A Letter from Lindy March 30

Art: Fig Leafing
Paper lace with watercolor.
By Hannah Garrity, Sanctifiedart.org

Pilgrims,

During my morning meditation, one of my sessions reflected on how to recover from burnout. The statistics from a May, 2024 study the guide shared were significant– 44% of us feel burned out at work. 45%, emotionally drained. 51%, completely worn out by the end of the work day. And yet, the study also revealed that only 22% feel anxious. 50% often experience a sense of belonging. And 40% feel a sense of fulfillment. Interesting counterpoint, right?

My guide opined then that in a conversation with a friend where she shared her own weight of
burn-out (mindfulness coach she is, mind you) her friend asked a simple, but profound question, “how did you get here?” A good question for us to reflect upon, parable in hand, because
undergirding the gardener’s desire to tend to the fruitless fig tree is the knowledge that there had been countless decisions, actions, moments that brought the tree to this barren out point. Each choice we make, shaping where we are. As much as work contributes to this long winding path, there’s more–the state of the world, the climate crisis, the pressures of capitalism, the grief of
whatever burdens we carry. The layers are many. As easy as it may be to point to one place, the truth is our sense of fruitlessness doesn’t come from just one place, rather a product of prolonged,
unmanaged stress. And stress narrows our vision, making us feel stuck in a cycle of constant reactivity.

Here is the beauty of beloved community–an invitation to pause. To hold the question. To create the space to shift. To move from doing to being. To shift from reactivity to resilience. Thank goodness we are beckoned weekly to pause so that we can begin to unravel the cycle and choose a different path forward. I know I need this weekly reset. To gather with others who also need a gardener who believes in us and will tend to our collective soil.

These are the promises we will make to Lluey as Ali entrusts her to our baptismal care. To be on this long winding path to teach, guide, co-journey and yes, rest with her.

Pastor Lindy

(she/her) why pronouns matter