Rev. Michelle's Message May 21, 2026

What beautiful spring weather we are having this week! Alexander and I played hooky on Tuesday and went up to Corralitos to hike at the Byrne-Milliron Forest Preserve, one of our favorite places. We did a pretty challenging hike that goes up to the top of a ridge where you can see all across the Monterey Bay. It was just lovely. So beautiful and quiet up there that I didn’t want to come down.

I hope you all finding opportunities to stop and take time to notice and cherish the moments of beauty that pop up around you each day—whether that be the beauty of the natural world, a lovely piece of art or music or poetry, or simply noticing and savoring someone’s act of kindness or generosity. When we pause to pay attention to these moments of beauty, we anchor them in our hearts and allow them to inspire us and connect us more deeply with our own purpose.

Along the same lines, I’m excited to share with you over the next couple of weeks some of the deep insights and practical suggestions I have found in a wonderful new book called, A More Beautiful Way to Live: Nine Practices to Unlearn Habits of Anxiety, Fear, and Urgency. The author is Bethaney B. Wilkinson—a young African-American author, spiritual director, and podcaster who is an emerging voice and thought leader at the intersection of spirituality, building community, racial healing, and social change.

I’ll be using Wilkinson’s book for the next two to three Sunday lessons, so if you’re interested in getting the book and following along, you can purchase it on Amazon or your preferred retailer. If not, no worries. I’ll summarize the pertinent information in our lessons.

I was drawn to this book because it speaks to some of the concepts and practices that seem to have been emerging organically in my own life over the past decade or so—that is, finding myself easing into a generally slower pace of life, punctuated by regular “time-outs” for spiritual retreat, renewal, and reflection, cherishing moments of beauty and inspiration, and plenty of quality time spent engaging spiritually with the natural world.

I know you will find the author’s insights and suggestions practical and applicable as she guides us through a more beautiful way of living that includes practices like slowing down, connecting with our bodies, becoming more present to our lives, adopting meaningful rituals, and learning to accept life’s challenges as they come.

Beautiful Blessings,

Rev. Michelle Vargas

#unity #unityofmontereybay #amorebeautifulwaytolive