Transitions Are Us
Transitions. That stage where everything that was is being let go of and what is to happen or be next has not yet happened. Moving from what is known or familiar into a new way of being or doing. An interstitial time.
Transition means change and change can but does not have to mean conflict. But it can mean some discomfort, confusion, and chaos for a certain period of time. Times when we forget to breathe. Or as Mark Hopkins shared with us from his Buddhist group, “Don’t just do something- sit there!” Sit there and be with all that is happening and comes up for you when in the midst of transition and change.
When I first picked the theme of “transition” for WUUC, I was thinking of the fact that June is the month when we celebrate the transitions that our children and youth make: the children moving up a class and the senior youth bridging from youth into young adulthood. I had no idea that we would be having such massive staff transitions. We have hired a new Member Coordinator (Karen Hyams) and are working on how to get the work of the Director of Lifelong Learning done. We were not successful in finding a candidate for the position. And we will be looking for an accompanist.
On top of that, we are shifting our governance structure to try and increase member involvement while not overburdening or burning folks out. Right now there are more questions than answers when it comes to the governance transitions. There maybe confusion and some chaos for a while as we figure it all out. But I am excited about moving away from committees to teams that are task oriented. We are looking at the “work” of church as “ministry.” Congregational consultant, Dan Hotchkiss says that “Governance is about mission, the strategy for getting there, and protecting people and property from harm. This is the work of committees. Everything else at church is ministry and that is the work of teams.”
So, transitions are us here at WUUC for some months. Buckle your seat belts and hang on for the ride…
Rev. Lo