creeds, or people who have no creed at all. There are 7 main principles:
1. The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
2. Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
3. Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
4. A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
5. The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;
6. The goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all;
7. Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.It was great!

...and who can argue with that?

Back home, we went to a Unitarian Church that was very liberal and socially active. This was in a college town, so there were just all these great college professor minds, lovers of science, lovers of social causes, lovers of the earth, rabble-rousing college students and 'the betweens' that would meet over fair trade coffee in this little green-built building, discussing social, environmental and spiritual issues. They ONLY drank out of old coffee cups and ate off of random dishes, b/c they would never consider wasting resources. The children's groups learned about nature, culture, and they sang songs about Critical Thinking...Really!!

Here in Dallas, I've had a little less luck. The UU church right by us is just very different than the one we came from, although great in it's own way...I like it, but it is just a lot more formal and reminiscent of more churchy churches....So, inspite of the best of Saturday evening intentions, when it comes to Sunday mornings I usually do not go. Today, I decided to take the near 20 min. drive down to the other uu congregation, which is known as the 'most liberal' church in Dallas (which doesn't necessarily mean a lot). It is built on 5 acres, with quite a reverence for nature...a walking trail, and even a meditation labrynth. It felt almost EXACTLY like my church back home, minus a few things and plus a few others. I loved it. We talked about nature, patterns in nature, the genious of nature. It is up to me to find my niche in this strange new Southern world of giant trucks, cowboy hats and an education system that resembles fascism. Here is one tiny way that I think I've found it, and I consider it a gift.