Sabbatical 2022

We will hold our worship service with both Pastor Bobs at MacDowell Dam. This will be followed by a pot-luck lunch at the dam. Similar to past picnics, we will divide the congregation by last names and assign them a category of food or drink to bring. We will also try to designate a couple of "Grill masters" to help with the cooking of the meats.

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The service will have a hand-off from Bob Marrone to Bob Fellows and will also be communion.

We will get group tickets to the Fisher Cats game on Father’s Day versus the Somerset Patriots. If we get enough people to sign up, we will take a bus from the church. If not, we will arrange carpooling to get there. It will be a fun day of baseball and fellowship. We will have seats behind home plate and the ticket includes Ballpark Meal Voucher (Hot Dog, Chips, & a Drink) plus a Group Hat.

This will be a 50-60 minute session, exploring various kinds of meditation, for us to experience here; and then ways to continue our practice at home. 

We will meditate briefly together, and we will also have time to share ideas about how meditation has helped us.

I will bring a list of helpful information resources, and we can share resources also.

We will be sitting in chairs, in the Parlor, at church.

KaitLynne and Emily Foote are planning a hike or drive up Pack Monadnock in Peterborough on August 6th. Whether you join the walk or drive up the auto road, you are invited to join us at the summit for a Bring Your Own picnic with some gorgeous views and fellowship.

Rev. Fellows will offer a spiritually oriented paint night that is easy and fun. Anyone can do this. Please sign up early because the class will be limited to 14 people.

Enjoy a beverage and biscotti. You will go home with your own acrylic painting on stretched canvas, ready to hang!

Recently, the myriad uses of the words "refugee," "immigration" and "resettlement," in conversations and in the media, are reminders that America is truly a country of  immigrants. Indeed, newer residents in the Monadnock Region may be unaware that in past recent decades, there have been refugee resettlement actions in local churches and community organizations. Wouldn't it be beneficial to revisit past efforts, reunite with "old" friends, learn of the experiences of others and enjoy our commonalities? Socializing would be enhanced by looking at photos, family favorite crafts and a few "treasures" displayed on tables by those willing to share. And some tasty "finger food" from various kitchens can be sampled while visiting, don't you think? Hopefully, such an afternoon would help all of us focus on Loving Our Neighbors!

A combined ice cream social and dance event.

7:00 - group warm-up with a Hokey Pokey and Chicken Dance

7:15 - ice cream sundae bar opens

7:15 - dancing will continue until 8:30

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Ice Cream Social:

Make your own:

Ice Cream Sundaes: with toppings including hot fudge, strawberry and butterscotch sauces, whipped cream, nuts, sprinkles, cherries.

Ice Cream Cones: with our without sprinkles.

Root Beer or Ginger Ale Floats.

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Dance:

Simple line dances like Alley Cat, Chicken Dance, Cupid Shuffle, Electric Slide, Boot Scoot Boogie, Hokey Pokey!

Time for freestyle dancing to recorded music.

Think Dancing Queen!

Rev. Fellows will offer a spiritually oriented paint night that is easy and fun. Anyone can do this. Please sign up early because the class will be limited to 14 people.

Enjoy a beverage and biscotti. You will go home with your own acrylic painting on stretched canvas, ready to hang!

Christian Ed has been busy planning a fun two-day retreat. Activities include a Harris Center hike, Willard Pond exploration with swimming, naturalist presentation with activities and scavenger hunt, ice cream, cookout, games, magic and a host of other options ready to be presented by our team. Church families and friends are welcome to sign up in advance for any part of the retreat. Meals will be provided beginning Sunday evening, July 31 through lunch on Tuesday, August 2.

One of the important summer events in my life since the 1970’s has been attending and teaching at a summer family conference that we call "Camp Winni."  I will be teaching there during the first week of August and I would like to invite you and any other interested church families to consider sharing in religious study, self exploration, uplifting music, beach time, and recreation at Geneva Point Center on beautiful Lake Winnipesaukee.

Winni has been a fun, inspiring, healing experience for church families for over 100 years. I invite you to look at the offerings this year and consider joining me at this conference!

Follow the link below to view the brochure:

https://m.campwinni.org/f/2022_NNESRE_Brochure.pdf

Follow the link below to learn more about “Camp Winni”:

http://www.campwinni.org/home.html

I would be glad to answer any questions you might have about the experience.  Please feel free to email me questions at revfellows@comcast.net or to give me a call on my cell phone at 603-562-1022.

This will be the finale of the sabbatical. Worship will be followed by a catered luncheon for the whole congregation. Bob Fellows will “pass the torch” back to Bob Marrone and we will have fellowship time to discuss our summers and how all the sabbatical activities went.

Rev. Fellows will offer a spiritually oriented paint night that is easy and fun. Anyone can do this. Please sign up early because the class will be limited to 14 people.

Enjoy a beverage and biscotti. You will go home with your own acrylic painting on stretched canvas, ready to hang!

This will be a basic stretching class, on mats on the floor, with standing and sitting positions.

It will be simple stretching, plus we will learn some body prayers. They consist of learning a prayer and the body movements that accompany the prayer. They are simple, easy to learn, and powerful. One was taught by Quaker volunteers to people in refugee camps, many years ago.

Each person will need a mat, and a cushion or folded blanket to sit on.

In keeping with the Deep Silence phase of the sabbatical, a silent walk along paths in Shieling Forest is proposed.  We will gather at the parking lot off of Old Street Rd.  The walk will take us over bridges crossing two branches of a brook, by a native flower garden and through a forest to two giant boulders.  A silent walk will allow us to meditate on the wonders of creation that we are part of. We will return to the parking lot by a different path.

The music begins and the magician walks out. What will happen first? A card appears at the fingertips, then another and another. A flash of fire, and they're all gone. Billiard balls. Silks. Is that a rabbit? Where did it go?

The show would not be complete without a child floating in the air, an escape from some manacle, and an audience member sawed in half. Stage magic evolved from the escapes of Houdini to the illusions of Doug Henning to the card manipulations of Ricky Jay. Bob Fellows had a career that spanned all forms of magic and illusion before becoming ordained as a minister. He traded the "trinity of Leno, Letterman, and Las Vegas" for the Holy Trinity. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Magic opens our minds to possibilities and reminds us that the world is not as it appears to be.

When we can't fully trust our senses, our anchor must be spiritual.

What a great way to spend an evening with friends—live and in person—full of laughs and surprises.

Come enjoy some time on a farm with a few animals, amazing ice cream and even a corn maze.