<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><br><br><div dir="ltr">Sent from my iPhone</div><div dir="ltr"><br><blockquote type="cite">On Apr 7, 2020, at 2:57 PM, Suzyn Mills via Women <women@fuusm.org> wrote:<br><br></blockquote></div><blockquote type="cite"><div dir="ltr"><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8">Laura, I personally will miss your wonderful smiles, your spontaneous energy, glee, and your amazing hugs. I feel like I just barely got to know you and now you’re gone! My heart breaks for that brief encounter, but I’m sure your heart knows where it needs to be. We will always remember and cherish your brief time in our lives!<div><br></div><div>Suzyn<br><br><div dir="ltr">Sent from my iPhone</div><div dir="ltr"><br><blockquote type="cite">On Apr 7, 2020, at 1:24 PM, Annie Warmke via Women <women@fuusm.org> wrote:<br><br></blockquote></div><blockquote type="cite"><div dir="ltr">
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
<p>Laura; We will miss you so much!</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 4/7/2020 12:53 PM, Laura Grolla via
Women wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite" cite="mid:1951245.2089752.1586278411201@mail.yahoo.com">
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
<div class="ydpbe9cd880yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:
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<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">Hello all, this is Laura
Grolla, recently a Marietta resident and now returned to
Texas. I felt such connection with you all that I thought I'd
add a brief share about reinvention as I am right in the
middle of it. I must admit my soul picked a strange time but
my soul has been in charge and the path continues in its odd
miraculous unfolding.</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">I agree with Annie that
reinvention is uncomfortable and a lot of work. I came to Ohio
to help my beloved mother pass and thought it would be a year
to two or three and decided to quit my job as a Victim's
Advocate and paralegal in a small town in Texas and let God do
with me what he or she would. It was exciting, no, thrilling,
to so surrender to the divine. There was a peace and certainty
to it that has stayed with me, the wonderful feeling of being
swept up into a wave of purpose in behalf of a wholehearted
act of love. I had a dream that I should go to Marietta and I
woke up, quit my job and began packing. It took two months to
compress my two bedroom house and studio into what would fit
in my beloved Sequioia and I hit the road.</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">When I got to Marietta, I did
not unpack but simply lived out of my suitcases while I jumped
in to taking care of my mom for 6 to 10 hours a day. It was
heartbreaking and heart warming at the same time. I got to
read Gloria several books while we looked up words together on
Google and shared laughs over the excellent writing. We are
both writers, artists and poets and I got quality time with a
quality soulmate. Best of all, when she had lucid moments, I
got to tell her specifically and completely what I loved and
admired about her and how grateful I was for her mothering.
This was all I could have asked and more.</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">Sadly, my step-father seemed
envious and hostile and began an almost daily resistance to me
and my efforts that resulted in me getting kicked out three
weeks before Christmas. I was terrified as I knew no one and
the proximity to the holidays meant that no one in my family
had the money to lend me to get a place. Enter our wonderful
UU ladies and Anita Newhart's offer to stay with her. There
began a new and very scary chapter of living purely by faith
and finding all the love and help I needed from strangers. I
questioned why I was now in Marietta. I'd lost my purpose for
being here but found a job and listened to my soul. Good and
bad things happened. I made great friends and began to do art
for the UU cookbook. I sang "The Gloria" with the Marietta
College Oratorio in honor of my mother but was never allowed
to see my mother to tell her. In fact, at every turn, my
step-father refused to let me see my mother. One night, deep
in prayer, I realized that my bitterness and resentment of my
step-father was making me sick. I sent a text saying I needed
to forgive to let go. I got back a nice reply and found, two
night later, that my Soul had given me another dream and I
woke up knowing I had to go back: my job had become available
in Texas.</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">I have been back a week now
and the reinvention continues apace. And, yes, its very
uncomfortable. "A mind once stretched never returns to it's
original dimensions." Marietta and UU expanded me far beyond
the person who came here six months ago. I am a different
person as I prepare to step back into my old role. I have
experienced a sort of falling-in-love with Spirit because I
surrendered so completely to my intuition, to that inner
voice. It is no coincidence that a dream brought me to
Marietta, a dream called me back to Texas, and now I am
writing a book about dreaming.</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">Texas is warm and sunny and I
am glad for my big skies and the light that I love as an
artist, but truly, the hearts of Marietta were the brightest
and the best I've ever experienced. I would like to keep in
touch. And if anyone would like to work with me on dreams and
dreaming, I would love it. My grandmother had "the sight" and
I learned to work with dreams from childhood and this book
fulfills a lifelong pursuit. Thank you, all, for your warmth
and support. I will miss you.<br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">~Laura<br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
<div id="ydpc9d4d87yahoo_quoted_6781342092" class="ydpc9d4d87yahoo_quoted">
<div style="font-family:'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial,
sans-serif;font-size:13px;color:#26282a;">
<div> On Tuesday, April 7, 2020, 12:15:52 PM EDT, Martha
McGovern via Women <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:women@fuusm.org"><women@fuusm.org></a> wrote: </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>
<div id="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377">
<div>
<div><font size="4" face="Calibri">When was a time in
your life when you had to start over? Yes - a very
thoughtful question. Thank you for raising it.</font></div>
<div><font size="4" face="Calibri">I'll speak to the
time that brought me to the Mid-Ohio Area. I had
had a lot of practice starting over because Pat and
I had agreed that his career decisions would take
precedence over mine. So, we had been in New York,
Pennsylvania, and many locations in Ohio.
Circumstances changed, though, when he retired and
I, having completed my doctoral studies, accepted my
first position at Georgia Southern University. I
really liked the overall university, the location
was close to one of Pat's daughters and her young
family, and my teaching assignment (language
development, methods of teaching reading and
language arts, and supervision of pre-service
teachers in the field) was a good match. The
problem was the person who was the head of our
division within the College of Education. After
three years, the work dynamics made life
unbearable. For my own mental health, I needed to
leave. There were other issues, too: my mother's
failing health, Pat's first bout with cancer and
other ongoing health concerns, our dissatisfaction
with the HEAT and social dishonesty of the South.
Anyway, I asked myself where would I choose to
live? The answer was the Marietta area. I had
attended a conference here in years past and
remembered its atmosphere. When I looked in the
Chronicle of Higher Education, there was an
advertisement for a position at WVU at Parkersburg
with a split responsibility in the Humanities
Division, especially Developmental Education
(teaching strategic skills for reading, study, and
writing for success in college) and in the Teacher
Education Division (methods of teaching language
development and literacy). It was my dream job, in
my first choice of locations. In the interviewing
and visiting process, I met Rebecca Phillips and
learned of her connection with FUUSM. Pat and I had
"flirted" with UU-ism over the years, but now I
could see a coherence in my future -- a job doing
all the things I liked to do, in a good institution,
in a location close to my family, and with
connection to a compatible spiritual community. We
moved over Christmas break in 2000 -- a tough and
cold transition -- and I started the new job in
January of 2001. That start-over decision was the
best one I ever made. Being part of this Beloved
Community had made all the difference. Thank you.
Martha</font></div>
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<div class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377yqt2844043628" id="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377yqtfd06685">
<div><b>From:</b> <a shape="rect" href="mailto:women@fuusm.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true">Annie
Warmke via Women</a> </div>
<div><b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, April 07, 2020 11:06 AM</div>
<div><b>To:</b> <a shape="rect" href="mailto:women@fuusm.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true">women@fuusm.org</a>
</div>
<div><b>Cc:</b> <a shape="rect" href="mailto:annie@bluerockstation.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true">Annie Warmke</a> </div>
<div><b>Subject:</b> Re: [Women] April meeting</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377yqt2844043628" id="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377yqtfd35380">
<div><br clear="none">
</div>
<p>What a great topic! I started over (a farmer's
wife) in 1981 by hiding in a battered women's
shelter and leaving everything but my 5 year old
daughter behind. I re-invented myself after that so
that I graduated college, founded 22 battered
women's projects/3 women's funds/17 women freed from
prison who acted in self-defense, and created lots
of cultural/social change through that work. <br clear="none">
</p>
<p><br clear="none">
</p>
<p>Next time I re-invented myself was in 2002 when I
left the US with nothing but our 6 year old
granddaughter that we'd raised from birth. It felt
like someone had taken a giant eraser and wiped out
my career, my friends, my goals but I'd promised
Catlyn we would be there for her. During the 3 1/2
years we fought in court for her I stumbled often
but I found my way by writing for a newspaper about
life in a small town (first France and then England)
as a way to protest the invasion of Iraq after
9/11. I volunteered at Catlyn's school to teach
English to French 5 year olds, and I translated the
SOS FEMMES' prostitutes health and safety "Little
Blue Book". I grew an amazing garden, made friends,
traveled everywhere imaginable, and tried not to
loose my mind as I mourned the life I left behind.</p>
<p><br clear="none">
</p>
<p>When we returned to the US in late 2004 I
re-invented myself again as the builder of an
Earthship, the first one east of the MS. I learned
how to use the Internet and social media, won
custody in court of our granddaughter (that's a
whole other story involving the grand jury indicting
us and more), and learned to be a goat herder. <br clear="none">
</p>
<p><br clear="none">
</p>
<p>Reinventing is a miserable experience - it's like
being birthed into a new reality and trying to make
sense of what works, and what doesn't. I had hoped
not to do it again, but I find myself there right
now with our need to push our business online. We'd
been doing that a little at a time, but now we have
had to push all of our classes and workshops to the
fall with the hope that things will improve for our
country's health. While we'd had a plan to speed up
the process of the transition in late 2020 we find
that we must let go of everything else and just
focus on this one thing for now. Perhaps the most
nerving for me is the separation physically of those
I love deeply. It is growing difficult as the days
pass with no physical contact with people like our
granddaughter, who is married and lives an hour away
with poor transportation. Jay and I have agreed we
will sequester here until it is safe, which means
no visitors. It is especially difficult to say "no"
to former interns who would like to be here with us
since they are not going to work everyday, but if we
are to remain reasonably safe we need to honor our
agreement to each other.<br clear="none">
</p>
<p><br clear="none">
</p>
<p>Perhaps there will be one more re-invention as I
grow older and have to stop being a goat herder, and
a farmer. That work sustains me so I am making
plans for how I can continue to hand on to that part
of my life. But then the best laid plans often are
not how things turn out. I hope to hear more
stories from each other you. Annie<br clear="none">
</p>
<p><br clear="none">
</p>
<div class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377moz-cite-prefix">On
4/6/2020 9:10 PM, Rebecca Phillips via Women wrote:<br clear="none">
</div>
<blockquote type="cite">
<div style="FONT-SIZE:12pt;FONT-FAMILY:Calibri,
Helvetica, sans-serif;COLOR:rgb(0,0,0);">Great
topic!</div>
<div>
<div style="FONT-SIZE:12pt;FONT-FAMILY:Calibri,
Helvetica, sans-serif;COLOR:rgb(0,0,0);"><br clear="none">
</div>
<div id="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377Signature">
<div dir="ltr" id="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377divtagdefaultwrapper" style="FONT-SIZE:12pt;FONT-FAMILY:Calibri,
Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;COLOR:#000000;">
<div>"If you have a garden and a library, you
have everything you need."-- Cicero</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="FONT-SIZE:12pt;FONT-FAMILY:Calibri,
Helvetica, sans-serif;COLOR:rgb(0,0,0);"><br clear="none">
</div>
<hr tabindex="-1" style="WIDTH:98%;DISPLAY:inline-block;">
<div dir="ltr" id="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377divRplyFwdMsg"><font style="FONT-SIZE:11pt;" face="Calibri,
sans-serif" color="#000000"><b>From:</b> Women
<a shape="rect" class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:women-bounces@fuusm.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><women-bounces@fuusm.org></a>
on behalf of Gillian via Women <a shape="rect" class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:women@fuusm.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><women@fuusm.org></a><br clear="none">
<b>Sent:</b> Monday, April 6, 2020 8:04 PM<br clear="none">
<b>To:</b> A List for the Women of FUUSM <a shape="rect" class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:women@fuusm.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><women@fuusm.org></a><br clear="none">
<b>Cc:</b> Gillian <a shape="rect" class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:gillianabbo@gmail.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"><gillianabbo@gmail.com></a><br clear="none">
<b>Subject:</b> [Women] April meeting</font>
<div> </div>
</div>
<div>Hello
<div>As the host for the now cancelled April
Women’s Group meeting it was suggested that I
still pose a question for discussion as we do
at our gathering. We can email any response
that you may wish to share. I was talking with
Caitlin and it is her topic.</div>
<div>Hugs Gillian</div>
<div>
<div style="FONT-FAMILY:'Helvetica
Neue';MARGIN:0px;LINE-HEIGHT:normal;"><br clear="none">
</div>
<div style="FONT-FAMILY:'Helvetica
Neue';MARGIN:0px;LINE-HEIGHT:normal;">Women’s
Group Topic of Discussion:</div>
<div style="FONT-FAMILY:'Helvetica
Neue';MARGIN:0px;LINE-HEIGHT:normal;">Though
these are strange and difficult times, a
promising future still lingers on the
horizon. The sun is shining its face, the
birds are singing in their choirs, and the
flowers are beginning to stretch their arms
skyward. Spring is upon is. And with it
comes rebirth, renewal, and hope.</div>
<div style="FONT-FAMILY:'Helvetica
Neue';MIN-HEIGHT:14px;MARGIN:0px;LINE-HEIGHT:normal;"><br clear="none">
</div>
<div style="FONT-FAMILY:'Helvetica
Neue';MARGIN:0px;LINE-HEIGHT:normal;">This
leads me to my topic of conversation for the
week. When was a time in your life where you
had to start again? Find a new beginning?
Start a new chapter in your life? Was it
through circumstance forced upon you, or was
it perhaps spurred through your own free
will? </div>
<div style="FONT-FAMILY:'Helvetica
Neue';MIN-HEIGHT:14px;MARGIN:0px;LINE-HEIGHT:normal;"><br clear="none">
</div>
<div style="FONT-FAMILY:'Helvetica
Neue';MARGIN:0px;LINE-HEIGHT:normal;">There
are many such occasions in an individual’s
life, but I hope that we can focus on the
positive. In these difficult times it’s good
to remember how much we’ve already overcome
and how we’ve thrived regardless. Like a
dandelion through the pavement’s cracks, we
will all see the light again. </div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<br clear="none">
<fieldset class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377mimeAttachmentHeader"></fieldset>
<pre class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377moz-quote-pre">_______________________________________________
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</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377moz-signature">--
Annie Warmke
Farmer, activist, consultant, writer
Blue Rock Station/Warmke Farm LLC
<a shape="rect" class="ydpc9d4d87yiv4558087377moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.bluerockstation.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true">www.bluerockstation.com</a>
(740) 674-4300 or (740) 252-6295 Mobile
Radio: When the Biomass Hits the Wind Turbine
WOUB Digital Wednesday 9 am
WGRN Digital Friday 11:30 am & Saturday 8:30 am
Publications:
The Business of Goat Herding (BRS Media)
The Journey Toward Nothing (BRS Media)
Naturally Healthy Goats (BRS Media)
Podcasts: bluerockstation.com
When the Biomass Hits the Wind Turbine
Arriving at Blue Rock Station</pre>
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<div class="ydpc9d4d87yqt2844043628" id="ydpc9d4d87yqtfd48228">_______________________________________________<br clear="none">
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<br>
<fieldset class="mimeAttachmentHeader"></fieldset>
<pre class="moz-quote-pre" wrap="">_______________________________________________
Women mailing list
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:Women@fuusm.org">Women@fuusm.org</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://fuusm.org/mailman/listinfo/women_fuusm.org">http://fuusm.org/mailman/listinfo/women_fuusm.org</a>
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Annie Warmke
Farmer, activist, consultant, writer
Blue Rock Station/Warmke Farm LLC
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.bluerockstation.com">www.bluerockstation.com</a>
(740) 674-4300 or (740) 252-6295 Mobile
Radio: When the Biomass Hits the Wind Turbine
WOUB Digital Wednesday 9 am
WGRN Digital Friday 11:30 am & Saturday 8:30 am
Publications:
The Business of Goat Herding (BRS Media)
The Journey Toward Nothing (BRS Media)
Naturally Healthy Goats (BRS Media)
Podcasts: bluerockstation.com
When the Biomass Hits the Wind Turbine
Arriving at Blue Rock Station</pre>
<div><annie.vcf></div><span>_______________________________________________</span><br><span>Women mailing list</span><br><span>Women@fuusm.org</span><br><span>http://fuusm.org/mailman/listinfo/women_fuusm.org</span><br></div></blockquote></div><span>_______________________________________________</span><br><span>Women mailing list</span><br><span>Women@fuusm.org</span><br><span>http://fuusm.org/mailman/listinfo/women_fuusm.org</span><br></div></blockquote></body></html>