“Project Drawdown’s mission is to help the world reach “drawdown”—the point in the future when levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop climbing and start to steadily decline, thereby stopping catastrophic climate change—as quickly, safely, and equitably as possible.”
“Our mission: To nurture a welcoming, connected, and leaderful climate community, rooted in the work and wisdom of women, to grow a life-giving future.”
Ask the CUC Board and Staffto describe the work that is being planned to advance the strategic priorities approved by delegates at the 8 May 2021 AGMin these four areas of social justice: – Truth, Healing and Reconciliation
– Dismantling racism – Climate justice
– Refugee support
Encourage the CUC to continue to implement its 2020 strategic priorities, notably – Advance social justice initiatives, including truth, healing, and reconciliation amongst Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples
Ask the CUC to invest more resources in support of anti-racist work.
Photo:Sculpture by Virgil Smoker Marchand at the Desert Cultural Centre in Osoyoos, BC. 2018
Samhain (saw-wen) is a version of “summer’s end” and we’re experiencing that now. In pagan traditions, this is seen as the “new year”. It’s a time to remember our “beloved dead” and at UCV a much-loved worship service is Encountering Our Ancestors, this year on October 31st. Once again we’ll be creating an ancestors’ shrine and a “day of the dead” altar.
We will host an open ritual for the Winter Solstice on Tuesday, December 21. All welcome – Unitarians, pagans, families, and friends.
The UCV pagan group is approximately 40 people in total. We connect with each other through an email list by sharing information and invitations. We encourage everyone to take initiative by sharing their knowledge and energy. We meet approximately every six weeks to celebrate the eight “sabbats” (solstices, equinoxes and cross-quarter days).
We have now started two small groups so that people can get to know each other better. Each group creates their own plan as to when and where they meet and how and where they gather. If there’s interest, we will start a third group. If interested, fill out this form and comment on what you’d like. Open of course to those who are just curious about pagan traditions.
share leadership and responsibilities for the group
once a year do a service project for the wider community
determine their own topics and schedule for meetings
once formed with 6-13 members will usually remain a closed group for a year
If you want to plan a solitary or small group celebration for Samhain, you’ll find lots of suggestions online for decorating your home, planning activities and readings.
Samhain – Hallowe’en
This is the new year for pagans and when the veil is thinnest between the living and the dead.
UCV honours this time with a special worship service, Encountering Our Ancestors, and creating an Ancestors Shrine.
If you want to know the exact day and time of solstices, equinoxes and moon phases, we recommend this website: timeanddate.com
The People’s Ecochallenge is a 21-day challenge to take action for a better shared future. From October 6 – October 27, 2021, you commit to trying and doing new things. Fun actions encourage new habits. Small steps lead to big change. Together, we build a sustainable world and a healthy planet.
The People’s Ecochallenge gamifies behavior change and makes your impacts measurable! Think about and act on proven soutions through 100+ actions across nine categories.
Ecochallenge is free to join and everyone is welcome. Join an existing team, create a new one, or join the global Community team. Join us! We’re excited you’re here.
from Mary Bennett
Teresa Morton formerly of UCV and for a long time at Beacon Unitarian, created a team just at Beacon last year and this year she invites any Metro Van Unitarian to join.
I (Mary) just joined and looked around the site. It’s pretty easy to pick off some “I already do this” and make yourself feel good… It even allows you to create your own goal.
Here’s the link if you’d like to join. I get points if you join.
In Canada, October is Latin American Heritage month and UCV’s IBPOC (Indigenous, Black and People of Colour) caucus (plus Allies) are arranging for each Sunday to include something to celebrate this.
If you self identify as IBPOC including Latin American, we invite you to join our IBPOC caucus bimonthly gatherings. Contact Tamiko Suzuki bipoc@vancouverunitarians.ca to find out more and get on the email list.
If you’d prefer, we can add you to the ucv-ibpoc-plus email group (open to the whole congregation), if you’re interested in being part of future brainstorming, actions and education related to anti-racism.
Nos encantaria eschucharlo.
Some resources
Children’s books – many of these are available from vpl.ca
Latin American poets – The Women’s Meditative Poetry group who meet Saturdays and Sundays at 9 am Pacific will be reading poems by female poets of Latin American heritage.
24 Women attended this series and several smaller groups have been formed as a result.
Our Lives as Stories
Maybe you would like to commit to paper (or your laptop) a few of the stories knocking around inside you. Maybe you’re seeking a new way to deepen your understanding of yourself and your connection with others. Or maybe you’ve been longing to write your memoir. Whichever is the case, this series of workshops could get you started.
Session 1: Finding Stories. (Gathering the Sensory and Emotive Details)
Session 2: The Craft and Building Blocks of Stories. (Writing the Scene(s))
Session 3: From Draft to Polished. (Giving and Receiving Feedback)
⦁ The three two-hour workshops will be spaced a month apart providing lots of time in between for other activities.
⦁ For the first two sessions, the whole group (up to twenty participants) will meet for instruction and guided exercises. Sharing time will involve breakout rooms of five or six, and everyone will be invited to share a portion of their work with Maggie by email if they wish.
⦁ The third workshop will happen in 3 sessions, with up to six gathering each time, to share their work and give and receive guided feedback.
FREE to UCV members $100 registration fee for non-members
Bio
Maggie de Vries is the author of eleven books including the Governor General Literary Award nominated Missing Sarah: A Memoir of Loss and teen novel, Rabbit Ears, winner of the Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize. Maggie’s TEDxSFU talk The Red Umbrella: Sex Work, Stigma and the Law has been viewed more than forty-thousand times. Hooker Monologues, a collaborative production Maggie co-produced, co-wrote and performed in, staged six sold-out shows at Vancouver’s Firehall Arts Centre in 2016.
Maggie was children’s book editor at Orca Book Publishers for seven years and a substitute teacher in Surrey for five. In 2005 and 2012, she was the inaugural writer in residence at VPL and UNBC respectively. For some years now, she has been a Lecturer in UBC’s Creative Writing Program, and a Martha-Beck-certified Life Coach who mentors writers, runs workshops, leads writing retreats and offers creative writing courses in her Ladysmith, Vancouver Island community and beyond.
She is in the process of reconnecting with UCV, where she was married in 1995 and attended more and more regularly from 1999 until she moved away from the city in 2017.
June 19/20 The last class is meant to be divided into three groups for workshopping, with Maggie present for each one. People will sign up for one of these slots: Saturday: 9:30 to 11:30, 12:30 to 2:30 or 3 to 5 or Sunday: 12:30 to 2:30 or 3 to 5.
Supported by the Vancouver Unitarian Women’s Retreat Fund.
Registration fees and donations will be used to replenish the fund for future events.
Testimonials
Insightful, hardworking, thoughtful and encouraging, Maggie provided the literary expertise to solve the structural and editorial issues that plagued early drafts of my memoir. Coincidently, she identified areas where I struggled to probe and encouraged me to explore, improve and flourish. She helped me to dig deeper and write better. Maggie is terrific!
Renée Hetherington, MBA, PhD Writer, Scientist and Businesswoman British Columbia, Canada February, 2021
Maggie de Vries runs a humdinger of a writing retreat. In an island setting, I was so deeply comforted by the schedule she set for us—one I could decide not to partake of at any moment should the writing bug o’er take me or should I simply need a walk in the woods—that I was inspired to fully involve myself in the opportunities. I was encouraged to share my writing, something I’m truly not used to doing, and I found it thrilling; that shell remains open, well after the retreat, and I’m delighted to feel the change.
Maggie took care of each of us by combining inviting reflection and prompt-driven writing sessions, literary focus, and guided workshops with lots of individually spent time too: free writing in our separate (stunningly beautiful) spots and one-to-one sessions with Maggie. These check-ins allowed us to look wide to see the larger project and then to perceive the minute detail of scene writing and character perspective.
All that Maggie engaged us in over the 3-day retreat stays with me, weeks later, because I heard myself articulate a deep desire to do this. I said it in a safe and supportive environment; that baby step feels giant to me now. And Maggie helped us envision each of our books in the mess of journals and papers, in the engagement and the intention of the writer. I see these things now. I am showing up for this part of myself.
Thanks, Maggie, for knowing the world of writing so thoroughly and letting us in on its mysteries and delights.
Jane Slemon Retreat Participant UCV Member November, 2019
Maggie’s experience as an author and writing coach has given me the courage to finally write my memoir. Her guidance has helped me see more clearly how to structure my book, stay true to my purpose, and tell a story that will engage the reader. I know I couldn’t do this without her expertise and dedicated commitment to my project. Thank you, Maggie
Jeri Ross, MPH Licensed Health Educator & Entrepreneur Author of See You in the Sky: A Memoir of Prison, Possibility and Peace Santa Cruz, California June, 2018
There’s a garden near the parking lot that’s looked after by the Earth Spirit/Pagan group. You are welcome to snip some herbs for drying, decoration or tea! You’ll know it because it’s the one with stakes with labels of the various herbs: sage, lavender, mint, etc.
Herbal teas
There are several different kinds of mint there. And they’re about to die down for the winter, so please harvest:
pineapple mint
chocolate mint
spearmint
If you haven’t tried sage tea or adding rosemary or lavender, those are nice as well.
Culinary herbs
If you’re making something savoury for Thanksgiving, pick some sage, thyme, or rosemary to add. These plants like to be regularly clipped back.
There’s also some chives and arugula for clipping.
Flowers
Please leave the echinacea to go to seed, but pick the rudbeckia (brown-eyed susans).Indeed these cheerful and hardy flowers spread and we’d like to remove most of them from the herb garden so if you have a place to plant something (or willing to help move some to our labyrinth), please contact Mary and make arrangements.
Seasonal decor
Many people like to use herbs for a seasonal wreath or swag. Or even a Hallowe’en broom!
Kale
Not exactly an herb, but there’s kale there for picking as we’re wanting to plant new things. Please take!
Labyrinth picking
There’s lavender, rosemary, thyme and sage around the labyrinth. Feel free to pick. The garden path is adjacent to the Fremlin side – ie east side of the property. Take a walk around it and pick whatever you like. It’s a scent-sation.
Mint Tea
Most people have tried mint tea, and we have a growing selection of mints – in pots! pineapple mint, chocolate mint and “ordinary” mint. Really you can just take some, crush it a bit to release the flavour and scent, and add to hot water. Or you can make a mix and try it out. To dry, just pick and hang upside down in a cool dark place.
Here are some recipes.
Recipes for teas
Ginger syrup recipe – makes 1 litre/ quart
¼ cup cane sugar
3 ¾ cups water
1/3 c. (approx.) thin sliced fresh ginger root, unpeeled
Put all ingredients into a pot and heat for 3-5 minutes or until it is steaming but not boiling. Remove from heat, stir and let cool. If possible leave overnight to cool and then remove ginger pieces.
Put one slice of lemon into the bottom of the jar or container for ginger syrup. *
Mint tea – for 6 litre / large container
Cut garden mint the day before. About 6 – 8 cups before washing, sorting and trimming. Choose stems with the largest leaves.
Cut stems to remove roots, discard any damaged or yellowed or too small leaves or stems. Cut stems short enough to fit into the salad spinner or the large glass container that will hold the tea.
Place bunches of stems into a salad spinner after all the stems have been soaked in a large container completely covered in water for 20 – 30 minutes.
When the bunches of mint have been processed lay them in the bottom of the large tea jar until the container is ¼ to 1/3 full. Boil water and pour over leaves until the container is more than half full or double the depth of the layers of mint. Can be up to 2/3 full of water. Leave overnight to cool with the mint in place.
Remove all the stems of mint once it has completely cooled in the morning. Add ice to the container before serving if you wish to have the tea chilled.
Other teas and herbs:
Black Tea – Just add other herbs if you wish.
Cut some lemon balm stems as well. Wash and place them in a jar. *
To serve tea:
Place lemon balm leaf into bottom of the cup, pour in a tsp or so of the ginger syrup and then fill up with the mint tea.
* Refrigerate these overnight
What’s in the garden labyrinth?
Pick some fresh herbs to make or add to tea as you walk. A pinch of this; a pinch of that.
The following are available.
sage
lavender
rosemary
thyme
calendula
mints and lemon balm (in pots on west side of labyrinth)
To find suggestions and health benefits, just google “sage tea benefits” etc.
The days are noticeably shorter and after the heat dome in the summer, many of us are welcoming the autumn days that bring a cooler, but still warm, temperature outside. As a gardener, I am grateful for the harvest that is still coming. There are herbs for drying or crafts in the UCV Earth Spirituality herb garden.
The UCV pagan group is approximately 40 people in total. We connect with each other through an email list by sharing information and invitations. We encourage everyone to take initiative by sharing their knowledge and energy.
Our group plans to host two “public rituals” – celebrations for the sabbats (for example winter and summer solstice) that we will invite anyone in the community to attend.
We are also now coordinating small groups using the covenant group model. If you’re interested, fill out this form:
There are two upcoming sabbats (sun celebrations). If you want to plan a solitary or small group celebration with friends you’ll find lots of suggestions online for decorating your home, planning activities and readings.
Mabon – Autumn Equinox
This celebrates the second of three harvest periods. It’s a time of balance.
Samhain – Hallowe’en
This is the new year for pagans and when the veil is thinnest between the living and the dead.
UCV honours this time with a special worship service, Encountering Our Ancestors, and creating an Ancestors Shrine.
If you want to know the exact day and time of solstices, equinoxes and moon phases, we recommend this website: timeanddate.com
There are many opportunities to garden at UCV. Some of our members have home gardens and more than enough on their plate managing that, but others live in condos or apartments and enjoy the chance to beautify our grounds and enjoy the company of others who love dirt! This year a group that started with a mystery pal connection have collaboratively planted, harvested and learned together.
Work with a crew once a month
Once a month on the 3rd Saturday a crew arrives and Patti Turner helps them find things that work for them and help keep our extensive grounds and gardens looking good. Patti brings home-cooked snacks! There’s a role for you whatever your physical constraints or abilities and interests.
Help with the labyrinths
Bubbles on the Labyrinth October 15, 2018.
Our garden path labyrinth can always use work and a couple of us get together on a spontaneous schedule if it looks like a good day. If you’d like to join us, or know some regular tasks that need doing that you can do on your own time, just drop Mary Bennett a note. Mary’s also been planting drought-resistant plants around the concrete labyrinth to keep the weeds back. Fall is a good time to move a few things around and add some snowdrops and grape hyacinths for the spring.
Vegetable gardens on north side
You may have noticed the vegetable gardens on the north side of the property. These were first put in after digging up lawn (we have a lot of it, and are lessening it over time) in the mid-90s. At the same time, we put heather on the SW corner and a herb garden on the south side.
Youth Garden
The farthest west gardens are for the Children’s program. Yvonne and Megumi tend to manage it, but welcome ideas and help from kids and youth.
Free Herb Garden
The farthest east has two sections. The upper part was looked after by Mairy Beam and Mary Bennett and is now a Pagan group Free Herb Garden. We often pick and share the herbs with the earth spirit circle. We’ve been making stakes to label the herbs. You are welcome to pick any time.
More details here: http://vancouverunitarians.ca/herbs/
Mystery Pal (Plus) Garden)
The lower part started as a Mystery Pal project with Cynthia and Gaon and now has a team of 8 involved.
Veggie Plots in the Middle Area
The largest area in the middle is divided into a number of smaller plots from 3′ square to about 4′ x 6′.
The gardeners there include:
Megumi/Amy Anderson (Love Soup)
Mary Bennett
Sandy Riecken
Gerda Schulz
Patti Turner
Cayla, Jill and Sebastian (garlic collective)
UCV Staff
Southern 3 boxes
The southern three boxes are prioritized for our families or mystery pal pairs/groups. They’re about 3′ (one meter) square, so you could plant just a few items–low maintenance–and others would likely help you if you need it!
Karl Perrin digging in children’s garden. 2017
Would you like to have a vegetable garden area at UCV — or work with others on their plots?
Would you like to have a small plot of your own either for yourself or to support a program at UCV? You could do it as part of a pair or group or on your own.
Mary’s been working on helping new gardeners find a plot of a size that works for them and over time building up the very clay-y soil with compost and dried leaves.
There’s some space available for another plot or two, including a raised bed near the sidewalk that wouldn’t require much bending. It might work for someone in a wheel chair even. Contact Mary if you’d like to take on a plot.
Rhubarb
Coming this fall: a rhubarb patch. In the spring we’ll harvest and share with a congregational group. Maybe Messy Church if it starts up again. Bakers will be needed to harvest rhubarb and put into something like muffins!
Adopt a little area
Once people start gardening at UCV they quickly begin to notice the expanse of the property and the need for many hands to make light work. Some years ago, there was a suggestion that individuals might “adopt an area” – perhaps even a very, very small area and take it on to weed, water and perhaps even plant.
Is there a spot you’ve noticed needs some pruning or weeding?
Talk to Patti if you are ready to adopt a section of the grounds. She’d love to hear from you.
These kids are moving away, but Paula is enthusiastic about keeping in contact with her pal.
Covid restrictions at UCV and elsewhere are lifting and more and more of us are fully vaccinated, so summertime is a great time to connect with your mystery pal (or coming of age partner). If you need help with contact information, let us know.
There’s a lot of enthusiasm for an early fall Pal meetup at UCV so SAVE THE DATE: Saturday, September 18 from 4 to 5:30 pm. All pals are invited to an autumn “Pal Party”. We’ll harvest, munch, play and walk and run or even dance on the labyrinth. Possibly this will be the first annual fall Pal Party. Unitarian traditions come easily.
With the needed covid adaptations, we went ahead with our Mystery Pal program this year to connect up people from different generations. Indeed we had the largest group ever: Fourteen pairs participated. Most were kids matched with an adult, but we had a couple of younger adults matched with older and two kids under 14 matched together!
Most chose snail mail which came to UCV and then was forwarded. Hence, the usual four-week program became eight to allow for postal forwarding. Other pairs chose to send email through a volunteer.
To offer assistance, we included artist trading card (“ATC”) materials for those who wanted to create art to share–and many did!
If you were a pal or parent of a pal and haven’t yet completed our feedback form, we’d really appreciate it: https://forms.gle/pG2aJoJ4c3yZoaf57You can RSVP for September 18th there as well.
As time went on, our hopes for a big spring reveal party were dashed by covid restrictions, so individual pairs and small groups have been meeting up in parks or at UCV. Here’s a poem and some photos.
This pair have started a vegetable garden and are meeting weekly to garden together. Cynthia applauded us for making a “perfect match” with her new pal. On July 25, they read the “story for all ages” together, adding in their own stories as well.
Being a mystery pal was as fun as it was exciting,
To exchange letters had me antsy to keep writing.
I loved learning more and more about my mystery friend
I could hardly wait for my fresh letter to send.
I am grateful to have had this opportunity
To engage so intimately with someone in my UCV community.
To feel the paper, read the words sent to me by my pal
Mairy Beam got to visit the Imagine: Van Gogh exhibit with her mystery pal, Maddie, and sister Emma and mom, Sheri.
Was something so wonderful forever treasure I shall.
I hope others in the future engage in this wonderful treat
For it’s rare to get the chance to learn about others at UCV you meet.
It was exciting to think about and plan what to say and write
Oh my watch my grammar, serendipitous did I spell it right?
I learned letter by letter about my special pal and their likes
That included leaves and stickers, dolphins and hikes.
I can now certainly attest to how great it is to have a mystery pal
It was my first time and certainly a boost to my morale.
I will be back and ready to write, draw, paint and send
What a great way for a lonely day or weary heart to mend.
For this mystery pal exchange is a real treat for the young and young at heart
And made me feel special and that to UCV’s community I really am a part.
Artist to Artist Mystery Pals
We try to match up pals with something in common: Paula is an artist and loved her exchanges with her artist pal.
Here’s what she says:
Who couldn’t use an emergency packet of confetti?
My last package included a great picture of a unicorn with very long legs and a long neck and a little horn, a thin long multi-coloured banner announcing I LOVE PURPLE, a bracelet made of beads and pipe cleaners and (best of all) a custom packet of homemade confetti. On the outside it said I LOVE MAKING THINGS. IN FACT I AM AN ARTIST.
Who couldn’t use an emergency packet of confetti? They are little bundles of joy coming coming through the post and it just makes my day when I receive one 🙂
-Paula
Their pair had the codename “Wolfgang Gerson” and it accidentally led Paula to exploring the theme of home/buildings and a connection with a student and friend of Wolfgang Gerson’s, the architect of our buildings.
Charlotte and Eva and Mr. and Mrs. Chickadee’s Adventures
I really enjoyed reading the story complete with an illustration of two birds named: Mr. & Mrs. Chickadee who are discussing where to build their nest to start their family made by Eva who is trying to encourage Mr. & Mrs. Chickadee to not peck holes in the house wooden siding for their nest.
It was lots of fun receiving Eva’s letters AND meeting her in person!
This is the story for August 22, 2021 for the worship service which will reflect on our experience of the pandemic.
I got the book from the library and as usual, it has ONE illustrator only and I thought about some of you and the stories I know about what you did during the past 18 months (and what you didn’t do) and I thought: I’d like us to share this poem/story with YOUR artwork.
Please send me art (drawing, painting, photograph) in horizontal format in jpeg or png by August 15th and I’ll include it when Way Kent is reading the story on August 22nd.
Here’s a youtube video of the poem:
Here’s the text:
And the people stayed home. And read books, and listened, and rested, and exercised, and made art, and played games, and learned new ways of being, and were still. And listened more deeply. Some meditated, some prayed, some danced. Some met their shadows. And the people began to think differently.
And the people healed. And, in the absence of people living in ignorant, dangerous, mindless, and heartless ways, the earth began to heal.
And when the danger passed, and the people joined together again, they grieved their losses, and made new choices, and dreamed new images, and created new ways to live and heal the earth fully, as they had been healed.
Here’s the sung version.
I hope you’ll sign your piece so we can credit you.
You could also drop off or mail to UCV marked with “Pandemic art for Mary Bennett.”
There’s a garden near the parking lot that’s looked after by the Earth Spirit/Pagan group. You are welcome to snip some herbs for drying, decoration or tea! You’ll know it because it’s the one with stakes with labels of the various herbs: sage, lavender, mint, etc.
Other teas and herbs:
The following are available.
The lower part started as a Mystery Pal project with Cynthia and Gaon and now has a team of 8 involved.
Here’s what she says:
Charlotte and Eva and Mr. and Mrs. Chickadee’s Adventures
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