 The Vacation
This is one of my favorite Wendell Berry poems, and perfect for this time of year:
The Vacation
Once there was a man who filmed his vacation. / He went flying down the river in his boat / with his video camera to his eye, making / a moving picture of the moving river / upon which his sleek boat moved swiftly / toward the end of his vacation. He showed / his vacation to his camera, which pictured it, / preserving it forever: the river, the trees, / the sky, the light, the bow of his rushing boat / behind which he stood with his camera / preserving his vacation even as he was having it / so that after he had had it he would still / have it. It would be there. With a flick / of a switch, there it would be. But he / would not be in it. He would never be in it.
Many of us will vacation this summer. If our plans do not take us to faraway lands, we may at the least catch a brief moment in the sun, leaving our worries behind, and resting in its warm presence. Wherever and however you vacation, hold Berry’s poem close to your heart – remember that each and every moment in which we live is an opportunity to be present, to “be in it,” to be in this life.
And when we gather again in September, we will have a chance to recall our summer wanderings. At our ingathering service on September 13, we will collect water gathered during our summer experiences. So, if you visit a new lake, ocean, stream, or pool … if you listen to a wild rainstorm and think to set a cup out to collect the drops, if you stay at home and drink water daily from your faucet – bring some of your experience with you on the 13th – bring a small portion of water. We will pour our experiences into a common vase, and then use this water throughout the year at child dedications and in other ways of honor.
May you travel boldly and openly – and return safely.
– Rev. Anya
Rev. Anya’s Summer Schedule and Contact Information
The summer season at UUS begins on June 21st. I fly on that day to Salt Lake City to attend General Assembly (GA), the annual convocation of Unitarian Universalist congregations. My pre-GA events include a “Ministerial Couples Retreat” and “Professional Days,” a series of workshops and worship sessions for UU ministers.
After GA, Rev. Scott and I head to Seattle for a one-week vacation visiting old friends and family members.
I will split most of my time in July and August between study weeks and work weeks (info below). A study week is a chance for me to catch up on congregational business and professional development. I do not schedule meetings (unless absolutely necessary) during study weeks.
If it is an emergency and you must reach me, please call my cell phone: 703-731-9018. I will check e-mail regularly, except on my vacation weeks:
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June 29—July 4: Vacation
July 5—July 15: Study
July 16—July 26 Work
July 27—August 2: Study
August 3—August 9: Vacation
August 10—16: Study
August 17th and after: Work.
– Rev. Anya
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