Mom Did the Best She Could in Her Brokenness
I grew up in a bungalow on a tree lined street. My dad went to work every day. My little brother and I went to Lutheran school on a school bus. I went to the public library and carried home stacks of books. I played dolls with the neighborhood girls. We skated up and down the sidewalks. My mom sewed all my clothes, with doll clothes to match. She made tuna casserole and donuts. Sometimes my family would go to the country to visit our grandparents on their farm. On Sundays my family went to church. It was an idyllic childhood in the 1950s.
Except inside, my childhood was broken. My mom had trouble with what was called then “nerves,” and she had colitis. Sometimes she never got out of bed. Sometimes she was very sick. Sometimes she was very mean, and sometimes she was violent.
The Quest that Brought Me Here
I joined CLF when I moved to the Missouri Ozarks in 2000. The nearest fellowship was more than an hour away, the nearest UU church two hours. While I had some friends here, I knew not one UU. In Kansas City, I had been a member of All Souls for ten years, active as a leader in both worship and governance, so this was a huge change.
CLF became my refuge, the CLF-L list my everyday church community. Soon I was volunteering to help CLF experiment with improving use of the internet. I was asked to join the CLF board in 2004 and served 6 years, during which CLF undertook big steps in becoming a 21st century congregation.
My service on the search committee in 2010 was deeply rewarding. We worked hard to give potential candidates both an accurate and broad picture of what CLF was, and how her leaders, members and staff hoped it could develop. We had an fine pool of applicants, and interviewed a stellar group of potential candidates, among whom Rev. Meg Riley shone the brightest.
