Courage born of fear: #UU #YouTube #amreading

Recently, I participated in a service on the topic of courage at the Unitarian Universalists of Mt. Airy in Philadelphia. The YouTube video of my part of the service is above and the text is below.

Courage born of fear

When Shaie mentioned that the theme for this month’s worship was courage and that she would be speaking on it, I immediately thought that I had something to say on the topic also.  When I was writing my novel Dick Moby over the summer, the talking whale in my head and on the page had a lot to say about her courage in navigating an increasingly treacherous ocean.

My sperm whale, who has secretly named herself Dick Moby to remind herself that she is fierce and who is pregnant during the novel and gives birth after a fifteen-month gestation period (which is average for sperm whales), says toward the end of the novel:

“When I told my pod members my rationale for taking a trip with my calf—that I wanted her to grow up free and strong and not ruled by fear–they didn’t say a word. I never told them the name I gave myself, Dick Moby, but I think my pod members admire me for my courage. I haven’t told my calf my secret name either – yet. But I will when she is old enough to understand why I gave myself that name. We whales must be fierce and I want my calf to grow to be as fierce as me. Right now, she is bold and curious. Even though there are things I learn from her also, she is a little me.”

I realized as I was writing this from the voice of the whale that I was also writing about myself. I have on a few occasions been described as courageous. “How do you do it?” Someone once said to me years ago about my writing. “You seem to have no fear.”

I remember another person describing me as courageous and I suspect that was about my sexuality since I have usually been adamant and comfortable in being myself. Of course, these two people were describing what they saw, what I put out into the world. When I look back on my younger self, with great compassion, I recall that the feelings behind my actions were not always courageous. But I always responded. I had no choice but to deal with things that came my way.

As I reflect now, perhaps it is because of the fear that so often spurred me into action, that I know courage. When asked on Unitarian Universalist forms to select a root religion, I always choose Buddhism. This is because I was raised secular by a rebellious atheist mother, and Buddhism feels most natural to me. In Buddhism, it is often said that suffering is part of nonsuffering. So, it’s possible that the experience of fear can create the action of courage. In any event, I did move through fear into courage.

Recently, I took a survey on the experience of LGBTQ+ Inclusion in Unitarian Universalist congregations. This took me down memory lane. As I recall when I first came to this congregation, my partner and I had been through much job-related discrimination. Personally, I felt beat up. I remember when I first came to this congregation, I was amazed that people were so welcoming and that our sexuality really didn’t seem to matter. That’s the way it should be, of course. But I was still amazed.

I say I went down memory lane because I have since recovered from the workplace homophobia. And my faith was more or less restored in humanity. Then the week I turned sixty I had a health scare that led me to embrace a healthy plant-based diet. After nearly three years of this, the health benefits are still rather astonishing. When we changed our diets, my partner and I had already been thinking about becoming vegan for the sake of the animals and the planet. So, of course, I still identify as a lesbian, but I probably identify more as a vegan since becoming one saved my life. When I started processing trauma, I had an “aha” moment when I found out about the trauma endured by lesbians and bisexual women which often makes us terminally ill. Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised, but I was. Internalized oppression is a complicated thing.

When I came to this congregation, I had faith that organized religion wasn’t as homophobic as I had heard it was. So, for me courage often goes hand in hand with faith.

–Namaste–

For information on my most recently published novel Loving Artemis click here

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Joy to the universe — a #UU Buddhist take #amreading #FaithfullyLGBT

This month I took part in a Unitarian Universalist service that talked about seasonal joy and what it means.

The YouTube video of the reflection is below. The text is below that. I hope the work has some meaning for you.

Hello.

When I think about what most brings me joy, I think about being part of the universe.

Being part of the vastness—looking up and seeing the frozen stars and moon brings me joy. Watching the winter sun setting–cold and hard behind a line of bare limbed trees–and then walking in the darkness and looking at the lights brings me joy also.

When I need to find joy, I remind myself that it helps to look up.

Unexpected strains of music also bring me joy. Dancing with my partner to the “Snoopy Song” brings me great joy.

I have a Buddhist practice of staying in the moment – of keeping myself wired to be positive – and I find much joy in the moment.

As the saying goes–neurons that fire together wire together. As a human being–who like all humans–is programmed for negativity–I take joy in rewiring myself to be happy and positive and healthy.

I take joy at being able to stay in the moment and at the deep knowing that the moment is all we really have.

Of course, as a writer I must look back–as in the case of the memoir about my father’s death that I am revising. It’ll be five years this May that my father died, and I am still greatly saddened by the thought of him being gone.

I know that the work is good and necessary for me to do, but when I go back to working on a chapter, I am deeply saddened because I am experiencing being back in the moment that I am writing about. I am so depressed after writing that I cannot even get down on the floor to do my yoga and meditation practice.

So, I sit in the sadness.

But I finish the short chapter the next day and I am back on the floor that evening-–working at doing my practice and delighting in being part of the universe.

–Namaste

To learn more about my novel THEY, a biblical tale of secret genders (published by Adelaide Books New York/Lisbon), click here.

To learn more about my recently published novel — The Unicorn, The Mystery, click here:

The Unicorn, The Mystery now available from Adelaide Books — #amreading #FaithfullyLGBT

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Shame, Shame, Shame — religious right bullies during Pride: #faithfullylgbtq #amreading

I often consider the world to be a Buddhist test. I pride myself to be able to wish everybody well — regardless. This time I failed that test. Not only did I get pissed — I relished the feeling of righteous anger.

You see, I got ganged up on in Twitter.  I was bullied as a child and really really don’t like being ganged up on. Then a crowd of boys pushed me down the steep hill that was behind the elementary school playground. This time it was retweets and likes on a homophobic Bible verse that was sent to me.  It did not matter that this was a Christian gang. I still got pissed.

I read and reread the verse. It was from Romans and part of it reads: “…for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust toward another.”

First of all, the “natural use of the woman” — really?!

Secondly, this verse tells us that there were LGBTQ people in Biblical times. Of course, we knew that, but this confirms that our tribe was there.

If anything, this Bible verse (which I have seen before) should be ignored. It also points out the necessity of re-writing the Bible which I did in THEY, a biblical tale of secret genders ( Adelaide Books).

I was ganged up on by this virtual mob during Pride. My first thought was shame, shame, shame. This is what we used to say during the LGBTQ Pride March in NY where we used to stop and point at the religious right people protesting the parade and chant back at them.

Shame on you for trying to make me feel bad about myself. And shame for trying to make a whole group of people feel bad about themselves.  What’s the point? Usually, homophobia has a fair amount of twinkle, twinkle (what you say is what you are) in it.

This is what I thought at first. But then I started to wonder what makes a homophobic right religious person tick. For surely by  driving people away from the church — it isn’t self preservation.

So I went to the major offender’s Twitter page and the first thing I saw was a donation button. Ah, money, I thought. That’s what they’re thinking. Then I saw a video about the migration of a certain Bible from Scotland to a recent “presidential” photo op in front of the church near the White House after the protestors in the street were scattered with tear gas.

I loved it when I saw that Mitt Romney was marching in the street with the Black Lives Matter protestors.  He was marching with a group of evangelical Christians who were singing “This Little Light of Mine.” Even if they came late to the party, they came. And even if some of these folks still oppose LGBTQ rights — other evangelicals (usually younger ones) are secure in their sexuality and are more open minded.

On this Twitter page (of the person who sent the homophobic Bible verse) there is no mention of justice and no mention of Jesus. There is no mention of goodness.

There is no mention that those protesting George Floyd’s murder are right — and that they are bending the moral arc of history toward justice.

We are at a pivotal moment in history — but not to back the forces of hate.

The young people are shaping the world that they want to live in.

Listen to them.

They are not your enemy.

 

To learn more about my novel THEY, a biblical tale of secret genders (published by Adelaide Books New York/Lisbon), click here.

 

 

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The Good News — #farmsanctuaries #animalrights #vegan

I try to avoid absorbing too much news. However, I have Windows 10 ( I’m on the computer a lot) so I always get the headlines. Yesterday, I got snagged and was ready to read another story about how awful things are when I came across an item under the heading of “good news” about a farm sanctuary tour for kids. I clicked on the link, began watching and was immediate flooded with good vibrations. I especially loved the donkeys and found out later that this sanctuary — Pasado’s Safe Haven in Washington State — was named for a donkey. We are living in dismal but changing times. But that fact that this sanctuary exists and is doing the essential work of rescuing the farm animals — the fact that farm animal sanctuaries are in existence all over the world — is good news!

Pasado’s Safe Haven Virtual Sanctuary Tour: Kids Edition!

 

To learn more about my novel THEY, a biblical tale of secret genders (published by Adelaide Books New York/Lisbon), click here.

 

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Happy Earth Day — the earth is speaking to us

Today is the fiftieth anniversary of Earth Day.  It is a joyous occasion and a heartbreaking one.  I couldn’t help noticing this as this crisis was breaking all around me. On my daily walk, I see that the flowers are erupting this year. A chorus of bird songs fills the air.  I’ve seen the photos of the planet becoming less polluted. Yet, it is very sad that the humans are suffering.

So, I take my walks everyday and do my Buddhist mantras for healing for the planet and all of her inhabitants.

Here are some of the photos I took on my walk.

To learn more about my novel THEY, a biblical tale of secret genders (published by Adelaide Books New York/Lisbon),click here.

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Why Write?— There’s no time like the present —#amwriting #writingcommunity

Writing is a process of going inward. This critical moment of history presents us with the opportunity to go inward.  As I recently said to friend who loves her characters but has abandoned her writing — all she has to do to spend time with her beloved characters is to listen to them and to write down what they have to say and the time to do that is now.

There are plenty of ways and reasons, that our society does not encourage us to go inward — especially to reflect and write down what we think. This could be dangerous.  If we do this, we may encourage others to do the same.  Besides, does anyone really profit from us when we go inward? Yes! We do!

The path to publication can be long and arduous but whether or not to publish is something you can decide to later. Personally, I never start writing because I want to publish.  I embark on a new project because I am curious and need to know more.

 

There are many reasons to write. I wrote a few down in a list that I will share with you:

— To understand ourselves better and to understand others more by expanding our empathy.

—To remember important things and people like our parents and our other ancestors —
And to preserve them for ourselves and also to pass along the stories to others   (including grandkids).

—To become stronger.

—To have a sustained experience of the joy of discovery.

—To let out the devil.

—To stay in the goodness.

—To tell the stories that haven’t been told.  (There’s a good chance that only we can tell     them.)

—It’s cheaper than therapy.

—It can help others.

—It’s an amazing way to pass the time!

 

To learn more about my novel THEY, a biblical tale of secret genders (published by Adelaide Books New York/Lisbon), click here.

 

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A UU reflection on pigs, a new novel and becoming a vegan — #NationalPigDay #vegan #amreading

This morning, I helped with a Unitarian Universalist service based on theme of International Pig Day.

The YouTube video of my talk  is below. The complete text of my talk is below that.  The service took place at the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Restoration on Stenton Ave. in Philadelphia.

https://youtu.be/w1fXdAjiX0o

Janet Mason National Pig Day Unitarian Universalist lay minister talks about National Pig Day and her new novel, Cinnamon, a dairy cow’s (and her farmer) path to freedom. Mason is the au… youtu.be

“It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer.” – Wilbur, the pig, talking about Charlotte, the spider, in Charlotte’s Web, the classic by E.B. White.

I was very excited when I learned that today is national pig day. National Pig Day was started in Texas – in fact it was started by Reverend McKinley’s art teacher, Ellen Stanley. Now it is an international holiday to honor the uniqueness of the pig.

I’ve always been drawn to pigs. Perhaps, it is their innate intelligence made obvious to me at a young age when I read Charlotte’s Web.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons that it was so easy for me to move to a plant-based diet last fall which I did for health reasons. This means that I only eat plants and cut out all animal products.

My partner Barbara and I had been moving toward a plant-based diet for several years prior to this because of compassion for the animals and concerns for our own now and future health.

So, when I started seeing an acupuncturist and she emailed me a link to a YouTube video of a physician talking about how a low-protein plant-based diet is the best way to avoid kidney stones, I was right there. The universe must have heard me, because the minute I gave up dairy, the muse descended in the form of a talking dairy cow.

For two and a half months, I wrote — almost without stopping — a novel titled Cinnamon: a dairy cow’s path (and her farmer’s) to freedom. And while I am still in the revision mode, this is the fastest I ever wrote the first draft of a novel. The larger arc of this pro-cow, pro-farmer novel is about the possibility of change.

Call it quantum physics or magic, everything around me seemed to line up for the writing. We had been visiting the cows, the pigs, the sheep and their offspring, the lambs, at Saul agricultural high school on nearby Henry Avenue for several years.  I never anticipated, however, that I would be writing a novel with a talking dairy cow as a narrator. The other narrator is a female dairy farmer.  The farmer and the cow, who she named Cinnamon, become friends which leads to a happy ending – something that is happening all over the world.

The writing of this novel was very intense. I knew that the dairy cows didn’t have an easy time of it – to say the least.  But I learned so much that I went through a period of consciousness raising. In spiritual terms, I began to see the beingness of the farm animals reflected back to me.  I could especially see this in their eyes.

I did write a novel – meaning it is fiction, which loosely interpreted means I made things up. But my farmer narrator, like me, has health issues that lead her to a plant-based diet.  Also, like me, she is lucky enough to have a partner who loves to cook for her. Like me, she starts to get better. And in the meantime, she becomes more connected to the farm animals. Like others who went to a plant-based diet, I became more compassionate – and that compassion extends to the animals, to myself and to the world.

I was delighted to learn that the Unitarian Universalist Association has an Animal Ministry. You may have seen the ad in UU World with a plate at the top with two eggs for eyes and a turned down piece of bacon under that – making a frowny face. A quote on the ad reads, “The United Nations says that a global shift to a plant-based diet is crucial to save the planet and to feed the growing population.” The website quotes the prominent Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh who has said, “Making the transition to a plant-based diet may be the most effective way an individual can stop climate change.”

This quote from Tich Nhat Hanh bears repeating:

“Making the transition to a plant-based diet may be the most effective way an individual can stop climate change.”

As my acupuncturist says, “By moving to a plant-based diet you are improving your health, helping the animals, and the planet as well. It seems like a no brainer.”

I would agree. We have plenty of prominent activists who espouse plant-based diets. These include noted activist Greta Thunberg and actor/activist Leonardo di Caprio. And we have the actor Joaquin Phoenix who, in his acceptance speech at the Academy Awards, talked about how we have descended into an egocentric world view and about the fact that everything is connected – including human rights, animal rights, and the future of the planet.

If you are interested in learning more, I recommend Plant Based News which has videos on You Tube — many of them featuring the noted cardiologist Dr. Neal Barnard.

In my novel, the dairy farmer feels very guilty that she sold her pig – who at the time was the size of a small adult human. She sold the pig to pay taxes on the land, which has been in her family for generations. Eventually, when she figures out that she can do things differently – by creating a farm animal sanctuary on her land where her animals can live out their natural lives – she adopts a new pig and names him Wilbur.

Like any writer, I did my research. Pigs and their lineages can be very complex. But here’s some interesting and fun facts that I learned about pigs: Farm animal pigs are direct descendants of wild boars which I understand can be very dangerous.  A boar is an uncastrated male domestic pig, but a boar can also mean a wild pig of any gender.

Pigs are known to be very intelligent. They are considered the fifth most intelligent animal in the world. Some say they are even more intelligent than dogs.

So, in this season of Lent, whether you identify as a Christian or not, consider being kind to your arteries as well as to pigs, by giving up pig products for a while – and see how you feel.

In doing so, you might reflect on the seventh Unitarian Universalist Principle:.Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

 

To learn more about my novel THEY, a biblical tale of secret genders (published by Adelaide Books New York/Lisbon), click here.

 

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Love is love — Happy #Valentines Day!

 

 

Happy Valentines Day!

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Interviewed about THEY — #amreading #FaithfullyLGBT

I was delighted to find that this interview was posted.

Where are you from? How has our childhood influenced you as an author?

I grew up in Levittown, a working-class suburb of Philadelphia in the states. The place was a bastion of sameness and it was very difficult there being different, but I did survive and became a writer. I was the first in my family to attend college and you never heard of being a writer as a career aspiration. I always wrote stories – even as a child. I also read a lot – you could call me a bookworm and was tall and loved to climb trees — so I almost actually had my head in the clouds. I also got a very strong work ethic from my upbringing — which came in handy.

Where did you go to college and what was your major? What were your career aspirations then?

I went to Temple University in Philadelphia – the same university where I now teach creative writing. I majored in journalism and then worked in the field and then in something called “communications” that included marketing. I worked for nonprofits – one was providing “forever” homes for legally free foster children. In another job, I worked for a nonprofit that provided services to disabled people and to elderly people. Journalism and marketing are actually good backgrounds for a creative writer because I learned how to set and meet deadlines. I also developed a sense of how important marketing is. It’s very important to get your book in front of the potential reader.

I did my own creative writing – nights, weekends, days off — the entire time I was working.

 

To read the entire interview, click here.

 

 

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Happy Thanks Living — #vegan #amreading

 

Happy Thanks Living!

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