Unprecedented

Last week, I read an article where the author argued that while January 1 may be the beginning of the calendar year, the New Year is really the beginning of September. Of course, our Jewish colleagues have been celebrating that for centuries! This is the time when schools begin, congregational program years begin, many ACPE residencies commence, and American football returns.

But not this year. Of course, Rosh Hashanah will still be celebrated, but it will be unlike any celebration in recent memory. According to Pew, most congregations have not returned to face-to-face activities including worship and education, though many places are feeling increasing pressure to reopen. Some have put up tents for outdoor gatherings, an option that may not work for the still hot South and will only be available for a few more weeks in the rapidly cooling North. Autumn leaves will begin to change colors and fall, but schools are in a kind of liminal, experimental moment with a mix of face to face and online education underway across the US.

Many residencies are underway along with several extended units, while others have been on hold until recent surges in COVID-19 have abated. Even for those that have commenced, there is a kind of hitch in the hearts and minds of students and educators, worried that the surge may come their way at any time. And watching football played in empty stadiums is nothing short of surreal.

Amidst all of this, Hurricane Sally swamped the Gulf Coast, and fire seems to have taken on its own pandemic proportions across the West. Colleagues in Oregon, Washington and California have seen air quality plummet during the fires, with conflicting political messages exacerbating the fear and frustration of the general public, much like COVID-19. Gulf Coast colleagues must grapple with wave after wave of storms and flooding, ultimately wrestling with the new climate normal.

It is all so very hard. I keep turning back to Carrie Newcomer’s “You Can Do This Hard Thing” to remind me that we are not along in this, that we have an extended family that is ACPE who can provide support, encouragement, or simply an ear to release our rage or grief or feelings of hopelessness. This particular recording of Carrie’s song includes members of Carrie’s larger community. You may even see some people you recognize.

We continue to make time with the ACPE staff to simply share our hearts, to make sure that we hold together as a team. We know that those of you providing front-line care must be exhausted. We know that our psychotherapy members are hearing and seeing levels of mental health crises that may be at levels well above anything they’ve experienced in their careers. And throughout it all, we are still working to address systemic racism and white privilege, not only standing alongside our Black colleagues, but also speaking back to those who seek to demonize the important witness of Black Lives Matter.

And November is coming, with national elections that are filled with so much uncertainty, anger, confusion, and even threat. These dynamics are also present in our community of clinical professionals, and we would be foolish to ignore the ways they are shaping our discourse, triggering our emotions, and bending our souls. It is all so damned hard.

Last week I took time one day to count all the times I heard or read the word “unprecedented.” Before noon, I had already encountered it over 40 times. I worry that the underlying message is that we can’t do this hard thing when the message is reinforced over and over again that we don’t know what the future holds. It is in this time that, at least within ACPE, we can draw on the vision and wisdom of those pioneers in 1967 that believed a faithful, committed, passionate group of colleagues could come together even across their differences to foster a movement that could speak to the deep hurts of our communities, of our nation, and of our world. That was a time of social upheaval as well, a time where “unprecedented” was the theme of the day. May we be inspired and even fueled by that vision today, one that seeks to tend to the vulnerable in ways that leads to transformation, that teaches and counsels, challenges and encourages, wonders, and dares.

May those who follow us look back on this unprecedented time with admiration for the ways we not only did this hard thing but helped lead a nation that is longing for the moral and spiritual leadership necessary for building the beloved community.