I am, like so many of you, disheartened by the steady stream of bad news coming out of Washington- of wrong decisions being made by people in power that detrimentally hurt the majority of the population. I will continue to call and write congress persons, just like so many of you. Sadly, I am also deeply disheartened like many of you by the Evangelical Christian church. We seem so far removed from who Jesus is and what He taught. When I look at it all, I wonder how can we as Jesus’ followers make a difference- impact people’s lives as He did and does. I come back to staying connected and centered on God. I come back to staying connected with each other- for when the light of my candle grows dim, I can see by your shared light, and vice versa. And I come back to- in the present moment- connected to all those around me and to myself, just as Jesus modeled. In the present moment we make a difference through our connectedness, as we see each person and care about each one, just as Jesus did. I write this as my connectedness to you is important. I am relying on that to help my light grow a little brighter.