Watch Out World

I have been pondering, did I unwittingly get accustomed to a slower pace during “Covid Lockdown”, or has it just been really busy lately? A little of the first, no doubt, but it has definitely been a busy few months! The flurry of gatherings now that we can meet in person, while demanding, has been a rewarding reminder of how much of what we do here is relational.

As many who worked remotely for the first time this last year discovered, one can be very productive alone at home, working at your desk. The solitude means less interruptions as we intently work on projects–important projects—like this quarterly newsletter, seminar outlines, meeting agendas, website content updates, creating brochures, etc. All are vital to sharing the good news of NFP! But the real work of promoting NFP is in the “interruptions”–the people. People are at the heart of NFP, and CANFP. Of course, even during “lockdown”, we continued to encounter our members, and provide counsel, referrals, information and resources, through email/ phone/virtual meetings (anyone else experience zoom burnout?). But it just is not the same as gathering in person.

So it was with a heightened appreciation for that personal face to face encounter, that only being deprived of it for so long can bring, that I found myself renewed and energized by recent events.

It was a joy to be in the Archdiocese of San Francisco, forming new relationships and renewing old ones, at the Together in Holiness conference, which longtime CANFP Professional Member Finola Glassmoyer writes about in this edition.

It was stimulating—and just an all around fun evening (thanks to our hosts, the Schuberg family!)—to meet with priests and seminarians at the other end of the state, in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, to discuss how to more effectively promote NFP in the parish. And it is ALWAYS a shot of adrenaline to my motivation, to spend a day in the company of our dedicated board, as we did as well in the Los Angeles region in September.

Historic, is the word that comes to my mind, to describe the national NFP summit, which Fr. Berg writes about in his President’s Perspective. It was an honor to represent all of YOU, at this first of its kind gathering of NFP leaders from throughout the nation. We contributed our 29 years of experience here in California of uniting all methods of NFP, to this national sharing of the minds, on how we can pool our talents and resources to more effectively advocate for NFP. It may have been the first such national gathering of its kind, but I am confident it will not be the last, as this coalition continues to collaborate.

Watch out world! When we work together—be it in person or virtually—there will be no stopping us!