Let me give you a few of the memories that shaped me:

I was born in Florida and my first real memory of Florida was a sheriff showing up on our doorstep in nice glossy boots and asking my  family to leave. That, and alligators.  As a kid, I thought alligators were really cool.

We moved back up to upstate New York where my father is from.  I remember  people picketing outside our church because my father was doing a sermon on Jesus Christ Superstar for several Sundays in a row.

I remember my father crying in the living room when a congregation voted to split up.

I remember living for many years with my parents teaching school and my father being a farm manager for a local artist's commune. I remember  my first sheep shearing and  the sound that 600 guinea pigs make in a barn when they are waiting to be fed. 

I remember my father facing off with a  Baptist minister who had showed up on our doorstep  to explain to my father that he was keeping his children from seeing Jesus Christ.  I remember my father, pitchfork in hand, walking the minister back to his car and telling him never to return,  all the while never raising his voice.

I remember not being able to wait to get out of my hometown. I went to college early so that I wouldn't have to deal with senior year.

I remember the first time someone tried to mug me in Albany New York.

I remember doing the Landmark Forum  and realizing that I was no different from anyone else  and being okay with it.

I remember the first time I held Trent in my hands and  the  fierce joy in realizing that there was no turning back. 

I remember the first time Petra, my ex-wife,  said that I had to come to the UU church in Milford because they had sermons on things like Ramadan.

I remember my joy when Janice said yes.  And the joy in our partnership I have every day as she  continues to challenge me to be the man she married.

with love,

-Jim