Whatever words any of us might use to describe the last year, they would not include easy. For many, the loss of employment or significant income was an enormous hardship. We have missed seeing our friends or family in person. Even for those whose livelihoods were not interrupted, or who were able to see and interact with loved ones, the emotional strain has taken its toll. We have had to adjust to church services, meetings, memorial services and more being on Zoom. For some young families, the ending of in-person RE classes has meant an almost complete break with regular church activities. This has greatly affected the way we interact with our church community. And by the way, this was supposed to be over by now!

On top of the events in our immediate lives, the current world situation in Ukraine has affected us all deeply. We are a caring people. The worth and dignity of every person is extremely important to us. It is not just a “saying” or principle. It is one of the most important reasons most of us became Unitarian Universalists. Put all of this together with , Reverend Donna resigning suddenly, and—well—it’s a lot.

So, where do we go from here? Those of us who have been members of this beloved community for a number of years (34 in my case, but who’s counting) will tell you this. Our church is US, as one of our members so aptly reminded us last Sunday. We are amazing. We are here for each other. We care about the world, our children, our community, our congregation. We have weathered all kinds of situations in the past and we will weather this. We have each other’s backs. We will persevere, we will thrive.