by our member JoAnn Anglin, written for and presented at the Fall Gratitude Celebration, Nov. 13, 2021.

In Praise of our Lineage of Linkage

In praise of this congregation, all praise

to its sturdy persistence

Against darker fears, using mental strength

to shape an effective resistance.

In praise of what enters the absence, that

has taken away the familiar.

In praise of adapting to oddness,

to losses and even peculiar.

In praise of the web that has linked us,

that persists even during contagion.

In praise of connection that calms us, despite

times of intensest frustration.

In praise of supports we can lean on –

our principles and sturdy clergy

who hold it together in hours of stress,

shaping wisdom like a metallurgy.

In praise of committees and leaders

and their efforts to help us endure.

In praise of the music, praise of the humor

bringing hope as a strong kind of cure.

In praise of the memories we draw on

chains of experience and good sense.

In praise of how these elements combine –

to help us move on

to help us continue

to help us go forward with confidence.

by JoAnn Anglin; for the Fall Gratitude Celebration; November 13, 2021