 Thank you for watching this video. I'll see you in the next video. That's great. This is so cool. There's a lot of water here. I'm trying to get the rest of the window. Can you? You can? Oh, wait a minute. Please, you're still coming up with that picture of the water up there, is that all you're doing? Yeah. Do you know what you mean? You put this slide shell together a couple of years ago and we have these kind of water sensors really active and so we have something in the cafe in the record store today and we've been using them for a long time, you know, a lot of our people love the water. We've been using them for a long time, we've been using them for a long time and we have this with a lot of people. They're really active and so we have something in the cafe in the record store today. Do you want to change that? Do you want to go to the same store? Yes. Do you want to go to the same store? Yeah. So we have a lot of sensors that are really active to get down. Yeah. Also, okay, so that's a lot of the water. Wait, that's not. So I think it's down to the surface. Yeah. I would like to invite you into a few minutes of Centering Silence and now please remain seated and join in singing our in-gathering hymn found in the Order of Service. Good morning. Welcome to the first Unitarian Society of Madison. This is a community where curious people gather to explore spiritual, ethical and social issues in an accepting and nurturing environment. Unitarian Universalism supports the freedom of conscience of each individual as together we seek to be a force for good in the world. My name is Dorit Bergen and on behalf of the congregation I would like to extend a special welcome to visitors. We are a welcoming congregation so whoever you are and wherever you are on your life's journey we celebrate your presence among us. Visitors are encouraged to stay for our fellowship hour after the service and look for people carrying steel excuse me, teal stoneware mugs. These are FUS members knowledgeable about our programs and community life and they look forward to the chance to speak with you this morning. You can also stop by our information table outside of the library where you can find more information about our upcoming events and programs. In this lively acoustical environment it can become difficult for those in attendance to hear what is happening in our service so we remind you that our child haven and commons areas are excellent places to go and meet, to talk or move around. The service can still be seen and heard from those areas. We do have hearing assistance devices available please see one of our ushers if that would be helpful for you. This would be a good time to turn off all electronic devices that might disrupt the service. Experience guides are generally available to give a building tour after each service so if you would like to learn more about this sustainably designed addition or our national landmark meeting house please meet near the large glass window on the left side of the auditorium. I'd now like to acknowledge those individuals who help our services run smoothly. Your greeter this morning was Joan Heitman. Usher's are Sam Bates and Smiley and Pat Becker and coffee is being made by Jean Hills. Please note the announcements on the red floors insert in your order of service which describe upcoming events at the society and provide more information about today's activities and I do have one special announcement. The music director search committee is beginning the process of finding our new music director and they want to know your thoughts regarding the music program and its role here at FUS. There is a table set up for you to visit after the service today. Please feel free to stop by discuss your thoughts or fill out a note sharing your ideas and wishes. And now we hope that this service will stimulate your mind, touch your heart and stir your spirit. We come together as rivers seek the sea bringing with us the waters of the earth. We begin as tiny springs and far off places gathering strength as we plunge down rough ravines and flow through peaceful valleys. Always there are other living streams that join us flow through us sharing their strength then ultimately all of us flow into the great ocean of being. We are like the waters of the earth we seek the peacefulness of a still glimmering lake we search for the strength of the raging river we long for the freshness of the mountain spring and so from the springs and streams, lakes and oceans we co-mingle our waters in a cup of beauty we pour out the moments of our lives into a container that gives them shape and substance knowing we are a part of the great ocean of being we treasure the fragile droplets that belong to us here and now we give thanks for the cup of beauty that is ours to create ours to behold and ours to enjoy and I invite you to rise in body or spirit as we join together in the affirmation for our chalice lighting and so we gather from the ebb and flow of our lives thirsty for connection to ourselves thirsty for connection to others thirsty for connection to the larger life as we light this chalice may all who gather here be filled with joy and hope filled with compassion and love here may we be filled so that we may pour ourselves out into the world and before we join together in song if you'll take a moment to turn and greet your neighbor please be seated welcome to our annual water communion service this morning we join together and gather the waters of the world we rejoin in community renewing our spirits and our commitment to the waters of this glorious planet for almost 40 years now Unitarian Universalist congregations have been holding services that honor and celebrate and give thanks for water perhaps it is because water has been an important symbol throughout human history this is so because it points to a fundamental truth without water there is no life Lauren Isley once said that if there is magic to be found on this planet it is contained in the waters for millennia the religions of the world have used water to point to the power of the divine and the mystery of life Hindu priests pray that the waters will bring us well-being and new life Muhammad the founder of Islam regarded rain as the most obvious and direct symbol of God's mercy many ancient cultures from India to Peru associated their goddesses with rivers, lakes and other bodies of water we do well to remember that our destiny is woven with the destiny of the waters all life comes from water life started in the ocean where it began to take its many forms babies are cradled in water before they are born everything that lives needs water from the smallest points to the largest whale from the smallest plants to the largest whale from the beginning of history humans have built their homes and their lives around water and so it becomes a fitting symbol of all that sustains and nurtures the port's life today we bring our waters which have touched the west, north, south and east which come from the sky the surface of the earth and from deep wells and springs within we bring water that belong to lakes streams and reservoirs of fresh waters that quench thirst we bring water that is a part of the great oceans and the seas that circle the globe teeming with life the source of all life we bring water to this place of meeting and sharing in this water there is new water formed in the atmosphere daily and there is old water water as old as the earth water from which life has evolved over the ages this is the stream of life from which all life flows all people are connected by this stream for it runs through our veins and courses through the stems and leaves of plants it is the symbol of the cleansing power of forgiveness and the faithful promise of healing love it is the symbol of the reality of the oneness that unites humankind and all life today we bring water to honor the earth that gives us life to honor the community of all life plants, animals and people today we offer thanks for the gift of water and also for the web of life we all share near or far may our separate waters join into one sacred stream as we add our lives into the stream of living souls who live from a place of love work for a world of justice and hunger for a time of peace in a moment we will invite you to come forward with your water whether water you brought this morning or water from our pictures here which can symbolize the water important to you we invite you to come forward and pour it into one of these large green containers we're going to call you forward by the directions east, south, west, north and here's the tricky part waters of Wisconsin are the center our home so if you have water from somewhere up north if it's up north in Wisconsin wait till we get to the center and as you come forward TK and I will be reading from the cards that you wrote on your way in letting everyone know where these waters originated so I first call for the waters of the east Garenger Ford in Norway New Meadows River west bath Maine the archipelago of Stockholm, Sweden from the river Seine in Paris a muse camp in Sawyer, Michigan spring in Tennessee the cold Atlantic at Bahaba, Maine Lake George is that Maryland? No New York New Delhi, India the Arrow River in Michigan Sand Dunes National Lake Lake Michigan Lake Michigan and Holland Tanzania and Zanzibar Reykjavik, Iceland Lake Champlain Westport, Connecticut All right the waters of the south Panama the Bahamas the Caribbean and Puerto Rico Tennessee River Chattanooga South Africa Sliding Rock, North Carolina the Mississippi River in New Orleans Isle of Palms, Charleston, South Carolina From my home rain from our rain from overnight collected I live south of here in Oregon Tennessee River Chattanooga Crooked Lake, Florida the waters of east Texas that are causing destruction and fear for so many fellow travelers in the interdependent web may our mingled waters cradle them with care and hope the Tasman Sea off the coast of Sydney, Australia and Table Rock Lake in southern Missouri Next we have the waters of the west Glacier Bay, Alaska Kauai, Hawaii San Francisco Bay Mississippi River Estes Park, Colorado Eclipse water from the west Eclipse water from the Snake River on the Idaho-Oregon border So that's where you went Portland, Oregon And now the waters of the north Did everybody go north in Wisconsin and that's what We have a couple Iceland The Boundary Waters in Minnesota Franklin Lake, Oneida County in northern Wisconsin Lake Superior Two Harbors, Minnesota Kiwena Peninsula Upper Peninsula in Michigan And now the waters of our center the waters of Wisconsin from our play space here in Madison Rock Island, Lake Michigan Wisconsin Yihara River in Stoughton I'm going to mispronounce this Wanaki, Wisconsin or Wanaki? Wanaki Not from here We'll have a little bit of name that place this morning Hoodoo Lake in the Brule National Forest in Brule, Wisconsin I think this says Potosi Point in Wisconsin on the Mississippi River Tenney Park Lagoon Madison Central Park I know we had a Central Park We sure do The International Crane Foundation Seven Island Lake in Harrison Hills Rainwater from Madison East A Rain Gauge in Madison The Wisconsin River in Moskota, Wisconsin Everett Lake near Iron River, Wisconsin and Madison and Rainwater from home Bless this water We are many Bless this water We are one Spirit of life and love overflowing Throughout our community and our world Shape us, move us Guide us to find the courage and the wisdom to create a better way Bless our hearts with love's welcoming embrace Bless our minds with openness and curiosity May compassion flow through us like water and find a love within resounding strong May our gathering together this morning be a blessing for one and all May it inspire us to a year of hope and love and courageous faith and may we walk this year in the full awareness as often as possible of the blessed ties that bind each to all Bless this water We are many Bless this water We are one And our first story this morning if anyone would like to come on up I guess Come on, Owen, look a little happier about it Come on I'll be honest with you, I kind of feel the same way myself right now Not enough coffee Hey, Lula, how are ya? There's Winnie, not over Come on, Finn, you too Here he comes So have any of you ever been afraid of water? No Have you ever been afraid of water? Somebody this morning said she's not afraid of water but she's afraid of the sharks that live in the water I think that makes really, really good sense Are you sharks? Yeah, sharks, right? So our story today is about a little boy who overcomes a fear of water and it leads him on a really fantastic journey So do you have your imaginations working this morning? Good, thank you, Basil I'm going to need your imaginations for this story Okay So the boy's teacher said to him you are water mostly This information fascinated the boy but at the same time he found it a little bit unsettling He wondered what would happen to him What about in the rain? Would he melt in the rain if he was made mostly of water? Would he turn to ice in the winter if he was mostly water? What do you think, Lula? No, we don't turn to ice in the winter, do we? Even where we live we don't turn to ice in the winter If his cat scratched him would all the water leak out and leave him lying flat on the sidewalk like a punctured balloon? No Once he could swear that his bathwater was trying to wrap itself around his toes and tug him someplace far away So he refused to take a bath at all and when his mother asked why he told her what his teacher had said Well said his mother, water is a part of all of us It's a good thing We can't live without water And after that the boy was a little less afraid to get back to taking baths but he clung to the side of the tub the entire time Now as the days went by water became more and more like a friend to the boy When it rained, he put on his boots and he went outside to play and he would splash in the puddles And if it didn't rain that day he would fill up his boots with water and slosh around the house until what do you think happened? What would happen if you brought your boots full of water into the house? What would happen? You'd get in trouble Right, his mother told him to stop So the boy was visiting his grandmother and she asked him what his favorite color was Blue, he replied So she knit him a sweater the color of the ocean on a cloudless afternoon and he wore it nearly every day And after that strange things began to happen One evening as he was helping with the dishes the water from the faucet curled into letters that spelled his name Atticus is like, no way It's not going to happen As he walked along the beach near his house the bird circled him and brought him treasures from the ocean When he stood on the cliffs the waves sang to him And in the bath Now this is super cool In the bath the boy could push all of the water to one end of the tub where it would stay until he nodded his head Now how cool would that be? Wouldn't that be cool? That would be really cool Now this trick came in handy on a school field trip to a world famous waterfall where a little dog fell into the water and was in danger of being swept away And at the pond in the park when his sailboat tipped over and began to sink a water spout picked it up carried it back across the pond and gently placed it right at his feet The boy spent a lot of time practicing water tricks After much trial and error he was able to toss water from a glass wrapping back like a yo-yo But the boy's favorite trick was to balance a drop of water on the tip of his finger when he held it up close he could see everything that lay at the bottom of the ocean The boy discovered that he could squeeze gallons and gallons of rainwater into an old baby food jar And then he placed the jar on his window sill so the water absorbed the energy of the sun and then he began to conduct some experiments The boy found that just one drop of water from that jar could clear up a bottle of the darkest ink Two drops could clean a large mud puddle So he took the jar to school one day to show the other kids the water strange power And on his way home he was crossing a bridge and he heard a voice calling for help The boy looked around He was all alone Then he heard it again He looked over the side of the bridge There was nobody there The cry was coming from the river begging to be made clean So the boy removed the jar from his school bag and he carefully poured out one gleaming drop When it splashed into the river that single drop formed a sparkling blue ring that rippled steadily outward He poured another drop and another and another and the shimmering ripples reached from bank to bank Slowly the boy emptied out the entire jar and watched as the river ran clear all the way to the ocean and beyond Later as the boy walked along the shore a bottle washed up at his feet and inside the bottle was a note and the note had his name on it Thank you the note said So the boy slipped the note into his pocket and continued on home His bath was waiting So we don't have a magic baby food jar full of gleaming water cleaning up all the waters I wish we did So what could we do to help the waters? Do you have any ideas? What can we do to help the waters? Do you know that there are groups here in town that clean up they have river clean up days? And you could go and you can clean up trash on river banks? What are your questions? Let me hear them What are your questions to ice in the winter? What do you think guys? No! Nope, what's your other one? How's that blanket rippling? That's a pretty cool trick, isn't it? The grown-ups can't see that that blanket is rippling They're going to see it soon You know how it's happening? I'll let you on a secret It's over the air vent That's T.K. He's tricky Uh huh Can we clean up? Your dad has good ideas, doesn't he? You guys are going to get to see his good idea in a minute What about when you're taking a shower brushing your teeth or doing the dishes? Do you let the water run the whole time? No What do you do, Winnie? Turn it off when you're done Wet your tooth, brush your teeth and turn it back on, right? So there's all kinds of ways Another thing we could do is when you go home ask your grown-ups to show you what kind of cleaning products you have at home and check and see are they good for the water or are they too icky of a chemical and maybe we should try something different There's all kinds of things that we can do to help the waters and I know that you are the ones to do it Awesome Winnie and dad went out and picked up trash Dad was in charge of the cigarettes Good job, dad I've had that job myself many a day Dad was in charge of picking up the cigarettes not bringing them on the trip, right? We got it We got it, good job, dad Thanks, guys You know what? We are going to have you return to your seat to listen to some more beautiful music from Heather and Emily and Jennifer and Peyton So thank you for being such great listeners for our story The same stream of life that runs through my veins night and day runs through the world and dances in rhythmic measures It is the same stream of breath and hope of love and memory that runs through each one of us here and it is this stream of shared memory of shared belief in a living faith that gathers us back here together into our community As we gather here today we bring with us our hopes and our joys and also our disappointments and our sorrows We bring with us the ebb and the flow of life We come here to share with one another a special event or circumstance in our lives or the lives of a loved one If you feel so moved I invite you to come forward and pick up one of these stones as you share your joy or sorrow with this community When you are through place the stone into the water knowing that as the water holds the stone the community holds your concerns and your joys You may also come forward and wordlessly drop a stone into the water and return to your seat I now open our time for the sharing of these important matters of our lives I want to thank everybody for a very I hate to say the word but successful service Saturday we had 14 projects including labeling storm drains 100 participants so thanks everybody it was truly a community event Anybody else? Pick a stone This is a concern I'm Judy Troyer my niece Laura is having some very serious surgery in the next few days and my friend Gaye Eliason just managing her cancer so hopefully they all feel the love and care that surrounds them I'm having an emotional morning I'm recovering from a week away with my immediate family where I got to spend time with my 8 week old new nephew so that's my joy and then my sorrow is yeah thank you my sorrow is we have a close friend who is a member of this community who is in a really hard place right now and I'm missing him this morning being here I'm Barb Avery this stone is for my former mother-in-law she was certainly a force in my life and practically a force of nature and she died 2 weeks ago good morning my name is Catherine I just moved to Madison about a month and a half ago and that's been kind of a mixed bag and then my grandma died about 3 weeks ago sharing that sorrow with the community I'm Tom Heiney I've had epilepsy most of my life and 3 days ago I had a grand mal seizure after 50 years of being mostly seizure free so if I fall down and go boom in your presence just try to keep the hard stuff away from my head and don't worry my heart and mind are with the people of Houston who have too much water today and I feel a great deal of sorrow for their suffering I'm Lorna Aronson and I just spent a just really glorious week with my 11 year old granddaughter and our major activity for the week was painting kindness rocks so if you're traveling around Madison some of the parks various places and you see bright wildly colored rocks with beautiful sayings on them especially if you're in the Tenney Park area just know that the kindness is flowing to you John Mix I would just like to share the joy that we a number of us enjoyed yesterday here in this space James Morgan and Rachel Kinkade were married here last night and what a joy my name is Stephanie my family is visiting from the La Crosse area we moved our son into I thought I could compose and it's his 18th birth today you did it we hold any unnamed joys or sorrows in our hearts for this moment of silence we'll sing hymn number 1007 in the teal handle all the kids not just mine everybody go ahead and pick a boat that they want try not to fight over any colors this is the journey it was going to be blue boats but now it's multi-colored boats that's a color of boats sorry throw it out there was once a group of little boat friends for their entire lives they had lived in a harbor giant red mountain there's the mountain this behind the screen it's a pretty big mountain they were all good friends but they were tired of floating around and around in their little harbor so one day they got together and all agreed that a journey was in order they all talked to the wisest boat and said we decided that we will take a trip and that you should take us absolutely said the wisest boat and off they went down the waterfall they sailed along the rocky shore for several miles or kilometers if that's your thing until they came to an old barren forest full of fallen trees what a sad place said one of the boats can you say what a sad place what an awful way to start our journey said another but the wisest boat was very wise and said without trees like these there would be no paper and there would be no us so the old barren forest became a special place for the boats and they each took a small piece of wood to remember and continued on their journey do you want to put in your boat everyone got a piece of wood we'll see if they stay in this time so the first service we made boats it's going to work so if you want to learn how to make boats I'm going to be at a table after service we can all learn how to make the boats together alright excuse me we're going out the door back there can you get that door out hold it open thanks we'll go through here and into here next in a place where the high cliffs had been completely broken down by the waves there was a lonely sad beach now this really is a dreary place can you say now this really is a dreary place no you got it Lou indeed the land is always so much worse than the sea said another can you say the sand is worse than the sea I mean the land is worse than the sea but the wisest boat was very wise without the land there would only be endless sea and that would be very dull indeed and so the beach became a special place for the boats and they each took a seashell to remember you want to get a seashell fishes really don't like me everyone got a shell? not quite back out the door oh my log fell out that's okay that's mine oh is that yours next all the boats got caught in a cold drizzly rain how dreadful said one of the boats how dreadful nice if we were at home we could hide in one of the red mountain caves and stay dry complained another yes said the wisest the very wisest boat but we are fortunate that this is just a gentle rain that teaches us that if we did not know what it felt like to be wet and miserable we would never appreciate how wonderful it feels to be dry and comfortable so the rain became a special rain for the boats it's a raindrop you certainly can do you see any different colors in there Adda? how about this beautiful how about this beautiful blue raindrop it's a raindrop shaped like a seashell okay thanks Adda nice bud and they returned home we are going to go up the ramp because we can't go up the waterfall you have the ramp right there it's uh I don't know it's where the river goes uphill but some of their friends did not choose to go on a journey that's fine at last they returned home after their very long journey it was longer in the first service at last they returned home after their mildly long journey we really liked the forest who wants to say we really liked the forest do you really like the forest? okay that's a raindrop I think and the beach and the rain said one of the boats but we are glad to be home can everyone say we are glad to be home the wise boat remained silent because she realized that the boats had learned their final lesson all on their own it takes a journey far from home to make us realize how special home really is thanks we're now going to have the offertory the money will be going to Wisconsin wetlands please be generous I invite you to come forward to take some of our mingled waters home with you take these waters with the recognition that our planet flows like a soft blue sapphire in the darkness of space because of water take these waters knowing that they are made of our loves and dreams, adventures and sorrows and hopes for a better future and prayers for today remember that due to the polluted state of many of our waters we must advise you please don't drink it please don't mingle it with any of our lakes, rivers or streams use it to water a favorite plant put it in your garden mingle it with some paints and paint a beautiful picture save it in a jar where you can see it and be reminded of these people in this place we do have containers here for you if you did not bring one with you today so I invite you to come forward while we rise and body your spirit to join together in our closing hymn number 1064 blue boat home please be seated it starts with a drop then a trickle, a burble a splash of water bubbling toward its destination and finally the wide endless sea all rivers run to the sea today you brought water ported into a common bowl though our experiences have differed these waters mingle signifying our common humanity today you came and shared in this sacred community may you depart this place hearts filled with hope for new beginnings go forth but return to this place where rivers of tears may be shed where dry souls are watered where your joy bubbles where your life's cup overflows where deep in your spirit you have found in this place a home for all rivers run to the sea blessed be and amen and go in peace