By Sonrisa Alter, Wy’East Congregation
One year ago, as I poured out my heart and my tear ducts for the bridging seniors at Spring Con 2010, a part of me couldn’t help but wish I were among them. If, as I’d assumed, the strength of the youth culture rises and falls every few years, then it seemed like that con would certainly be our peak. We had emerged from the discord of broken community and the steady labor of repairing it to find a utopia at our feet. CONnection played out with a perfect vibe and perfect weather to match, in many ways the polar opposite of the now-infamous “DramaCON” of Fall 2008. So while I felt tremendously thankful to have one more year of cons ahead of me, I also envied the 2010 bridgers their luck to leave on such a high note. After a con like that, it seemed like the only way left for us to go was downhill, especially since we were losing so many of the leaders who had helped to turn our culture around. I worried that in my final year, I would see the incredible community we had worked so hard to build begin to unravel.
I have never been happier to be wrong. Not only did our culture sustain the progress we’d made in previous years, but it also expanded from there in ways I never could have imagined. Our so-called peak became a launching pad. We saw con attendance skyrocket this year, with this Spring Con nearly half again as large as last year’s, and welcomed 6 new congregations, including the UU Fellowship in Anchorage, Alaska (I still can hardly believe it). To help these new attendees adjust, we instituted a newcomer orientation. Meanwhile, the sponsors exemplified whimsy and camaraderie, forming their own cuddle puddle and lap tag game and planning a fantastic talent show act. We continued to flesh out Spirit Corps, introducing energy maps and transitioning to exclusively online sign-ups. The bridging ceremony also received an overhaul, and while it did not go off entirely without issue, it was a great first run and a beautiful way for us to say goodbye to the con community and hello to a new phase of life (for the record, I did not cry at my bridging—somehow, to my astonishment, I just felt ready). And in the midst of all this, we managed to spearhead a fundraiser benefiting LGBTQ youth with the involvement of twenty-six UU congregations across the United States and Canada. Frankly, congoers, we rock.
And beyond our tangible achievements, this con felt different in a more subtle way. There is certainly something to be said for the organized chorus of “Hello, beautiful goddess!” that greeted me as I entered the Saturday Spirit Corps meeting, and for the fact that the wall of the SeptiCon Facebook group is still being peppered with “I miss con!” posts more than a week later. We may not have had perfect weather, but I have never felt as much love as I did at this con. It was a perfect time to bridge.
As you continue to carry the torch of this sacred community ever higher, I ask only that you never presume you’ve reached the top. As we’ve seen this year, no matter how fantastic con becomes, there will always be room for it to exceed your wildest expectations. May its roots hold you close. May its wings set you free. Blessed be.
Ed. note: These articles are from ConText, the newsletter published after every Con.
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