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Greetings

My dearest siblings in Christ,

Peace be with you! I hope that this letter finds you safe, healthy, and warm on this chilly morning. May you find joy in the simple and beautiful delights of Spring: the budding trees, the sounds of birds chirping, and the brightness of longer days.

I’m very happy that we are successfully building the path towards a new way of worshipping together! Thank you to those who have joined by phone and zoom over the past several weeks for being patient and dedicated in helping the community come together. I know that learning how to use new technology is not easy for everyone as we are learning how to pray and sing together in a whole new way.

Last week was my first venture into ordering groceries online which ended up working really well. My partner Chris and I may have accidentally ordered a lot more cheese than we thought, but this is not something either of us are complaining about. I appreciate hearing from all of you throughout the week and am missing my regular opportunities to be in the Glen. Please feel free to send me pictures from your gardens and nature walks. I would love to see what I am missing out on!

Staying Connected

Coffee Hour - Sunday April 26th at 10 am

Join us on zoom for a “bring your own coffee” community gathering time. This has been a wonderful way for all of us to keep in touch with one another and share important life updates. Simply click here on Sunday morning at 10 am to share the peace of Christ with one another and share how you’re doing. You can also join by phone! Call 1-438-809-7799 and enter 88024485751# when prompted.

Worship Service - Sunday April 26th at 10:30 am

This week we are having a special worship service focusing on the challenges we face with grieving during this pandemic. Many of us have lost loved ones and have been unable to attend funerals, many of us are unsure about how to support grieving loved ones without being able to offer a hug or the calming comfort of sharing a cup of tea. As a nation, we grieve with the people of Nova-Scotia who are still reeling from a horrible tragedy. Please bring your candles to worship, so we can all shine the light of Christ from our homes. The zoom link and number are the same as coffee hour. 

Offering

Mr. Rogers is known for saying that in times when it seems like the world is a horrible or scary place we can find hope by looking for the helpers. Through the offering of your time, talent, and treasure - you are offering help which inspires others and restores hope.  I want to express my thanks to all of the Glen Morris community for the many ways people are being helpers right now. If you are able, please continue to support the church financially during this time. Our building may be closed but the work of the church continues!

Covid19 and Migrant Workers

One of the United Church’s educational centers Five Oaks is stepping up during the covid19 pandemic to support migrant workers in Brant County.  Read more about this story here. 

Get Involved: Five Oaks is looking for volunteers to help run errands such as delivering food. If you want to find out more ways to support the work of Five Oaks, you can follow their announcements on Facebook.  

Learn more: KAIROS will be hosting a webinar on April 28 where you can learn more about how migrant workers are being impacted by covid19 and the work being done to protect and support migrant worker’s rights. Click here for more information and to sign up. 

Spiritual Practices

Take a listen to Morgan Moats, a congregant from Wesley United Church in Saskatchewan, performing a Kyrie for covid19 that they also wrote themself. 

Grief Meditation: Jack Kornfield offers an easy way to create a little space for deep reflection and self-love in this guided meditation.  https://jackkornfield.com/meditation-grief/ 

Beannacht by John O’Donohue

On the day when

The weight deadens

On your shoulders

And you stumble,

May the clay dance

To balance you.

 

And when your eyes

Freeze behind

The grey window

And the ghost of loss

Gets into you,

May a flock of colours,

Indigo, red, green

And azure blue,

Come to awaken in you

A meadow of delight.

 

When the canvas frays

In the currach of thought

And a stain of ocean

Blackens beneath you,

May there come across the waters

A path of yellow moonlight

To bring you safely home.

 

May the nourishment of the earth be yours,

May the clarity of light be yours,

May the fluency of the ocean be yours,

May the protection of the ancestors be yours.

And so may a slow

Wind work these words

Of love around you,

An invisible cloak

To mind your life.

 

Yours in Christ,

Michiko