Sunny Notes: 10.15.25 - Change and Transitions
It was wonderful to see so many familiar faces this past Sunday—my first official Sunday preaching from the pulpit. And it was wonderful to meet so many of you who I had not yet met.
My sermon featured the work of the late William Bridges from his book Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes—a book that recently celebrated its 40th Anniversary Edition and has sold over one million copies. In the book, Bridges identifies an important distinction between change and transition: Change is situational (e.g., the birth of a baby, the death of a loved one, the start of a new job, the move to a new city...or the arrival of a new minister to your congregation—I added that one). Transition, on the other hand, is psychological.
As Bridges puts it, a transition is not the “events, but rather the inner reorientation and self-redefinition that you have to go through in order to incorporate any of those changes into your life.” My arrival is a change, yes, but I hope we can make it a transition—a transition full of meaningful reflection and inner reorientation inspired by what I hear and learn from you all. I have already heard from many of you through the "Getting to Know You" small-group meetings I've been holding. And I look forward to hearing more. If you have not already done so, I invite you to sign up for one of thesemeetings. There are paper sign-up sheets hanging in the box outside my office door at BUF. Alternatively, you may use the link to below to sign up via my online scheduler:
https://sunnyjoymcmillanscheduling.as.me/?appointmentType=83784886
Right now, our world is chaotic and challenging and pretty scary. I think it is good to acknowledge and hold on to our awareness of the sorrow and suffering we are seeing.
But I think it is also possible to hold wonder and awe and possibility. As our Regional Lead for this Pacific Western Region of the Unitarian Universalist Association, Rev. Sunshine Jeremiah Wolf wrote this past summer, “To say yes to joy, humor, wonder, and play in a time of ever-increasing stress and uncertainty is an act of resistance all by itself…Cause good trouble and comfort in equal measure—it is needed now more than ever.”
I believe this is our true work—to come together in both lament and joy, precisely so that we can remain engaged, do our own work at BUF, do good work out in the world, and keep moving forward. I am so honored and privileged to be here at BUF. In spite of all that is happening around us, at BUF, I am optimistic for what the future holds.
— Sunny Joy McMillan, J.D., M.Div.