Dear Beacon:

Two weeks ago, we had a great opening column about ice cream flavors. It even included an invitation to join us this week at 695 Springfield Avenue (Beacon’s new property) for a celebration, with a real ice cream truck.

A lot can change in two weeks.

The ice cream truck is now scheduled for Sunday, August 29th at noon at our 695 Springfield location, following our annual Water Ingathering services at 9:30 am (both online and in-person at 4 Waldron) and 11:15 am (outdoors at 695 Springfield).

Living through late pandemic days (after all, it’s not yet a post-pandemic world) requires attempting the spiritual practice of resilience. Certainty and control are a thing of the past. These days we make a plan, things change, and we create a new plan. This is how it it is and how it will be for some time.

At Beacon this summer, our staff, leaders and volunteers are working hard to welcome back our in-person multigenerational community safely (August 1st) while also growing our virtual community. Our new property at 695 Springfield Avenue has been a gift as it gives us many more options for outdoor gatherings, and it also complicates where we should all show up. Is this event virtual or in-person or both? Is it at 4 Waldron or 695 Springfield? It’s a good problem to have.

I won’t lie to you. As a leader, it’s messy and maddening. It requires complex thinking, overcoming constant obstacles, and embracing change on a daily basis (and then, remembering what change we made!). In the past, our culture has emphasized controlling outcomes or fighting to get your way. Those “tools” aren’t going to help us. If we’re going to thrive in this next period, we must practice new ways of being. 

The practice and cultivation of resilience is inherent both in our very bodies and minds and in community life. When we are feeling frustrated, our individual practice reminds us to breathe and settle our bodies. When we see someone in our community feeling frustrated, our community practice is to show up for them and acknowledge the suffering we see in the moment, and we refrain from trying to fix it, which is another form of control.

We can’t control the constant changes. So, at Beacon, we are endeavoring to communicate with you a lot more so you know when to show up and where. That’s why the Sunday morning email is an important tool. It’s sent to your inbox at 8 am every Sunday with the most updated information. If you aren’t receiving them, reach out to Brian David: brian@summitbeacon.org. We are sending them to our entire mailing list, but they might be stuck in the ethosphere. There’s also our webpage and our social media.

Stay tuned!

With a faith known as Love,

Dr. Tuli Patel and Reverends Robin & Emilie