The Next Great Adventure – Julia J Aegerter – Dec. 29, 2002
The last time I was heading out of town for part of my sabbatical, I was concerned about how it would all go. I was worried about the congregation and also wondering how my sabbatical would affect me.
I came back knowing I was in the right ministry for me. I also came back rested and ready to go and feeling quite out of it. The church year had started but I hadn’t been here to start with you. It took me most of October to get into the swing of things and yet I still felt disconnected. I came back with new ideas but because I was leaving again in January I did not feel I should put anything new in motion. Before I knew it, it was November and time to get everything in order so I could leave again. One thing I have learned is that I don’t like a split sabbatical.
On the other hand, this time the preparation was a little easier. Although, we were planning for a bigger period of time, the worship associates were already trained and the committee on ministry had already outlined everything that had to be done in my stead.
And so it is again time for me to take my leave. Everything is in order and I trust the time will go well. We have quite a variety of speakers coming in to town. And also some good music planned for a number of Sundays. When you pick up your January newsletter today you will find the sabbatical handout in it. It tells you who to contact for what – who is responsible for what – who is speaking and leading services on Sundays and who is on call for funerals (though I hope this will not be necessary).
I hope you have some enjoyable, some thought provoking, some comforting and some challenging services in Jan – Feb – Mar. And may you occasionally venture out of your comfort zone and into a service you don’t think will interest you.
Although it is Dec. 29th and my sabbatical starts on the Jan 1st, I can honestly say that my bags are not packed and I am comfortably not ready to go. My time is considerably less planned than yours and that is by design.
About 12 years ago I set out on a backpacking adventure and it was extensively planned. Every day I attempted to walk the miles I planned to go and walked past beautiful places in an attempt to get to some other spot I had read about in a travel book. I learned from that experience and from others and have finally let myself comfortably live a life where I don’t necessarily know what I am doing, where I am going or what is going to happen. And my coming sabbatical is somewhat like that. I have left some space to allow my self time to fill in with things that I didn’t plan but that call out to me.
When thinking about my sabbatical last year, I decided that I wanted to spend some of it in meditation, some working in justice and some playing. Last fall, as most of you know, I served as an intern at the Center for Action and Contemplation and that was an experiential immersion in justice work and contemplation. This January and February I will spend academically pursuing my interest in religion and justice. In January I will be attending classes at Meadville Lombard Seminary which is in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. I will be living in International House and taking two courses.
One is titled eco-justice and the other world religions. I will also be working on a literature review, and a paper exploring the imperatives for justice to be found in the various world religions. I also hope to get initial approval for a project necessary to complete my D.Min. degree.
In February, I plan to continue my studies and if time permits begin reading some non-fiction books that I have been hoping to get around to some day. I also will travel to Florida to spend time with my parents.
And then in March I will play. I am off by myself to New Zealand for what I hope will be a great adventure.
Last time I headed off for my sabbatical with some trepidation. This time I am heading off as an adventurer. I am eager to see what awaits me. I’m looking forward to experiencing new people, being exposed to new ideas and learning new things. I can’t wait to see scenery and wildlife that I’ve never seen before and learn a bit about new cultures.
This morning we all are heading off for a new adventure. We mark it with the celebration of a New Year. And the adventure I am speaking of is the adventure of life.
Audre Lorde, one of my favorite African American poets wrote “Life is not a problem to be solved it is an experience to lived”. I commend this thought to you. “Life is not a problem to be solved it is an experience to lived”. How would your life change if you approached your life as an experience and the things which beset you as opportunities rather than problems?
In our opening words this morning Walt Whitman (#645) extended an invitation:
Come travel with me! He said.
Know the universe itself as a road
A road for traveling souls.
He expressed confidence for the journey writing: Henceforth, I ask not good fortune – I am good fortune. This morning I want to invite into the waiting universe. As you enter your new year – enter knowing that you have within you all that you need to face your life.
To taste the excitement of the adventure which lies before you.
To know the confidence that you are enough
That you have within and among you the strength to face whatever befalls you.
I wonder how your journey will go. How will you face the things that come your way? Will you fight them? Will you struggle to maintain things the way they are? It is a losing battle. As Whitman reminds us – life is impermanent and we cannot remain here.
Will you open yourself to change to things done a little bit differently? Will you sit back and reflect and maybe allow yourselves to change or grow?
Are you traveling with companions this time? Will you be working on relationships with family and friends and your self?
How fast will you be traveling? Will it be another year at the speed of light or will you choose to go a little more slowly this year?
I want to remind you to pack lightly for the journey. Leave some space in your bags for bringing back new things.
Remember to take with you an eagerness, an openness, a willingness to be affected by what you experience, a sense of humor and a little patience for we all know that travel never quite goes the way we expect it. Take a little something to nourish you – a book of quotations, a book of whatever scripture is meaningful to you, or perhaps some music.
Don’t forget to bring your joys – happy memories, successes, thank-you cards, and the piles of love and affection you have accumulated through your life. Bring your grief too for it goes wherever love goes. Don’t worry about it leaking out all over everything just give it is own time.
You might bring some maps or travel guides. Hopefully, you will be guided more by love, compassion and trust than fear and anger.
Before you head out remember to check your bags. Too much luggage becomes baggage and so there are things which we must leave behind as we travel. Leave the outworn and the false. Leave the wounds you have been carefully nursing and let them heal. Leave the slights and grudges and regrets behind.
And so before you leave this morning and head off to your new adventure – I invite you to come forward and drop in to the fire something you need to leave behind to lighten your load.
And as you wait for others to do the same take a moment to rededicate yourself to what you deem worthy.
Our lives are full of adventures – sometimes like Bert we end up in some unknown place like Mt.Vernon, – sometimes things we think are bad like being chased by a sausage – turn out to be good – sometimes things that seem scary turn out to be safe – and things we thought were perfectly reasonable turn out to be foolish. We are not much good at predicting the future.
So find some companions for the journey. And may you enjoy the universe and your time as a traveling soul.
Amen and may it be so.