I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the notion of “willfulness.” Miriam Webster’s online dictionary gives us two perspectives on being willful. The first is “obstinately and often perversely self-willed,” and the second is “done deliberately.” I like the notion of doing things deliberately. It implies being thoughtful and clear about what one’s goals, principles, and values are in a situation. But it’s the bit about being “obstinately self-willed” when getting one’s own way that I find most worthy of digging more deeply into on this topic.

Willfulness is a bit complicated, isn’t it? What may look like clear self-definition may play out as willfulness. I may think I’m right, I may in fact be right. But forcing others into going along robs them of their own right to choose. We get stuck in a battle of wills, unable to move forward. I may think that I am taking a principled stand yet it behooves me to be open to the possibility that I’m just being downright willful: wanting to get my way, to be right.

OCBC Wall of History

The Transition Team led the congregation in a Wall of History event on Saturday, January 12 from 4:00-8:00 pm in the parish hall. There were 30 people in attendance. I realize that a number of you wanted to attend but were travelling or had previous commitments. In an effort to include you in this important transitional event, I am providing a summary of the Wall below. But first, let me say a few things about what I observed that night.

This is what the LORD says: "A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her children are no more." Jeremiah 31:15

We join our hearts and voices in lamentation for the victims of the shooting in Newtown, CT yesterday. We pray for the families of those killed, for a grieving community, and for those who are touched by the human sorrow of this event.

I wont’ be answering the phone at home until after November 6^th, so if you call me there, you’ll have to leave a message. The reason? My husband is registered as an Independent voter in the state of New Hampshire. This means that enthusiasts from both major political parties, and some of the minor ones too, will be bombarding our number with phone calls between now and the November election. Had I realized the implications of being married to an Independent, I might have included a clause about it in our Marriage Vows. “Do you promise to be home by 4:00 each day for two months preceding a contentious national election to field phone calls from political campaigns?” I do.