2021-01-21
Minister's Post, Fri Jan 22
Total deaths in the US from Covid surpassed 100,000 on May 22.
Surpassed 200,000 on Sep 15.
Surpassed 300,000 on Dec 11.
Surpassed 400,000 on Jan 15.
That is, it took 16.5 weeks to add the second 100,000 deaths, 12.5 weeks to add the third 100,000, and only 5 weeks to add the fourth 100,000.
But relief appears to be coming. We're seeing a decline in new cases of Covid-19. Ten days ago (as I write this on Thu Jan 21), on Jan 11, the 7-day average for new cases stood at over 743,000 per day (world). As of yesterday (Jan 20) the 7-day average of new cases per day was down to just over 643,000 -- which is still more than we had at any time before Dec 17, but that's 100,000 people a day who aren't coming down with COVID.
In the US, the shape of the graph is similar. Ten days ago, on Jan 11, the 7-day average of new cases per day was almost 255,000. Now it's down to 197,000 -- i.e., back down to what we were seeing on Dec 5.
So: we've passed the peak. Though another surge is possible, we're likely to continue to see the numbers of new cases dropping.
Yours in the faith we share,
Meredith
Practice of the Week
SLOGANS THAT HELP. Advertisers know that slogans work! So let's put them to a positive use. Adopting these slogans as your personal guides and reminders will help bring more peace and more joy into your life. Maybe you could use a little more peace and joy.
Journaling about how you're implementing a given slogan will help internalize it.
This winter’s series has included, “Stay Close to your Resentment,” and “Get Excited.” This week’s slogan is “Find Strength.”
trength comes in many forms: endurance, losing on the little things in order to win on the big ones. Restraint is a strength. Start by making a list of your strengths. Maybe intelligence, honesty, bearing pain, a knack for recognizing good in others, or just surviving. This’ll help you feel stronger.
Then think about good things you use your strengths for. Notice that it’s good to be strong. Recall times you felt strong – and what your body felt like then. Tell yourself that you are strong. That you can endure, persist, cope, and prevail, and can hold your experience in awareness without being overwhelmed.
For the rest of Rick Hanson’s pointers for how to live this slogan, “Find strength,” SEE HERE.
2021-01-20
Music: Sun Jan 24
This morning’s solo piano selections call attention to the work of composers who reached out beyond their inherent cultural and aesthetic worlds, overcoming biases to find their true artistic voices. The CUUC Choir is also on hand to reprise an expression of determination and resolve originally aired late last year. Read on for programming details and stay tuned for live introductory comments by Adam.
Centering Music: Adam Kent, piano
Sonata in G Major, K. 547
Domenico Scarlatti
Anthem: CUUC Choir directed by Lisa N. Meyer and accompanied by Georgianna
Pappas
“Nothin’ Gonna Stumble My Feet”
Greg Gilpin and John Parker
Musical Meditation:
Interlude:
Golliwogg’s Cakewalk
Claude Debussy
Parting Music:
Rondo alla Turca
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
2021-01-19
Find Strength
Find Strength
CATEGORY: SLOGANS THAT HELP. Advertisers know that slogans work! So let's put them to a positive use. Adopting these slogans as your personal guides and reminders will help bring more peace and more joy into your life. Journaling about how you're trying to implement a given slogan will help integrate it into your life.
To make your way in life -- to enjoy the beautiful things it offers, to steer clear of hazards and protect yourself and others, and find friendship and love -- you need strength. Not chest-thumping pushiness, but determination and grit.
Strength comes in many forms, including endurance, losing on the little things in order to win on the big ones, and restraint. For example, if you want to move a boat at the edge of a dock, don't run into it with a big smash; you'll just hurt yourself. Instead, stand on the edge of the dock, put your hand on the boat, and lean into it. Strength keeps leaning.
Inner strength is not all or nothing. You can build it, just like a muscle.
Mental strength draws on physical health, which is fueled by:
- eating protein at every meal;
- taking vitamin and mineral supplements daily;
- exercising several times a week;
- setting aside seven to nine hours a day for sleep;
- using intoxicants in moderation or not at all; and
- addressing and resolving chronic health problems, even seemingly mild ones.
Make a list of your strengths, such as intelligence, honesty, bearing pain, natural talents, recognizing good in others, or just surviving. Be accurate -- not unfairly self-critical. Recognizing your strengths will help you feel stronger. If it's appropriate, ask someone what he or she thinks some of your strengths are.
Think about some of the good things you use your strengths for, such as earning a living, raising a family, growing as a person, or making our world better. Tell yourself, It is good for me to be strong. My strength helps good things happen. Good people want me to be strong; anyone who wants me to be weak is not on my side. Notice any beliefs that it is bad to be strong . . . and then turn your attention back to the good reasons for being strong.
To increase your sense of strength, recall times you felt strong. (For me, many of these have involved standing up for others, or physical activities like hiking in wilderness.) What did your body feel like then? What was your posture, point of view, or intention? Explore embodying strength right now: maybe lifting your chin, widening your stance, or breathing deeply. Take in these physical sensations and attitudes of strength so you can tap into them again.
Notice how good it feels to be strong. Feel the pleasure in your body, perhaps a quiet fierceness and resolve. Enjoy the confidence that strength brings, the sense of possibility. Appreciate how your strength empowers your caring, protectiveness, and love.
Tell yourself that you are strong. That you can endure, persist, cope, and prevail. That you are strong enough to hold your experience in awareness without being over¬whelmed. That the winds of life can blow, and blow hard, but you are a deeply rooted tree, and winds just make you even stronger.
And when they are done blowing, there you still stand. Offering shade and shelter, flowers and fruit. Strong and lasting.
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Also of interest: Tony Robbins on "Finding Inner Strength".
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2021-01-15
Religious Education: January 15, 2021
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