This past Sunday was a momentous occasion for me. I was welcomed into the Ethical Society of Austin as a new member, making me a Happy Human on many levels at that moment. Although I have been attending the weekly meetings of ESOA since September, I am still very new to the whole concept of Ethical Culture. From the very beginning, however, this organization seemed very much in tune with where my heart and my mind are at this stage of my life.
How fortunate it is--for me--that ESOA really is, as they claim, a "welcoming humanist community." After long months of mourning and generally feeling overwhelmed by being more alone than ever before in my life, coming to that first meeting was like coming into the light. I was welcomed warmly. I was included in the discussion. I was uncertain that I could force myself to make the effort to attend again, but the need for community pulled me back. I have missed few meetings since that first one partly because of the fellowship.
Another large part of the pull--for me--has been the opportunity to examine serious questions of life and the world and the cosmos. We've talked about cycles in our lives, questioned what we mean by family, wondered about life on other planets. (As a Star Wars fan, I was somewhat saddened by the latter one, but, y'know fiction doesn't have to reflect reality.) We've delved into the Eight Commitments of Ethical Culture. We have shared some fun potlucks and actively lived our commitment to make the world a better place.
My welcome into ESOA was quiet, gentle. No ceremony. No ritual. No vows. No big deal as rites of passage go. Still, I took it as a transition of great moment in my life, a step toward personal growth and knowledge, community participation, and shared work toward a common goal. Plus I got another good book to read: The Humanist Way, by Edward L. Ericson (with a preface by my hero, Isaac Azimov).
The only lack I have found in ESOA so far is that I can't get enough of it. Our meetings are brief--30 minutes for visiting, if you get there early--90 minutes for the actual meeting. The topics that we discuss need more discussion, more time for interaction. I have questions. I have thoughts. I want to talk about these things more.
So here I am. A Happy Human who wants to learn and discuss what she's learning. "Hoedown" is just a nod to Texas and alliteration, but, yes, let's dance!
2 comments:
OK, I 'signed up' and the No Comment statement brings me to a comment I can fill in. I'm just learning too. I keyed on the observation that our discussions tend to open the can but end long before it is empty. I've had that feeling often. Especially at colloquy, there just seems to be so much more to say, ask, listen to. Maybe we need to think about further discussion after a formal end, that many folks need as permission to get on with their busy day. Alternatively, we could do separate book, discussion, pot luck kinds of get togethers. Hard to pull off with a bunch of busy folk, but who knows.
Thanks for hanging in there, John. The interface can sometimes be daunting. Yes, the discussions that I have participated in so far have been quite stimulating, even when they dealt with difficult issues. That means, for me, that they are very much the kinds of things that I either want to think about or need to be dealing with. Having a community in which to pursue these issues is a going to be a way to discipline myself to pursue these topics and also to learn from the different perspectives that we share. Given the busy schedules, perhaps this blog and the other online "venues" that ESOA has will allow for some of that additional discussion until we figure out other ways to foster it. Again, for me, this exercise is useful for the discipline of pursuing some of the ideas further, but I am hoping that it also provides some community as those who are interested and have the time can read, comment, discuss.
Post a Comment