September 12, 2026

Dear Ones,

I had a much different post planned for yesterday, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the day we call September 11th, one of the most sorrowful days in the recent history of the United States. Every year on that day, many people ask the question, “Where were you when it happened?”  and people tell their stories. I was initially moved to tell my story here, as I worked roughly two blocks from what is known as Ground Zero. I was on the street looking up at the first tower burn when the second plane hit. And when the powers that be deemed it safe to return, I, along with so many others, continued to work there months afterward while we all tried to find a new normal.

When we think of our Unitarian Universalist value of Interdependence, what often comes to mind are the connections between living creatures and the environment. But the interdependent web of all existence not only connects that which exists in the natural world but also places and all the events that occur within the span of time.

September 11th was one such event, as were the places where the most immediate devastation took place. What happened was horrifying, but it demonstrated how connected we really were to each other, and how important those connections were when we needed one another most. The web is what got everyone through a very difficult time. It got us from there to here, from then to now. The defining characteristic of the interdependent web is not that it is static, but that it is dynamic, and that it can have a positive effect on us when we keep love at the center.

UUCSS needs people who would like to help with the Faith Development needs of our children, youth and adults. If you think that might be you, please send me an email so that we can start planning some things.

This Sunday is the kick-off for our stewardship. There is so much on the horizon for everyone at UUCSS, so please give serious consideration to your pledge for the coming year.

Our Ingathering and Water Communion will be on Sunday, September 20th.  Please mark your calendars so that you will remember to bring a very small bit of water with you to co-mingle with the other water people will bring that morning. After the service, the Transition Team, which consists of Bill Boehmke, Kerry Nelson, Laurie Singer and me, have planned a special activity for our next to the last Sunday in the worship space at the meeting house.

After September 20th, the next time I will be in the pulpit at UUCSS is on October 11th, when we are in our temporary space, Wilson Chapel on the Skidmore campus. I spoke about connections earlier in this blog. Connections aren’t just there; they must be cultivated and tended. So, during the time that we will be in our transitional space, once a month I will be leading an activity after the Sunday service that I am calling ‘Round and About with Rev. Vee.” On Oct. 11th, the activity will be an all-ages hike in Skidmore’s North Woods. I am not sure what the weather will be like, but please make sure that you, dress appropriately. If there are other activities that you think might be fun to do in the coming months before we are able to move into our new home.

My invitation to connection is a standing one. If you have not already done so, please set up at least a 15-minute meeting with me (you can choose more time if you like) in Zoom to say “hello” and introduce or re-introduce yourself. You can do that by visiting my Calendly link here https://tinyurl.com/SS-Mtg-w-RevVee. I look forward to seeing you in my Zoom room!

I close this week with the song “Connection” by OneRepublic! CLICK HERE.

In peace and love,

Rev. Viola

Rev. Viola observes Monday as her personal sabbath, but if you want to make an appointment with her on a Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, you can do so by visiting her Calendly page at https://tinyurl.com/SS-Mtg-w-RevVee.

September 4, 2026

Dear Ones,

There are many things I enjoy about the onset of fall. The feel of the cool nights and the beauty of the changing foliage are just two. But sounds are also a magical part of fall for me. One of the sounds that I actually find comforting is the loud call of the blue jay. Some people consider it noisy, but it was the “back-to-school” soundtrack for me for many years. It reminds me of a simpler time. I think we are all in need of simpler times and we should take moments to embrace simplicity, or at least the thought of it, in between all of the things that fill up our days whenever we can.  I like to think of it as a spiritual practice

Yes. Fall is back-to-school time. May this school year be a wonderful one for all the returning students and educators everywhere.

The unofficial start of fall is Labor Day. It is the last holiday of the summer, and people take advantage of it to get that last bit of fun and travel in before it’s “back to business” for everyone. Labor Day is more than a day to have fun, it is a day to celebrate and honor those who are among the class of people we call workers. This coming Sunday I will be in the pulpit at UUCSS, and the title of my sermon is “Work to Do.” Together I plan to explore with you the different kinds of work that we do. Please join me in person at the church at 624 N. Broadwayor in the Zoom room.

Another reminder that the Ingathering and Water Communion will be on Sunday, September 20th.  Please mark your calendars so that you will remember to bring a very small bit of water with you to co-mingle with the other water people will bring that morning. After the service, the Transition Team, which consists of Bill Boehmke, Kerry Nelson, Laurie Singer and myself, have planned a special activity for our next to the last Sunday in the worship space at the meeting house.

My invitation to connection is a standing one. If you have not already done so, please set up at least a 15-minute meeting with me (you can choose more time if you like) in Zoom to say “hello” and introduce or re-introduce yourself. You can do that by visiting my Calendly link here https://tinyurl.com/SS-Mtg-w-RevVee. I look forward to seeing you in my Zoom room!

In celebration of workers everywhere, I close with the song “Work To Do” as sung by Brent Carter & friends. Enjoy! CLICK HERE.

In peace and love,

Rev. Viola

August 28, 2026

Dear Ones,

Wow! This coming Sunday is the last Sunday in August. Where did the time go? Summer is trying to put in some earnest work before it is no more.  I hope you are enjoying the weather (except for yesterday) as much as I am. I really love the mildness of the summers here. But now that summer is preparing to end, I am looking forward to what will be my first time (in a long time) experiencing the full splendor of a Northeast fall, from start to finish. I am already watching the colors begin to change with excitement!

Change is on our horizon in more ways than the change we anticipate with the shifting seasons.  The groundbreaking ceremony that many of us attended at the construction site of our new building on Wednesday was a pivotal point with respect to the change that will come for all of us. Not just because of the eventual physical move to the new building, but because of all the new and different things we will experience once we are there. Change is difficult and sometimes painful, even change for the good. I am looking forward to all the wonderful change that comes next on this journey we are taking together.

This coming Sunday I will be in the pulpit at UUCSS, and the title of my sermon is “Who Are (Y)Our People?” Take some time to think about what a Unitarian Universalist is and ask yourself, how does that inform who I am and who I consider part of my community? Being clear about who we are is important with respect to every day that we live, but it is particularly crucial to have this awareness as we move into the future. We cannot effectively build community without this understanding.

The Ingathering and Water Communion will be on Sunday, September 20th.  Please mark your calendars so that you will remember to bring a small bit of water with you to co-mingle with the other water people will bring that morning. This service and the Flower Communion are two of my favorite services of the church year, and they are rituals that Unitarian Universalists can completely claim as their own. I think that’s what makes them so special for me.And, in anticipation of September, I close with “September Song,” as sung by Nat King Cole. CLICK HERE

In peace and love,

Rev. Viola

August 21, 2026

Dear Ones,

This coming week I will not be in the pulpit at Saratoga, but you will be blessed to have Tena Bunnell deliver the morning message. It promises to be uplifting.

I am so excited about the upcoming ground-breaking ceremony at the construction site for the new meeting house. It will be on Wednesday, Aug. 25th at 10am. Whether you can be there or not, please hold UUCSS in your hearts at the appointed hour and send all your love and positive thoughts to 400-404 Loudon Avenue. Let us all hope and pray that the construction will be completed on time, and that once the building and grounds are finished, our new church home will be all that we want and need it to be.

On the late evening and early morning of Aug. 27th and 28th, respectively, people living in our part of the world will be given the gift of being able to witness a near total lunar eclipse. So, this coming Thursday night, look to the sky at around 9:24pm. If it is clear, you will be able to see the penumbra which heralds the eclipse’s beginning. Don’t forget to take a nap first, though. This celestial event will not be over until around 3:00am, and I do not want anyone tired for work or school in the morning because Rev. Vee asked them to stay up. If you do get to see the eclipse, try to imagine the hearts and minds of those who witnessed celestial events like this in the past. An eclipse would have defied reason in certain eras. But people would have tried to explain this scientific phenomenon without an understanding of the science that would have truly allowed them to do so. They would have created their own narrative. A good question to ask ourselves is how many times we create narratives about things that we do not completely understand, and yet still hold onto them as truths.

In honor of the lunar eclipse that we are going to have this week, I close with “Lunar Eclipse,” by Fulton Lee.  CLICK HERE

In peace and love,

Rev. Viola

August 14, 2026

Dear Ones,

We are in the middle of August. The second and last full month of summer. And it is the end of my first week as your Minister. And while it might feel as if summer is beginning to wind down, the work that we will be doing together in this new ministry is just getting started. And another thing that is getting started is the construction of UUCSS’s new home at 404 Loudon Rd.! This is great news and a wonderful way to celebrate the impending end of summer!

My first official sermon as your minister will be this coming Sunday, August 16th.  The title is “Returning.” Together we will explore the meaning of home, what it means to leave, which is particularly relevant to UUCSS in this moment, and what it can mean if you try to find your way back. The place that we call “home” is often a complicated container holding varying parts of joy and sadness, but it is so very important in making us who we are.

Some of you know me from BTR (Before The Rev), and some of you don’t. Either way, I invite you to set up at least a 15-minute meeting with me in Zoom to say “hello” and introduce or re-introduce yourself. You can do that by visiting my Calendly link here https://tinyurl.com/SS-Mtg-w-RevVee. I look forward to seeing you in my Zoom room!

As we think about the recent ground-breaking at Loudon Road and the new home that we will find there, I close this week with the song, “Home,” by Phillip Phillips. CLICK HERE

In peace and love,

Rev. Viola

August 7, 2026

Dear Ones,

I made it through my first week at UUCSS! Wow! There is so much that I have to learn and so many of you that I want to get to know. Unfortunately, I cannot get all of that done in “Week 1” so this will be a process. But it is a process that I am looking forward to. I hope you are, too.

I had a great meeting this week with the wonderful people who have been foundational for UUCSS’s Faith Development / Religious Education (FD/RE) program, and we came up with a couple of ideas. This coming Sunday, we are going to try something new to make sure that any child who finds themselves in the service knows that we are thinking of them and that we want them here. And so, beginning this week, there will be a coloring activity on the back of the Sunday bulletin, and we will also be making colored pencils or crayons available. This is a small effort, but I think it will be the first of many.

The other thing we would like to do for our children and youth is to start a task force, not a committee, that will be limited in duration and that will look at and recommend options for FD/RE when fall starts, when we move to our temporary home in Wilson Chapel, and lastly when we move to Loudon Rd. What we do with this important aspect of UUCSS programming is important for our growth and crucial to our long-term health, not just for our congregation, but also for our denomination. We must do what we can to meet the needs of those who have children and youth and who choose to be a part of this community.

I truly believe there are great things in store for UUCSS. I am happy to be a part of it. and I look forward to working with all of you. And so, as we begin our journey, I close my Reverie this week with a musical acknowledgment that “We’re All in This Together,” sung by Ben Lee. CLICK HERE.

In peace and love,

Rev. Viola