Given the rapid rate of change in things like buzz words, hip sayings (are those even still a thing? – see what I mean?), memes, idiomatic phrases, etc, I know that some/all of the slang I grew up with is now so passe that it’s starting to fossilize. However, that doesn’t mean it isn’t still in my head. And sometimes, it just pops out. Like when I was writing this blurb. “Sharing the dirt” or “dishing the dirt” used to be a slang way of saying, “Tell me the ugly stuff, the part that the parties concerned would rather not talk about, the straight goods”…that sort of thing. The Eagles (they used to be a popular band, and if they keep on doing reunion tours with high priced tickets only affordable by their aging boomer fans, they might never fully die out until they actually die off) once had a hit with a song called “Dirty Laundry”. Same concept. “Tell us what’s really going on here.”
This week, in the (online only!) Talky Bit, I’m going to be exploring something about shared dirt. Not exactly “sharing the dirt”, but more “how we share the dirt”. I realize I’m clarifying nothing, but if I put it all in the blurb I’ll be all alone on Sunday, and what kind of fun would that be? For those finding this blurb frustratingly opaque, I could add that we’ll be continuing our exploration of doubt and faith, and in particular some further aspects of Stage 4. That’s it…that’s all the dirt I’m going to share right now. 🙂
We’ll be meeting online here at 10:45 a.m. for some music and Community Time, followed by the Talky Bit. As always, we’ll put the audio of that up as a podcast early the following week, and the video will be available on our Facebook page shortly after the live event wraps up. If you want to dig deeper into the whole series, the podcast archive on our website has the whole thing. You can find Episode 1 here. Because this week is online only, we’ll also have our Sunday Zoom hangout called “And Lunch After” at 12:30. I’ll put the URL for that at the end of this email, along with the URL for our Wednesday evening Zoom event, which starts at 7:45 p.m.
We’ve now had two hybrid events (in-person gatherings that we also live-streamed), and at this point it appears we will continue with that general pattern of alternating live events with online-only events. Our next scheduled hybrid gathering is slated for November 7th at the Plett house. I’ll provide more details in next week’s blurb.
Kids Table update: As we gently re-engage with in-person gatherings, we need more people to help out with the Littles. At present, we have two in-person gatherings a month. Amy has committed to covering one of those, which means we’re halfway there (cue Bonjovi). If you are interested in helping out, let me know. You can reach me by replying to this email. Just to be abundantly clear – letting me know you’re interested will not be construed as making a commitment. It will be a chance for us to talk with one another about your degree of interest, what’s involved, and whether you would consider a “one off”, a regular commitment, or having learned more, no commitment at all in this regard. I know it’s been a long time since we’ve been in this terrain and I recognize there are plenty of complex variables still at play. That said, I also know how vital the Littles are to the experience we call “The Table”, never mind to the future of…well, of everything…and it feels like it’s time to do what we can to provide a space where they can explore together as well. Be in touch.
Here are the URL’s for our bonus online gatherings. I’ll see you on Sunday.
