Halloween Costume:  Good Grief Multigenerational

October 29

The fun of Halloween is that it gives recognition to life’s dark forces in safe and fun ways. To appease the dark forces that live in our hearts we dress our children up as ghouls and goblins, and then buy them off with candy and apples. Halloween gives us a mock sort of control of the world.  This Intergenerational service is designed to mix our playful energy to get at the hard stuff.  

*All Children other than those in the nursery program will remain in the Service.

*Don’t forget to bring a photograph or keepsake to add to our Ofrenda/Memorial Table. 

Reverend Steve Wilson

Unitarian-Universalism: Our Oddly Modern Spiritual Journey. 

November 5

It has been said by Unitarian-Universalist’s that “we don’t stand for anything, we move.” In this hour, we will look comprehensively at the journey of our American church tradition and examine some of the polarities and dynamics that inform that. 

Reverend Steven Wilson

Pastoral Care Volunteers Gathering
Sunday, October 29
12:15 pm to 1:15 pm
Voyagers Room

If you would like to be part of a growing group of bakers, card-writers, visitors, or one of the generally concerned, please come.  We could use your help.

Karen Merikel
Barbara Gleghorn

Engaging the Community and Doing Some Good: Coming Soon

The Direct Service/Charity wing of our Social Justice Group are gathering steam, ideas, and beginning to clarify a vision of what “we” at PUC will do to be of service out in the world. Certainly, being new I (SW) am aware that people are already doing more than I know they are.  Even more certainly, we have history of action that I am only blurry on. 

I do know that, just to name a few, we have in the recent past, …

*Packed food at an airport hangar for a city-wide hunger organization,

*had or have at least some relationship with the Volunteer Center, 

*have or had connections to the Toberman Center, 

*Been engaged and supportive with “Harbor Interfaith” 

*collected hats and or gloves for needy kids, and 

*provided Holiday gifts for families that otherwise wouldn’t have them

All these actions are noble.  Obviously, some combination of them seem possible, as are 100 more community river clean-ups and soup-kitchen’s.  However, without some good planning, some pruning of what we won’t do, and a willingness to cooperate about what we might not do, I fear that every good deed and opportunity to engage the community might remain things we could have done, but didn’t.

There is already a good group of leaders interested in this question and in our doing, and they are soon going to put their heads together and pull together an ambitious but realistic calendar of do-gooder actions, some with the kids, and some just for adults.  If you have ideas, please share your concise ideas and reasons why you think that would work for us with them with me (Steve), Tracy Lewis, Peggy Tigerman, Joanie Thompson, Susan Owen, or Amy Fields.  We will soon be screening the best most realistic options for us as a community.  Make us a pitch.

LGBTQ News

On Sunday Oct 15^th We, (well, four of our PUC family) participated in the AIDS walk.  Another 4 or 5 were planning to but had to cancel.  Probably more importantly, we as a church raised roughly $2,300 for the cause.  That’s a lot!  I think that deserves some praise to all of us, but in particular do Maurice and Brad who steadfastly hit us up out on the patio.

More Welcoming to All

What more can PUC do to be welcoming to all, including people of color, LGBT and people who are disabled? What unintended barriers are we putting up? How can we keep the dialogue alive so we can continually become more intentionally inclusive?

Please join Rev. Steve and folks who attended the Multicultural Transformation workshop at PUC in September in a brunch-time discussion this Sunday and next.

Also, join Long Beach UUs in an upcoming Saturday workshop on inclusivity with renowned racial justice activist Chris Crass. For information/carpooling, contact Vivien Hao prvivien@gmail.com.  

https://www.uuclb.org/events/social-justice-forum-chris-crass-racial-justice/

Vivien Hao

South Bay Chamber Music Society
Sunday, October 29
3:00 pm
PUC’s Heriksen Hall

You are invited to the second SBCMS concert of the 55th season, featuring the New Hollywood String Quartet. Please go to the new SBCMS website http://sbcms.net for additional information. This website includes 

     -  a listing of all the concert programs in the 2017-2018 Season, 
     -  ways to contribute to SBCMS and permit continuation of these very high quality free concerts.

Self Hypnosis 
Thursday, November 9
6:30 pm to 8:30 pm
PUC Library

Duncan Tooley is an Artist, Author, Mind Trainer, Medical Hypnotist. More info about Duncan at duncantooley.com.

♥ End any pain with my Do-It-Yourself, drug-free pain-relief book: End Pain & Feel Great Again

♥ Find out the truth about professional hypnosis: Hypnosis Myths Debunked

♥ Use Creative Imagery (hypnosis) for fabulous health: Documented Medical Benefits of Hypnosis

Honey Harvesting
Date Change: November 11
Witness a harvesting demonstration of our own PUC honey by our beekeeper Alden Salazar. Come and get your honey questions answered. Children of all ages welcome.

MEN’S GROUP PRELIMINARY GATHERING
Sunday, November 5
Noon
PUC Library

We are seeking input and participation in a new PUC Men’s Group.  The best way for us to heal our wounds and befriend our fears is to spend time sharing aches and aspirations, telling our real stories, face-to-face, brother to brother, as peers in a supportive and open space.

Please join Godfrey, Ben, and Gary at this initial discussion to discuss our focus, process, organization and interest in this fellowship.

Environmental Priorities Network's Fall Forum
Saturday, November 4
9:00 am to 1:30 pm
St. Luke’s Presbyterian Church
Rolling Hills Estates

Our solar-powered future is here and how it can benefit YOU!

A Town Hall Forum sponsored by Environmental Priorities Network and PUC. Speaker James Kennedy is an Independent Energy Consultant.  He has consulted on over 100 installations throughout CA, New Mexico and Puerto Rico. Speaker Paul Scott is a leader in the emerging electric vehicle and renewable energy fields, writing and speaking nationally and abroad.  Paul co-founded Plug in America, the nation’s foremost nonprofit EV advocacy group.  He is featured in the award-winning documentary, “Who Killed the Electric Car?”  Speaker Jim Montgomery has been driving plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) for 25 years, logging over 300,000 miles, the last 7 years using renewable energy from his roof-to solar panels.  He has owned 3 PEVs: a gas-powered Pontiac Fiero converted to electric (1992-98); a Honda EV+ (1998-2002); and a Toyota RAV4 EV (2002-present).  Jim enjoys sharing his knowledge of PEVs with the public and inspiring them to drive electric as well. Local groups will be there: Plug In America, Adopt A Charger, Freedom Solar, Port of Los Angeles High School, and Sierra Club.  Snacks, too. To RSVP visit http://tinyurl.com/ychoxx3n

 Spiritual Memoir Writing Group 
Tuesday, November 7 at 7:00 pm
and/or
Wednesday, November 15 at 10:00 am

The Spiritual Memoir Writing Group returns. The assignment will as it always will be be a roughly 1-2 page and/or (2-4 minute reading time piece on a monthly theme.   This second session theme is very simple but tough.  Give us your best story; share your most interesting moment.

Singles Group Dinner
Saturday, November 18
6:30 pm
Kotosh Restaurant

All those who identify as single will gather in Lomita at the unique Peruvian-Japanese restaurant named “Kotosh.”  Steve will make reservations for 10, as he says “just so we have a fairly large tables or set of tables reserved for us.”   He is not taking RSVPs, because as he says he is “too lazy, just come, and we will figure it out.”  For a preview check out their website www.kotoshrestaurant.com. Kotosh’s address is  2408 Lomita Blvd.  Lomita

Upcoming Day of the Dead/All Saints/Halloween Service
Starting on October 15 we will begin collecting photos of ancestors for our memorial table and those lost to us for our All Saints Day/Day of the Dead memorial alter or remembrance table.  If you are afraid of forgetting to bring in a picture or remembrance from a beloved ancestor on the 29th, just give it to Steve or Claire.  He or she will hold it for you.

“Recognize yourself in he and she who are not like you and me.”
---Carlos Fuentes

When I am asked how I teach tolerance Pacific Sage, I like to reply, “I don’t!” Horrified looks aside, let me explain… Each of us lives an unbelievably diverse life. And secondly, tolerance is defined as the ability to endure or “put up with something” so that repeated exposure no longer provokes or requires a response. Really? Who wants to be tolerated? I want the friends to recognize the diversity and similarities in the world and each other, and then find appreciation for that diversity and those similarities. The friends are so excited when they notice when they are wearing the same shoes, or colored clothes and have the same things for lunch. Their relationships are strengthened. They are “more” friends. Taking the time to notice how we are wonderfully different is important, but so is taking the time to see how we are wonderfully the same. How can we be unkind to each other, when we look and see ourselves?

Warmly, 
Sylvia 
Director Pacific Sage Preschool