Sadly, the Florida chapter of UU Women and Religion is in the process of disbanding. Several women have been in touch with the Continental co-conveners, and it does look like some of their memorabilia will be maintained by the Continental group, against the day when Women and Religion again lights up the Sunshine State.

St. Lawrence District has formed a new W&R chapter. Their first event will be a retreat in the Fall of 2010. They've already lined up their keynote speakers and convention facility!

Northern New England Women and Religion announces the Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont UU Women’s Fall 2009 Retreat will take place the weekend of October 30th-November 1st, at Rockraft Retreat Center in beautiful Sebago Lake, Maine. We will be "Celebrating Samhain" during our last time at Rockcraft before the center closes at the end of the year. This is the time of year when the veil between the worlds are the thinnest. The perfect time to divine what the future has in store for us; and remember our loved ones who have passed. We will honor the sacredness of Samhain and rejoice in the playfulness of Halloween.

Michigan women are still talking about forming a W&R chapter. Dr. Misty Sheehan reports that she got re-acquainted with another one of the original Chapin-Crane W&R women (whom she hadn't seen in 30 years!) at a Carolyn McDade weekend in northern Michigan. They are talking with Rev. Shirley Ranck about a retreat soon in southern Michigan.

Joseph Priestley District is getting ready for their Fall retreat, Discover Your Voice!

October 16-18

LOCATION: Bishop Claggett Center, Buckeytown, MD
(You can view the beautiful retreat site at: www.bishopclaggett.org)
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Anne Slater, registrar: 610-896-6468/ \n This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
complete information at our website: www.jpdwr.org

Pacific SW District has a San Diego area retreat happening this month, "Women Together." More details are on their website.

Central Midwest District women are always busy. Current Chair Nancy Irons reports they're been working on strengthening their organizational structure and getting ready for their February 2010 retreat.

The theme for Winter WomanSpirit 2010 is:
"Nurturing Ourselves -

Hi!  I was Googling for a May Sarton poem I know and came across this W&R newsletter attributing it, or lines clearly adapted from it, to Barbara Vaughn.
http://www.uuwr.org/WOMUUNWEB/WOMUUNWEB-21-Fall-2005.pdf

Barbara's words, as quoted in the newsletter:

The Woman I am Becoming
Now I am becoming all
I am meant to be.
Its taken time, many years,
Many places. Now to stand still,
To revel in the silence.
My poems, my words
Shape the shaper.
All fuses, falls into place
From thought to desire to action.
I watch, reflect, enjoy, savor
My work, my love my time, my place
Gathered into one intense me,
Made so and rooted so by love.
- Barbara J. Vaughn

Sarton's poem:

Now I Become Myself
Now I become myself. It's taken
Time, many years and places;
I have been dissolved and shaken,
Worn other people's faces,
Run madly, as if Time were there,
Terribly old, crying a warning,
"Hurry, you will be dead before--"
(What? Before you reach the morning?
Or the end of the poem, is clear?
Or love safe in the walled city?)
Now to stand still, to be here,
Feel my own weight and density!
The black shadow on the paper
Is my hand; the shadow of a word
As thought shapes the shaper
Falls heavy on the page, is heard.
All fuses now, falls into place
From wish to action, word to silence,
My work, my love, my time, my face
Gathered into one intense
Gesture of growing like a plant.
As slowly as the ripening fruit
Fertile, detached, and always spent,
Falls but does not exhaust the root,
So all the poem is, can give,
Grows in me to become the song,
Made so and rooted so by love.
Now there is time and Time is young.
O, in this single hour I live
All of myself and do not move
I, the pursued, who madly ran,
Stand still, stand still, and stop the Sun!

I know it is 4 years ago now, but it lives on the internet.  Perhaps you could publish a correction in the next newsletter.

Take care,
Amy

Editor's Note: Thanks, Amy! And, we've corrected the original page to read "adapted from May Sarton."

I have sleep-disturbing nights like tonight when I feel we feminists could give up slogging through the patriarchal pie, up to our necks, impeded by disgusting goo everywhere.  So many incidents in the day before this sleepless night make me just want to give in, lie down and slurp up what tastes good to me at that moment, but...  To give up, to be swallowed up into my own little bite of sweet self-interest, grabbing what I can, would mean drowning.  I’d sink into too many over-cooked (but familiar), power-over ingredients.

Now, I awaken more fully.  I see stories of other feminist sloggers such as this WOMUUNWEB issue’s Rebecca Adamson (First Peoples Worldwide), Billie Heller (UN Convention for Elimination of Discrimination Against Women) and Carol Huston’s catalytic converting small group of women.  I am now groping back up to slog harder when sunrise breaks through the darkness.

With education as one main thrust for our ICUUW, International Convocation of UU Women, action plan, I’ve been recalling the discussions at the Convocation about using the UU curriculum, OWL, “Our Whole Lives”, for women’s groups worldwide.  I remember Britain’s Rev. Dr. Ann Peart at the microphone giving us a gentle warning about OWL’s content of dealing with sexuality.  She said that OWL’s content being so specific for the U.S. culture makes it inappropriate for a number of other cultures.

Let me suggest our substituting “Cakes for the Queen of Heaven” for the ICUUW educational use of OWL.  The evaluations I received from the “Cakes…”group I facilitated in July gave me this important idea.  (I believe it to be a “meme”*.)

I read such evaluation comments as:

“Very interesting and thought provoking – (material combined with meaningful sharing and discussion)  Found there is often more to cover than time, realistically, allows – Each one of these sessions could be an afternoon’s workshop of 3 – 4 hours.  But they’ve all whetted my appetite for more!”  Also, she said that the session about reclaiming the mother/daughter relationship was the “most healing” for her.

Then I came to an evaluation from a woman from Uruguay who said:

“Every woman should have this tremendous opportunity!  If only I had this knowledge during my formative years!  The program’s very positive and nourishing effect remains long after the sessions.  I can’t wait for the following ones!  Thank you for changing my perception of myself!”  (Reading this gave me my creative breakthrough to suggest “Cakes…” for our educational work.)

The challenge of translations to the languages required is quite an obstacle to overcome.  Also, I strongly believe facilitators must understand (as the knowledge applies to the patriarchy in their cultures) the content of both these resources:  Carol Flinders’ Rebalancing the World and David Korten’s The Great Turning. I hope my idea of taking “Cakes…” around the world is a meme for ICUUW’ers.

* In Rebalancing the World, Carol Flinders describes what a meme is by comparing it to the genes we pass on to new generations.  Human evolution has memes, also.  They, simply, are timely, meaningful ideas for the betterment of life.