We come into consciousness in the middle of the story...

God of our ancestors, may we find the ways in which we can connect across generations.

In our lived lives, family comes in different shapes and sizes and constellations.It is in this variety—this diversity—that our lives are made fuller and our individual selves made more whole. It is in this variety, it is in this diversity, that we look back to the ancestors, recognizing no...

Food carries the love, wisdom, and stories of survival of a people.

Love is reaching through the generations with expectations that I live through challenging times.

I rise on the shoulders of ancestors whose names I can not know.

Growing connects me to ancestors who had their hands in the dirt because it was keeping them alive.

Sometimes it feels like Father’s Day is more about enshrining a myth than it is about facing the realities of fatherhood.

Breathe in for caregivers of all kinds who give of themselves to make other people’s lives better, more whole.

Spirit of Life, remind me to release that which no longer serves me so that I may be present to joy.

Let us honor our ancestors by doing the work of living boldly, loving mightily, and creating heaven on earth.

Sometimes, there is no reprieve from the pain of this world. Sometimes, it is too big and too obvious to ignore.

None of us would be here were it not for those who lived and won a fight that they were not meant to survive.

With a single generous gesture from my older child, her sister's belief in Santa stayed intact that year.

Voice One, Elder (with chalice): Across the generations we have carried the flame. We fought the injustice, sang the songs, spoke for truth, and built something lasting. We join in the line and we carry the flame forward. (pass chalice and mic to next speaker) Voice Two, Active Leader (with metal...

As the child leaves the doorstep, the parent prays: Please, keep my child safe, And give me the courage to let them go out to explore the world. The child prays, Watch over my parents while I’m gone, And help them believe that I really do know what I’m doing. The grandparent prays, Thank you for...

For all the mothers and mother figures The grandmothers, aunts, and extended family members who mother The soon-to-be mothers, the wish-they-were mothers, the never-wanted-to-be mothers, the “it’s complicated” mothers The birth mothers, foster mothers, adoptive mothers, stepmothers The “used...

Once upon a time, a baby was born. Even before that baby was born, there were people waiting and wishing and hoping for that baby. The people who were waiting and wishing and hoping for that baby didn’t know exactly what that baby would be like. And so, they wondered: Would the baby have a smile...

Holy One, on this day of remembrance we say aloud their names again: the names of those who died this year. Died — the word is jarring. So jarring that we hardly use the word, substituting euphemisms that are a bit more vague. Sometimes people say “lost” when what they mean is dead: “We lost...

Today—and on all other days—may we give thanks for the fathers, papas, pop-pops, dads and daddies who represent for us the steadfast presence that holds us in love and launches us into the world, whether we encounter it when we are small or already grown. May we be mindful of those for whom this...