Did you see what I did there in the subject line of this email? If you got it, you are one of those WESies who follows what the theme of the month is, and I’m delighted! This blog is for YOU! 

If you just read the last sentence and thought “wait, we have monthly themes?” this blog is also for YOU! 

So, context: WES uses monthly themes to guide our programming, including platform topics, adult education classes, and some of our Sunday Ethical Education for Kids (SEEK) programming throughout the year. In November, for instance, we are exploring the theme of Attention. We’ll have platforms that invite us to pay attention to grief, which we often try to avoid or gloss over; to pay attention to the world around us while avoiding overwhelm; to pay attention to how we welcome other people; and to pay attention to gratitude. Clergy intern Laura Solomon is offering an adult education class that asks white people to pay attention to their whiteness. WES member and poet David Churchill will offer an evening gathering that uses poetry writing as a way of paying attention to the world around it. Many of our Deepening Circles (small group experiences) will spend time thinking about the theme, using a special packet that includes exercises and And so on! 

Get it? Awesome! Now here’s the part I think is particularly cool.

Our themes for the year ahead are set, part of our engagement with the Soul Matters consortium (which also provides the content of that special packet). But exactly what we do with those themes comes from…all of you! 

We’ve had lots of ways to engage over the years, from big butcher block paper up in the lobby, to art created for each theme, to officiants and chorus members gathering to plan together. This month, we invite everyone to a brainstorming session for the themes of Integrity (January), Resilience (February), and Wisdom (March) on Sunday, November 10, between platforms, in the Social Hall. You’re welcome to stay the whole time, or duck in and share a thought or two. We’ll have some things already mapped out, and plenty of space for new ideas! 

Please join us and share your ideas for songs of the month, SEEK projects, platform topics, adult education classes, even community-building parties centered around the themes. 

Thank you so much for your attention to this blog. 

(NOW you got it, right?!)

-Amanda