Dear Families,
I love the idea of spring cleaning—out with the old and in with the new. The season is changing from cold to warm, the days are getting longer as is the grass and oh! All the green!
During spring cleaning, we often envision the sun streaming through perfectly washed windows into an organized kitchen. The reality? I’m just happy to wipe the refrigerator shelves, dispose of whatever is lurking, and open the doors and windows for some extra oxygen and wind!
As I get older, I find “spiritual” spring cleaning is more needed for myself and my family. There’s still the joy of out with the old and in with the new, of breathing new air and life into the stale parts of our mind, body, and spirit. It means taking time to reflect and identify those behaviors and habits in me that don’t affirm the kind of person—or parent—I want to be.
This season, my spiritual “de-cluttering” is focused on ANTs: Automatic Negative Thoughts. An ANT is a negative thought that comes up as a reaction to a stressful moment. At home, we’ve been reading “Captain Snout and the Super Power Questions.” Just like the tiny pests that find their way into a kitchen the moment the weather warms up, ANTs crawl into our minds uninvited and make us mad, sad, worried, or upset. Left unchecked, these thoughts can wear us out, leave us feeling pretty bad, and completely get in the way of joy!
There’s a lot of different kinds of ants. Five common ANTs are the “All-Or-Nothing” ANT, the “Just-The-Bad” ANT, the Fortune Teller ANT, the Mind Reader ANT, and the Blaming ANT. Things like “I always mess up!” “No one ever helps me!” “This is the worst day ever!” “Things will turn out horrible” or “They’re all laughing at me” are the types of ANTs we’re looking out for.
Spiritual spring cleaning is about spotting these ANTs before they take over the house (our mind!). So, we are learning to observe our thoughts and start spotting them. When an ANT appears, we can pause and ask ourselves: Is this thought true? Is this 100% true?
This helps us learn mindfulness, patience, and positivity. This spring, if the windows stay a little dusty but our minds are a bit clearer of ANTs, we’ve done the most important cleaning of all.
May RE Programs
Seabeck UU Family Retreat (May 22-25): Sign up your family and ask about scholarships to help make it an easy financial lift! Help volunteer in the children’s program at the Seabeck Memorial Day Retreat. Contact the Children and Youth Program Director to help.
Kids Night In June 5: Drop off the kids at church for the night. We have dinner, games, and will be rehearsing for our Sunday Bridging service.
Annual Bridging and Blessing Service: Our annual service celebrates transitions from the youngest who are ready to shift from the nursery to RE classes through those finishing High School and entering young adulthood.
East Shore Summer Camp: Sign up for Week 1 (July 27) and Week 2 (August 3). Counselor roles available for grades 6–12. Sign up for ESUC Summer Camp at esuc.org/summer-camp/
Cascadia SUUmmer Con (August 16–20): Register rising 6th–12th graders. Full and partial scholarships are available from East Shore. Register for N-Sid-Sen SUUmmer Con pwr.uua.org/youth/cascadia-suummer-con and contact us directly for scholarship information.
Stay connected—Reach out to our staff to ensure you are on our email lists for enrolled youth.
Amanda Alice Uluhan, Director of Religious Education