One of the revelations of pregnancy is how aware it makes me of having a body.  This seems kind of obvious, we all have bodies, but it is amazing how much time I spent ignoring mine.  Before I was pregnant, my body was rarely my first priority, heck, it was rarely my fifth. Sure, I went to the gym and tried to eat in ways that made my feel good, but when push came to shove, these...went out the window.  If I had a busy day, the gym got cut before anything else. If I had an evening meeting, dinner often got skipped. I usually went to bed too late and got up too early. And I don’t think I’m exceptional in this. I think this is one of those “facts” of modern life that most of us have just accepted.  Not liked, not necessarily supported, but usually accepted.

The thing is, once I got pregnant, this just wasn’t possible anymore.  It’s not that I shouldn’t skip a meal, it’s that I can’t. It’s not that I feel kind of bad when I don’t get enough sleep, it’s that I don’t really function.  I have had to re-prioritize taking care of my physical body from the bottom of my priority list toward the top. And there is something kind of revolutionary about this new reality.  Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of physical realities about pregnancy that I could do without and I’m looking forward to moving past. But this new reality where I take my body’s need seriously?  That seems worth trying to hold on to. 

What would it look like if I took caring for my physical body, the only home my soul will ever know, as seriously as I take caring for the body of this new little being?  What if we all felt empowered to take as good of care of our bodies as pregnant women are encouraged (and sometimes pressured, more on that some other time) to do? What if we slept as much as we should?  Gave ourselves breaks? Ate food that nourished our bodies and souls, not just when we have time, but all the time. How might all of our lives change?

In faith, 

Aija

Lend a Helping Hand – August 2019

Project SHARE’S Farm Stand needs our help!

When: Thursday mornings, August 8^th and 22^nd from 9:30 – 11:00ish

Where: Farm Stand is located at 123 Lincoln Street, Carlisle

Why: To sort located donated fruits, vegetables, baked goods for distribution to those in need.

Live our mission!  Please sign up at Social Justice table.

Day of Caring - Mark your calendars for Friday, October 11

Register for our Beloved Conversations program – begins in October.

Contact Pam in the office to register 717/249-8944 or pam@uucv.net

Change For The World – The Gleaning Project of South Central PA

The Gleaning Project improves access to fresh, healthy, local foods for low income Adams and Franklin County residents.  The Gleaning Project uses volunteers to collect excess fruit and vegetables from local farms and distributes them to local food banks, senior centers, shelters, after school programs, and other similar organizations.  The Gleaning Project seeks to reduce food waste in the fields and distribute this food to those most in need.

OWL K-1 This Fall

This Fall we will offer Our Whole Lives, a comprehensive sexuality education class, for our youngest congregants ages 5-7. The class is age-appropriate and engages kids and parents together with songs, stories and activities. Orientation for parents and kids is Sunday August 25 from 12:15-1:45pm, and we will hold 8 sessions from 12-1pm on each Sunday in September and October. Contact Emily Crutcher at emilyuucv@gmail.com for more details or to register!

RE Open House: Sept 8

On Sunday, September 8 immediately after In-Gathering service, the RE Committee will host an Open House downstairs. Children and teachers will be ready to award you stamps for visiting different stations in the nursery and classrooms. Collect three stamps to earn admission into the Dining Hall to enjoy coffee and treats!

Town Hall

Plan to attend our next TOWN HALL on Sunday, August 11 following worship in the Sanctuary.  Items for discussion: supplemental explanation of the 2019-2020 budget; An update from the Capital Campaign Steering Committee; News and notes from the Safer Congregation Response Team; Invitation to join Beloved Conversation: Meditations on Race and Ethnicity.

UUCV New Office Hours

Effective August 2, the UUCV office will now close at 12:30 pm on Fridays.  You can reach Pam in the office at 717/249-8944 or pam@uucv.net 

As a reminder, office hours are:

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 8:30 am – 1:30 pm

Wednesday 10 am – 3 pm

Friday 8:30 am – 12:30 pm

Adult RE – FALL Planning Meeting

The Adult RE class will be meeting on Sunday August 4 at 9 AM in the board room to propose and select topics for our Fall series of classes which will run from September to December.  All are welcomed to attend this planning meeting—new comers as well as seasoned participants.  Give some thought to the topics you would like to hear about and discuss during our Fall semester and bring those ideas and suggestions to the Aug. 4^th meeting.  We’ll then select the topics to be covered during the Fall and publish the class schedule.  Examples of recent discussion topics include: Swedenborg's Theology, Science and the Ultimate Nature of Reality, Zen and Reaching our Full Potential, Mental Illness Affects Us All, Ritual in Religion, Consciousness and the Self, and Sacred Books.

While we upgrade our sound system, we are suspending our recordings on “Sound Cloud” on our UUCV Website for the summer.  Sorry for any inconvenience.  Visit our website www.uucv.net to stay current on important announcements and events.

More About the UUCV Adult Book Group…

In November of each year the book convenes to select books for the coming year, January through October. At the November meeting, everyone is invited to nominate 1-2 books for us to read, providing some sort of thumbnail sketch of its/their contents.  When all nominations have been made, each person votes for the 10 books they’d most like to read. The individuals who nominated the selected book(s) is expected to lead the discussion of that book and people choose.

The UUCV Book Group coordinator will create a brochure which will be made available in the Social Hall. 

The UUCV Book Group meets at 6:30 pm on the 4^th Sunday of each month in the YUUTH Room.   If you have additional questions, contact the UUCV Book Coordinator, Riley Johnson riles1806@gmail.com or Pam in the office pam@uucv.net or 717/249-8944.

New members are always welcome! 

Mark your calendar for UUCV’s biggest and best event of the year…
the ANNUAL AUCTION.

What could be better than food, beverages, entertainment, mixing and mingling with UUCV friends old and new, and the opportunity to bid and sign up for events, gift certificates and services provided by members and friends.

Here’s what the evening includes:

FOOD Complimentary hors d’oeuvres and desserts provided by UUCV members and friends.

BEVERAGES Complimentary coffee and tea and a cash-only beer, wine and soft drink bar.

ENTERTAINMENT Dance the night away or simply enjoy live music provided by musician extraordinaire Brian McPherson and the UUCV Rock ‘n Rollers.

EVENT SIGN-UPS Choose from a wide variety of events, from hikes in nearby parks to dinners at the homes of UUCV members and friends; from game nights to craft workshops; and from dance lessons to fortune telling.

GIFT CERTIFICATES Bid on gift certificates donated by Carlisle area restaurants, shops, salons and more.

WISHING WELL Need someone to mow your lawn? Walk your dog? House sit or babysit? Simply describe the service you need and what you are willing to pay. Members and friends will sign up to provide the service, with all proceeds going to UUCV.

SPECIALTY DONATIONS Bid on a variety of personal services and items provided by UUCV members and friends. You’ll find everything from baked goods, casserole of the month, specialty dinner for a family, gift baskets, handyman and computer services and more.

RAFFLE DRAWING Purchase tickets in advance or on auction night for the chance to win a cash prize.

CHILDREN’S AUCTION No need for a sitter…..kids age 4 and older are invited to participate in their own auction held in the lower level classrooms.

NURSERY CARE Complimentary care for children age 3 and under will be provided.

It’s not too early to be thinking about what YOU might be able to contribute. Here’s some food for thought:

ATTEND Bring your family, friends and kids along. Need a ride? We can make arrangements for you. Can’t attend? We’ll be glad to assign a bidding buddy to represent you.

HOST A SIGN-UP EVENT It doesn’t have to be an extravagant affair! Plan a game night, a hike or an afternoon at the movies.

DONATE/VOLUNTEER We’ll be needing donations of food and beverages; food servers and bartenders; guest check-in and out and more. Look for the volunteer sign-up sheets at Kick-Off Sunday.

JOIN THE TEAM It takes a lot of people to make the auction a success. We’ll be looking for help with soliciting gift certificates; drivers for those who cannot drive themselves; set-up and tear down; food servers; bartenders; check in and check-out clerks and more.

This year’s theme will be revealed at the official Auction Kick-Off following services on Sunday, Sept. 22.  Auction committee members will be available to answer any questions and help with ideas for donations. There will also be sign-up sheets for those who wish to volunteer.

On a final note, we will not feature a silent auction this year so be sure to save those family treasures that you no longer need for the annual UUCV Yard Sale held in conjunction with the Boiling Springs Foundry Day.

Questions? You’ll find a Q&A on UUCV’s website, uucv.org (click on “Events”). Still have questions? Contact Wendy Gebb (wendywinter@comcast.net) or Laurel Belding (ljbelding46@gmail.com).

See you at the auction!

Grocery Cards – Easy fundraiser for UUCV

Don’t forget to stop by the Grocery Card table after service on Sundays to buy a Giant, Karns or Weis card to purchase all your picnic groceries.  This is a great fundraiser for UUCV – we receive 10% of the face value of every Giant Card sold and 5% for each Karns and Weis card sold.  Cards can also be purchased during the week in the church office Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 8:30 am – 1:30 pm and on Wednesdays from 10:00 am – 3:00 pm.  And you can use your Giant card for gas, Carlisle Borough Trash Bags, prescriptions, and beer for those over 21!

https://smile.amazon.com/ and make money for UUCV

When you do your amazon online shopping, use https://smile.amazon.com/  and choose Unitarian Universalists of Cumberland Valley as the charity you would like to support.  You only need to enter our name in once, and it will remain the charity until you change it.  UUCV receives quarterly checks based on the amount spent on this site.  There is no extra cost to you.