Dear Friends,
When our son Ben was 3, he built a little wooden church and gave it to me for Christmas. He called it "Gretchen’s Church," and made sure I wrote those words and the date on the bottom of it. He was so adorably pleased. I was awash. It could have been a house—in fact, I thought it was at first. But he was so clear. It was my church.
Did he know how deep in my heart this connected? I have always thought so. It was a gift surrounded in wonder.
For many years, it sat on my dresser, then bookshelf, and file cabinet—always nearby. One day, probably a rare cleaning day, it found its way to the window ledge, and I had my first look through it. OHHHH. I still had the full window view of the cherry tree outside, but I could choose to focus on the rectangular view that my little church framed and see just a little bit of the tree. I noticed how this caused me to pay more attention to that part of the tree, to see it more clearly and appreciate it more fully. While I moved around my office, I started checking in to see how the view seen through the little church shifted. It was a whole new way of looking out into the world.
I've spent this entire past year in my office looking at and through my little wooden sanctuary throughout the day. I’ve come to love how much it is my understanding of what a church is.
I do love Quaker meetinghouses. The light, the simplicity, the energy I feel in them is beautiful. But in the end, they are still just buildings. What holds me up, shelters me, gives me perspective, grounding, hope, and focus are the people. The Beloved Community is my church.
The open sides of my little wooden church remind me, too, that my faith community is not the final destination. It is a rest stop sanctuary, composed of people, where I may find guidance and temporary shelter as I try to live faithfully in the world. On any given day, a 4th grader, a middle schooler, a mom of preschoolers, or an 80-year-old elder may be the needed refuge for my heart, grounding my spirit, offering compassion, advising me on where I might look or go at that moment, reminding me that the Divine is all around and within. The collective stories, witness, love, and compassion help me to see the next step and to take it. In the shelter of this circle, this wide and beloved circle that is my church, I have a clearer perspective.
With gratitude and love to you, my Beloved Community,
Gretchen