 So then let's get it up. This is a community where curious seekers 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. We trust that today's service will stimulate your mind, touch your heart, and stir your spirit. I invite you now into a few moments of contemplation, meditation, prayer as we settle in and come fully into this time and place together. Thanks for our hymn. For our opening words and the lighting of our chalice. We gather this morning, remind it that all who are living on this planet, the furred, the feathered, the finned, the scaled, along with us featherless bipeds, we are all made of the same star stuff and share a common destiny. We all share the same hopes of a life free from harm and suffering and the same aspirations of happiness, love, and flourishing, being able to express our own unique natures and capacities as best we may. We are a myriad of diverse perspectives from which the whole is seen and experienced. We are inextricably intertwined, interconnected, interdependent, and it is good. And if you will join together in the words of affirmation as we light our chalice. May this light, the joining of fire and air, remind us of that unity of earth, air, fire, and water, of plant and animal, human and mineral, that we and earth are one. And before we join together remembering our animals, if you take a moment now and turn and greet those around you. I invite you into a time where we can remember those beloved animals that are no longer with us. I invite you to come forward and light a candle here at our table for that special animal. Karen Rose will have a microphone that you can use to share their name with us. And if you cannot come forward, please raise your hand. We'll bring the microphone to you. As we do this, may we give thanks for the animals, those who live close to nature, who remind us of the sanctities of birth and death, who do not trouble their lives with foreboding or grief, who let go of each moment as it passes and accept each new one as it comes with serenity and grace. May we walk in beauty as they do, at one with the turning seasons, welcoming the sunrise and being at peace with the sunset. And I now invite you into this time of remembering those beloved friends. I will begin by remembering Otis, Clovis, and Basil. Benita and sugar. Wait right now. Wait right now. My beloved Sabi. Ravi and Maya. Robert, Boussa, and Nibbles. Riley and so many others. For Austin. For Travis. Lobo. For Gorgeous George. For Gertie and Abby. Pete Rabbit. Claire, my orange cat, for 20 years. Long-haired cat, 14 years, named Simon. Duke One and Duke Two. Pavarotti, Stormy, Jean, Tapioca and Pudding, and Chloe and Wiley. Kiara, Jesse, Burns, our buddy of 13 years, canine. Our cat, Popocatepital. Kitties, Guthrie, Nell, and Jeffrey. Ifjana, the Las Opso at the U.S.'s first church dog. And my first pet and dog from 60 years ago, Spunky, a wonderful boxer. And for many cats, I can't say all their names. For our Boston Terrier, Winston. Lulu and Sanji, best cats in the world. For three golden retrievers in series, Karma, Diva, and Jenna. For Kaylee in China. Makita. For my cat, Luna. For my little seven-pound poodle, Gina. For Peggy Sue, the one in the sunglasses. As we hollow the memory of good friends now departed, who loved abundantly and in their time were loved, who freely gave us their affection and loyalty. Let us not be anxious for tomorrow, but ask only that kindness and gratitude fill our hearts day by day into the passing years. Blessed be and amen. And if you will rise now in body or spirit as we join together in hymn number 83. Please be seated. And if anyone would like to come on up front for our story, please do. Can I tell you guys a secret? From my view, it's really funny to watch people trying to sing from the hymnal and look at pet pictures at the same time. They kept going. I know. Some folks chose not to sing at all because they didn't want to miss the pets. It'll cycle through. As we just saw from all those folks lighting candles over there, our pets are really important to us, aren't they? And I have a story today called The Perfect Pet. What would you say? Is that a tiger cub? A lion cub? A lion cub. What's his name? I didn't name him yet. You didn't name him yet? Finn, what's The Perfect Pet, Finn? What would you pick? Your doggy. Your cat. Sneakers. That's a sweet name. He sneaks everywhere. Good job on the name, then. And you have a bear. Would a bear be The Perfect Pet for you? It's a what? A bear pet. And a lion pet. A bear or a lion? Let's see what this story is about. Yeah, there's somebody in our house who really, really wants a snake and I happen to agree with you on that one. Yeah, I've said no to the snake. Harmless snakes, that's what he's trying to tell me. I don't know. Milo, what do you think, bud? Your dad had pet snakes, huh? Could you guys get a snake and Owen could come visit at your house? Is that okay, Robin? Mom said no snakes for you either. They are, aren't they, garden snakes? Well, let's see about this girl, Elizabeth. Elizabeth really, really, really wanted a pet. Her parents really, really, really, really, really did not. So they gave her a plant instead. Now, mind you, it was a very good-looking plant as cactus plants go. It had quite a prickly sense of humor. Elizabeth named it Carolyn, which seemed to suit it just fine. Carolyn was absolutely no trouble and she was a very good listener. Snuggling, however, was a bit of a challenge. Elizabeth did manage a quick hug now and then. Ow. Elizabeth really, really, really did like the plant, but she really, really, really wanted a pet. So she had a plan. Plan number one, the element of surprise. So how about a horse, huh? What, who? Said her father. Who, what, huh? Said her mother. I could ride it, give it carrots, lumps of sugar. A horse would be the perfect pet. What do you say? Father yawned, a horse is too big. Mother sighed, our yard is too small. Why, it would eat us out of house and home, said father. A horse is not quite perfect, dear, said mother, and she went back to sleep. Not quite perfect, said father sleepily. Scratch the horse. On to plan B, catch them off guard. What about a dog? Huh, what, who? Said father as he stood in front of the mirror shaving. Who, what, huh? Said mother, peeking from behind the shower curtain, dripping soapy water. I would take it for walks, I would teach it tricks, I would feed it treats, play fetch, a dog would be the perfect pet. What do you think? Father spit shaving cream. Dogs bark, they're much too loud. Mother grabbed a towel, they jump all over the furniture. A dog is not quite perfect, Elizabeth, said father. Not quite perfect, called mother from the shower. Forget Fido. On to plan C, the full stomach. Well, that was delicious, said Elizabeth. Do you know what would hit the spot right now? I'm thinking a cat. Huh, said father. What, said mother, a cat would lick the plates, curl up in my lap, drink leftover milk, and we'd always know what to do with all the extra string in the house. A cat would be perfect, what do you say? Father picked up the newspaper. Cats scratch. Mother cleared the table. Cats shed all over. A cat is definitely not perfect, said father. Hachu, I'm sneezing already, mother. Cross off the kitty. How about a bird, a bunny, a turtle, a fish, a guinea pig, a rat? Any, all, take your pick, said Elizabeth. Her parents looked at each other. Nope, afraid not, not quite. Too fishy, uh-uh, a rat don't even go there. Well, what is left, asked Elizabeth. She was thinking that she would never find the really, really perfect pat when what do you know? She really, really did. In fact, she almost stepped on it. Right there on her rug. Can you see what it is? What is it? Can you see, can you see in the pictures? It's a bog. Elizabeth picked him up. She held him in her hand. She looked him in the eyes. He wasn't too big. He most definitely wasn't too loud. He couldn't jump on the furniture. He didn't scratch, he didn't shed. How much food could he possibly eat? He was the perfect pet. And Carolyn totally agreed. Dug the bug moved right into the lovely house in the corner of Elizabeth's room. It had everything a bug could possibly want and more, including his very own cactus plant, as Carolyn was only a hop skip and a jump away. He truly enjoyed sunning himself in her sand. Of course, Elizabeth provided him with enough crumbs to satisfy any growing bug's appetite. As expected, their relationship was a tad bit different than the usual one. Dug could not give Elizabeth a pony ride. She could not take him for a walk. He didn't catch a ball or fetch no matter how many times they practiced. And trying as he might, he just couldn't get the hang of playing with string. But he was very helpful with homework and he loved snuggling up with Elizabeth each night for a story. What more could you want? With all the crumbs and plenty of sun, Dug grew by leaps and bounds. He was one big, healthy bug and then some. The only trouble came one Saturday morning many weeks later. Elizabeth's mother came into her bedroom to get the laundry and screamed, Bug in that bed! A bug shodward father ready to swat. That would be Dug, said Elizabeth. He's my pet. Her parents looked at each other. Pet? Pet, said Elizabeth, just like you wanted. He's not big like a horse. He's not loud like a dog. He doesn't jump on the furniture, scratch or shed any hardly eats a thing. A bug, asked father. A bug, said mother. Dug, said Elizabeth, and he is perfect. Think we should have said yes to the dog? Whispered father to mother. Mother shrugged. I don't know. We have more room on the couch with the bug. Elizabeth smiled and tossed Dug a piece of popcorn. So what do you think? How's a bug is a perfect pet? What do you think? You're still going with the dog, Finn? Yeah. You're gonna go with a puppy. Thank you all for listening so much. You guys are gonna head on out to summer fun. Have a great time. Past my office in the loja lately you have undoubtedly heard giggling and sometimes squeals of laughter coming from within. I may have even called you into the office with a come here you've got to see this one. And then I would have shown you these photos that have been scrolling on our slideshow. I am deeply grateful for all of you who sent photos of your beloved animal friends. They're a wonderful addition to our service today. They have brought me an immense and ridiculous amount of joy in the past couple of weeks. What is it about these animals that causes such a grip on our hearts and a deep place in our lives? In a wonderful work called Dog Songs Mary Oliver wrote a poem called Luke that gives a little insight. I had a dog who loved flowers. Briskly she went through the fields yet paused for the honeysuckle or the rose. Her dark head and her wet nose touching the face of everyone with its petals of silk with its fragrance rising into the air where the bees their bodies heavy with pollen hovered. And easily she adored every blossom not in the serious careful way that we choose this blossom or that blossom the way we praise or don't praise the way we love or don't love but the way we long to be that happy in the heaven of earth that wild that loving. Perhaps this is a piece of it. We long to be as happy as these furry or feathered friends of ours not so serious as we can be more open with our love more living with wild abandon. Now the Bible says that animals were created to ease Adam's loneliness and whether or not that is true there is no disputing the warmth of companionship that animals provide. The joy and wonder these creatures bring into our homes makes them more like family members than critters things we own or possess. Animals make us more animated arousing what is uninhibited and spontaneous in ourselves. Now the way that we can be transformed by animals in our lives is a lesson I learned at an early age from my father. I could think of no better topic to honor him on this father's day than to contemplate our relationship to animals for he's always been a true animal lover. My mother would just shake her head and say I'm not quite sure what's wrong with him he just loves animals. My mother obviously does not share my father's devotion. Now raised with stories of his childhood pets it was a dream of mine to someday be allowed to have a dog and when I turned 11 it was my father who convinced my incredibly skeptical mother that we could bring Maggie a cocker spaniel into our lives. It was also my father who convinced me years later that cats were wonderful as well welcoming four of them into our home over the years two under the cover of darkness while my mother was at work. Each one spending many hours every night curled up next to him. Now my favorite memory however is not from a dog or a cat but a memory of my dad and peanut an animal my father would feed every night at dinner it may not seem like a particularly memorable activity but peanut was a squirrel. Every night as we sat down to dinner peanut would climb the screen door and wait. Dad would put down his fork get up from the table grab a few peanuts out of the bowl on the counter that lived there specifically for this purpose open the door and reach out one peanut at a time while peanut would carefully take the delicacy out of his hand peel open the shell eat his dinner and come back for more. After about four or five he would stand up straight on his two little legs his sign that he was full we would all say good night peanut and he would turn and be on his way a squirrel every night for dinner without fail. But that squirrel brought a smile to my father's tired and worn face every night in a rarely heard chuckle and we were grateful every night peanut appeared and together we grieved on the night and the days following when we realized that for some reason we would never know and some reason we were not ready to name peanut was not coming back this is what I learned from my father and peanut that family is based on love not species. The gulf between human and animal is not nearly as wide as some would want us to imagine other species respond to kindness and seem to know our intentions for good or ill as we approach them gently they befriend us and allow us to share their worlds which are not really so different from our own. Without our always deserving it these creatures offer their affection and trust. Without our quite intending it our own best qualities are engendered in their presence our own playfulness our impulse to protect the vulnerable our ability to communicate beyond words if we go back to the Bible we see that the messages we've been given about the animals have not always been as kind hearted loving as the one that I received from my father or the story about Adam's lonely self needing companionship Genesis 1 26 tells us then God said let us make humankind in our image according to our likeness let them have dominion over the fish of the sea over the birds of the air over the cattle over all the wild animals of the earth over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth this verse has led many to believe that there is no connection between human and animals except that of dominance our own species is special and set apart set above the animal kingdom and it is our right and privilege to own abuse and destroy many renowned western thinkers Aristotle posited a hierarchy in which human beings possessed the inalienable right to use animals as we pleased Rene Descartes gave us a new paradigm for thinking about animals what he called automata boiling down to animals do not contain souls because they cannot reflect upon themselves or their lives so they are therefore no more than meat machines as he said but travel a little farther into the Hebrew scriptures and you find a different perspective in the book of Job you see ask now the beasts and they will teach thee and the fowls of the air they shall teach thee and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee these verses reflect more of the strength and beauty of the animal human bond they expose the awareness that these species have messages to give us lessons to teach us wisdom to impart and declare their presence can touch our souls heal our psyches teach us about loss empathy connection restore our spirits animals are as the author and Chernak said embodiments of grace and blessing many of us know firsthand the healing that an animal can bring Kathleen Harris wrote a poem cat from the animal shelter old lost gaunt frightened you were no barn cat dignified as a dowager you're craving for chicken scraps and fat declared you once belonged where somebody's pampered house pet with your unkept black beauty and trustful affection not fawning but as appealing as a good dogs you cheated death they pronounced you much too nice to destroy said they couldn't put you down after her husband's sudden death she took you home gave you shelter held tight your large bony tense softness all night and wondered in the morning whether she saved you or you saved her that animals can literally heal us and bolster our well-being is not the stuff of fiction there is growing evidence of the benefit of this strong relationship being with animals lowers our blood pressure there's reduced stress in the home when an animal is present they raise the spirits of residents in nursing homes studies describe positive benefits such as enhanced self-esteem in crazed social interaction reduced heart rates reduced need for medication improved morale among staff what is it about animals that make all of this so perhaps they help us to transcend the limits of ourselves and open us to mystery and wonder they remind us through seeing ourselves through their eyes our true goodness and beauty they remind us who we really are now at the beginning of our service we shared a moment of remembrance for the beloved friends that we have lost I intentionally did this before our children left because animals are often times our first teachers in the land of loss and grief it is often times a painful introduction to the reality of loss that stays with us for a very long time Mark Doty wrote these words in a memoir called Dog Year you cannot tell most people about the death of a pet not quite there's an expectation that you shouldn't overreact shouldn't place too much weight on this loss in the scheme of things shouldn't this be a small matter it's just a dog get another one it's just a cat find a new one it's just a pet one of the unspoken truths in American life is how deeply we grieve over the animals who live and die with us how real that emptiness is how profound the silence is these creatures leave in their wake one of the reasons is that they are experts on love and companionship the animals that share our homes don't care what we look like how successful we are whether we're fat or thin, rich or poor they simply love us we benefit from their attention and enjoy their unconditional love a love that never doubts our motives that doesn't complicate it as humans do a love that never wavers or withdraws there's a woman named Charlotte Edwards she lives near the eastern shore of Maryland where the geese overwinter she once described the remarkable incident of a Canadian goose that had the misfortune to find its feet frozen in the ice when a sudden cold snap seized the Avon River near her home the creature was huddled against the weather its wings were folded tightly to its side its plight clearly visible to her through binoculars when suddenly a line of swans appeared in the sky four of the great swans descended toward the frozen creek and as the human onlookers watched and wondered initially fearing that the bigger birds might peck the stranded goose the swans began instead to attack the ice with their powerful bills in an essay titled Tender Moments Charlotte describes the scene their long necks were lifted and curved down again and again it went on for a long time at last the goose was rimmed by a narrow margin of ice instead of the entire creek the swans rose again following the leader and hovered in that circle awaiting the results of their labors the goose's head lifted its body pulled then the goose was free and standing on the ice he was moving his big webbed feet slowly and the swan stood in the air watching but the trapped goose still couldn't get airborne again the four swans swooped low and began to scrape the frozen bird's wings chipping and chiseling until finally the goose was able to extend his wings stiffly testing their pliability and strength at last the birds flew all together into the air the swans rising first to join the larger flock headed toward unknown horizons and the solitary goose flapping double time until he caught up with the others bringing up the rear sharing leadership sticking together encouraging one another helping one another these are all good rules to follow whatever your species living our commitments and practicing them in our daily lives are what give promise to the world we may never live as gracefully as our feathered friends the geese but that's not ultimately what we're after for human beings the aim is not perfection in motion but motion toward perfection now in a moment we will have a blessing of the animals to bless another is more than simply saying a few words it means to honor to lift up to affirm the value and worth and the life of another in such a way that we promise to turn our actions toward ensuring justice for another to bless the animals means to live life with integrity for all our neighbors on this planet it means that we will take their well-being into our considerations and decisions with an awareness of how our actions impact the world around us remembering that it is their world as well it means to wake up to the conditions of factory animals to the conditions of extinguishing species of abused and neglected pets they have always been there for us and it is our turn to step up and be there for them we cannot turn away from the beauty or the brutality we need to see our piece of it and make it all in so that it can be transformed when we allow the beauty of another species to touch our hearts we come to understand why Gandhi once said that the measure of a society's morality is measured in how they treat their animals may we listen deeply to these beloved companions to all the creatures may we listen with all of our being to the voices that are not like our own let them teach us of mutuality, companionship, dignity and love may we listen and may we be transformed and I now invite you into the giving and receiving of today's offering our offering goes toward the continued work of this community and we thank you for your generosity I appreciate all those who helped our service this morning our greeters were Claire Box and Pamela McMullen our ushers Marty Hollis and Brian Channis hospitality blaze Thompson our lay minister Karen Rose Gredler and our tour guide after the service is John Powell if you're interested in a tour just meet him up here by our table full of candles we gather each week with the concerns and the joys of the previous week written on our hearts we seek a space for them to be shared and held in a spirit of acceptance and love and this week we are holding in our hearts and sending concerns for all the families who are being separated at the border for the children wondering where their parents are for the parents worried about their children we send our love we send our prayers for compassion for wisdom for change and now may we ask a blessing for all these animals which grace our lives for the blessing of animal companions we give our thanks for the beautiful ones those whose fur is silky and whose tails are long whose feathers are brilliant or whose voices are splendid we give thanks for the frantic ones the runts and the hungry who run for a food bowl or a pat as though this is life's last possible gift we give thanks for the obnoxious ones the heads that butt against us as we are trying to sleep the bodies that refuse to learn discretion as they make digestive gifts we give thanks for those who bark and purr and growl and meow for all who squeak or squawk or snarl or hiss we give thanks for the animals unknown to us those whose niche in life's web is fragile whose lives are insecure for all who care for them we give thanks blessed are the animals blessed are the creatures who live with us and need our care blessed are the mammals and the reptiles and the birds who teach us that we are not alone blessed are all living things from whom we learn love may our gratitude today for all those creatures who live among us as helpers, companions and guides be transformed into gratitude for all creation and may we use this force to create the world for our imagining for all earth's creatures and earth herself blessed be and amen and if you will rise and body our spirit for our closing him 203 all creatures of the earth and sky blessed are the faithful for they shall be our beloved friends blessed are the playful for they shall be surrounded by love and laughter blessed are those without worry for through them we shall know peace blessed are the innocent for theirs is the realm of heaven blessed are the animals for through them blessed are we our time and service together here is ending and our service to the world begins again blessed be and go in peace and please be seated for the postlude