A sad , with OWWWW

RantWoman has a sad.

 

RantWoman has been trying to hold the phrase “Friends younger than 60” in particular Light. For one thing RantWoman is still younger than 60, for a couple more years. For another thing, RantWoman notes with tenderness a number of age-related stresses among many Friends in the around 70 cohort including a number who might well step away from some activities. RantWoman feels a need to make service and more connections real for people following in their footsteps.

 

But RantWoman’s sad: RantWoman is reading minutes of the All RantWoman All the Time Minus RantWoman Meeting for Business in January. RantWoman is reading lots of OWWW. RantWoman is very sorry.

 

RantWoman is also sitting with times where God has called her to go where she is not wanted. RantWoman is sitting with whether it would be better to go immediately and sit with the sad and see where things go with centered listening or whether RantWoman should just let people be as they are for a bit. RantWoman is NOT called to go away.

 

RantWoman is also frustrated: RantWoman wants to create a welcoming space. RantWoman wants to figure out ways herself to connect with younger Friends. Chitchat in coffee hour does not work for RantWoman. RantWoman has a well of gratitude for long connections and some faces she is always very glad to see. But RantWoman also writes email. RantWoman gets it about an intense communications style. RantWoman gets it about her electronic voice being, um, pretty grating sometimes.Besides overachieving about unpleasantness, RantWoman’s life is also a bit of a Yucky Topics Festival. And RantWoman's experience of Meeting is also generating way more "Blecch" moments than seem like a good idea to RantWoman.

For example, RantWoman is trying to sit with a concern about boundaries and imposing on people. Suppose RantWoman includes someone in an email and starts off near the top, if you cannot read further please just hold in the Light, RantWoman is partly trying to express that she values that friend’s presence and that thinking of them makes her feel stronger. RantWoman would love to creat a sense that connections mean opportunity.  Obviously that is not what is happening.

 

Maybe that is enough to sit with for now.

 

Hold us all in the Light.