People's Meditation Group
All meditators and those interested in meditating, are invited to join in a monthly gathering to help and support each other in our practices. Next meetings are: Sunday August 29, 7 pm at church.
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Summer Potluck Supper
Join your People’s friends for a relaxed summer supper on the last Wednesday, August 25th. Gather in the backyard at 6 p.m. Bring good food to share – we can aim for the best offerings of our own southwest Michigan locale and the best offerings of the season. Help save on clean-up by bringing your own utensils as well. Beverages will be provided. If you would like to be part of the set-up and clean-up crew for one of these simple suppers, please let us know.
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Sermon by Dennis McCarty (former ministerial intern)
“Ich Bin Ein Wetback”
This morning’s Reading comes from the latest issue of the science magazine, Discover. It’s from an article on forensic methods used to identify the hundreds of human bodies found each year in our southwestern deserts. Sometimes there’s nothing left but a few bones and a hank of clothing. But they were once human beings. They hoped and dreamed and loved and suffered, same as you or I. They died trying to get into the United States, searching for work and a better life.
The article talks about one couple who did get into the U.S. They found work, saved their money, and sent it to their teen-aged children, to hire a guide and follow the parents north. In the hike across the desert, one daughter, Josseline, got sick. The guide wouldn’t slow down for her--they rarely do--and the group left her behind. Later, her bones were identified by her DNA. The article concludes, they “were too late to save Josseline’s life. But at least science was able to recover her name.”
It’s heartbreaking to me that some things never seem to change. For two centuries, people have come to the United States seeking a better life. All that time, previous generations of immigrants have invariably hated them for it. In the early 1800’s, it was the Irish. My great-grandfather, Tom McCarty, was an illegal immigrant. He jumped ship in...Full Article
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Between Us
 Ah, the fullness of summer in Michigan, once again. I’m grateful that the temperatures are bearable at the moment so that I can keep all the windows open, as I can never quite get enough of hearing the birds at sunrise, and the cicadas as the day warms up. For me, these two things signal contentment and being at home in the world.
Our summer began with the loss of our beloved Boxer dog, Buddy. His death leaves a big hole in the fabric of our daily family life – I know that many of you have had this experience. This change/loss also makes us wake up again to the transient nature of life in general, and to the constant need to hold on to things only with an open hand, ready to let go at any moment. It has been a reflective summer in that respect.
The UUA General Assembly in Minneapolis was full, as always. Nine People’s people were in attendance, and we will present a program of all we learned and experienced, in early September. If I try to sum it up,
I could say that things are really changing within the UUA. Our new President joins the UUA Board of Trustees in bringing a welcome focus on deciding what is really essential for the healthy and sustainable life of our association and our congregations, and figuring out how to let go of things which are not essential, so that we can have a greater impact on the most important things...Full Article
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