Children and Young People and Families Update

Julia Dover

As the days soften and lengthen, as the sap begins to run, we enter the time of Wonder for OSAM Friends.

Wonder is defined as “a feeling of amazement and admiration caused by something beautiful, remarkable and new”; Wonder summons our rapt attention and well of deep emotion: the sight of a comet in the night sky, on its journey from some unfathomable place. The tender, wordless expression of love. The kindness of strangers. A simple joy of being alive in the present moment, engaging with the world around us as if for the first time. The return of swallows in spring… on and on.

Expressions of wonder are infinite; its felt experience is generous, liberating, beyond time (and often language), and our birthright as living beings on the planet.

The children in our midst are mirrors of our own inner capacity to experience wonder. The Wonder Days series of year-long activities in OSAM celebrate how we connect to each other through the qualities we associate with children but are integral to each of us regardless of age:

Matthew 18, Verses 2-4:

And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

The all-aged attunement to wonder kicks off in Oxford Meeting with the making of a ‘Wonder Box’ by children, which they will introduce to the adult Friends at Meeting for Worship on 26 February. Friends of all stripes are invited to write their responses to the question “What makes your heart sing?” on paper hearts, to add to the Wonder Box. The box will be in situ in the Oxford Meeting House (so you can add your singing hearts) until 11 March, where it will be taken to Burford Area Meeting. There, Friends from all parts of OSAM will add their singing hearts to the Wonder Box.

These collected singing hearts will inspire a series of all aged (beyond age!) ‘Wonder Days’ across the year and the region which draw Friends together in different ways through the experience of awe.

Other activities and dates to note:

‘Tea, Cake, and Play’ is now a lively weekly happening for parents, grandparents, guardians, and toddlers from across the city, held at Oxford Meeting House each Tuesday 10:00-12:00. The playful energy the families bring to the MH is a gift.

A core group of volunteer Friends is needed to co-run the group- serving refreshments, greeting participants – so the group can flourish. Please get in touch if interested. I offer full training, inspiration, and guidance to volunteers to support the group’s evolution.

Sharing Stories: Quaker Outreach Afternoon, Sibford School. Thursday 15 June 2023
13:30-15:30

OSAM Friends are invited to spend a June afternoon with primary- aged children at Sibford School, where pupils will practise their interviewing skills with Friends, and all will discover what they have in common regardless of age. Shared afternoon tea is a highlight. It would be brilliant if enough Friends participate so each can buddy up with a pupil one to one. Please contact me by 1 April with interest (all visitors to Sibford School must have a DBS certificate).

Speaking of Sibford School, on 5 July I will join the team of tutors at Woodbrooke to co-facilitate a day for Sibford Year 7 pupils.

 

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Forty-Three Newsletter • Number 527 • March 2023
Oxford Friends Meeting
43 St Giles, Oxford OX1 3LW

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