I've been attending Meeting for about six months or so, gradually learning about Quakers and gleaning enough spiritual nourishment to keep me going. However, a lot of Quaker stuff remained a mystery and, despite lots of friendly Meetings, I still felt like I didn't know many Quakers. So, I decided to go to Young Friends General Meeting. I had the vague intention of "meeting Friends" and a niggling worry that I'd be the only new person in a community where everyone already knew everyone else.
I was wondering whether or not to go to the Enquirers' sessions: The annual Enquirers' Gathering is particularly for those new to Quakers and/or YFGM; it runs at the same time as lots of the business at YFGM and I didn't want to be the only one in it...! My concern started to fade when I happened to find myself sat at a breakfast table with about five people who all had "N" for new on their badges. However, it was only when Ed announced that the Enquirers' sessions were going to start and about half of the attendees got up that I realised how unfounded my worries were!
We sat in a circle and it felt like a really safe place to ask about things I would otherwise assume everyone knows. In addition, the facilitators were really good at predicting some of the things we might be unsure about and just explaining without waiting for us to ask, they also told us about the origins of Quakerism and other general information about the Society, like what some of the acronyms mean and the responsibilites of some of the different roles.
We started by all sharing our names, where we live and a bit about our involvement with Quakers, which was great: There was a really wide range of experiences amongst us - something I never would have guessed. Some of us had only recently come to Quakers; some of us had been attending for a few months or years; some of us had been brought up in Quaker families, but never been to YFGM... Every time I talk to lots of Quakers I'm surprised both by how diverse we are and how much we have in common. Everyone was so warm, friendly and open too - a great start for the weekend.
We all shared either why we'd come to YFGM and what we were expecting of it or why we kept coming to YFGM and what we liked about it. One thing I found really helpful was hearing that some Friends who now felt really comfortable at YFGM hadn't always felt that way. It really helped me to relax into the experience and not worry about not feeling immediately at home, which - in turn - greatly contributed to feeling at home. I discovered that quite a few other Friends had turned up not really knowing what to expect - yet again, I wasn't the only one.
Next, it was time to get out of the Meeting House. There were so many of us that there wasn't enough space for us in the coffee shops, but we still got our tea, coffee and cake! Lots of informal chat and friendliness as we devoured muffins, brownies and biscuits, before returning in time for lunch. I really liked having specific time and space to socialise; it helped me feel part of the community, something that continued into my first Meeting for Business, which I found incredibly powerful and moving.
I started the weekend feeling self-conscious and ended it being Really Silly with ridiculous circle games that had me in tears with laughter. I did try to write-up our extreme re-creation of Zip, Zap, Boing but I just can't do it justice on paper. Come and play it with us next time! (Oh, and I mustn't forget to mention the Cup Dance amongst the other brilliant fun and games).
By the end of the weekend, even though we'd been cramming in lots of activity, I realised I'd made quite a few friends and really didn't want to leave. Thankfully it's not too long until the YFGM Planning Weekend in April... :)
Published in Younbg Quaker magazine.