August 8^th   UUFETA Service   1st UU Church of Austin

Kathleen, Mignon, & Martin Bryant and Leslie Currens, Worship Leaders

Johnny Barnett, Will Bryant, and Mary K. Isaacs, Musicians

Creating	Gathering Music			Johnny, Mary K., Martin
Sacred Space	Prelude		The Answers  words: Robert Clairmont  music: Alex Wilder		Will
	Chalice Lighting		“We clasp the hands of those that go before us, and the hands of those that come after us.  We enter the circle of each other’s arms.. and the larger the circle of lovers, whose hands are joined in a dance, and the larger the circle of all creatures, passing in and out of life, who move also in a dance, to the music so subtle and vast that no ear hears it, except in fragments”   - Wendell Berry		Congregation
	*Hymn -		All God's Critters   words & music: Bill Staines		Congregation
Life in the	*Announcements & Welcome				Martin
Community	Story for all ages		Koko's Kitten   Francine Patterson		Mignon
	Special Music		Ami’s Song    words & music: Mary K. Isaacs		Mary K.
	*Special Celebration		Animals in our lives		Congregation
	*Children's     recessional		“Go now in peace, go now in peace, May the spirit of love surround you, Everywhere, everywhere, you may go.”		Congregation
Centering	Reading	from Henry Beston			Leslie
	Offertory	Seal Lullaby   words: Rudyard Kipling    music: Alex Wilder			Mary K.
	Homily	Vegetarianism - a commitment of faith			Kathleen
	Homily	Expanding the Circle of Compassion			Leslie
Going Forth	*Hymn	#175  We celebrate the web of life			Congregation
	Closing Words				Martin
	Postlude				Johnny, Mary K.

* opportunities to seat latecomers

Koko’s Kitten – Adapted from Koko’s Kitten by Francine Patterson

This is a story about Koko the gorilla and her pet, a little kitten she named All-Ball. 

Koko was born on the Fourth of July in 1971 in the San Francisco Zoo, and was named Hanabi-Ko, which means “Fireworks Child” in Japanese.  Her whole life, almost thirty years now, Koko has lived with Dr. Penny Patterson, who has been teaching Koko to “speak” American Sign Language.  American sign language is “signed” by over three hundred thousand deaf Americans, including quite a few that live and work near our church.

Koko knows over a thousand words in sign language and understands much spoken English.   She uses over one hundred different words every day.  Koko lives with several researchers and another gorilla in California.

Koko, like all gorillas, is big, gentle, and vegetarian.  She loves to play chase, paint, play dolls, and watch TV.  She calls herself, “Fine animal gorilla.”

Koko loves birthdays and seems to understand them.  Penny asked her what she does on her birthday, and Koko answered, “Eat, drink, old.”  Many years ago when Koko it was almost time for her birthday, Penny asked her, “What do you want for your birthday?”

“Cereal there.  Good there drink,” Koko signed.

“But what presents do you want?” Penny asked.

“Cat,” answered Koko.   Later, she repeated, “Cat, cat, cat.”

Penny wasn’t surprised Koko wanted a cat.   You see, Koko loves picture books.  Koko likes to be by herself with some books, study the pictures, and sign to herself about them.  Gorilla books are her favorite, but two of her favorite stories are “Puss in Boots” and “The Three Little Kittens.”  So Penny started looking for a toy cat – a sturdy one because gorillas are strong, and stuffed toys don’t last long.

Penny finally ordered a cement cat covered with vinyl and black velvet.  It looked real, and would be sturdy, “gorilla-proof” but it didn’t come in time for Koko’s birthday.

It was at Christmas-time, half a year later, that Penny gave Koko the toy cat.  Koko loves to get presents, so she loves Christmas, too.

Christmas morning, Koko ate her cereal and opened her stocking.  It was filled with nuts.  She threw them aside and went to the next present.

She unwrapped a doll.  “That stink,” Koko signed.

Penny was surprised.

Then came the heavy velvet cat.

“That red,” she signed.

Koko often used the word red to express anger.  Koko was very upset.  She started running back and forth, banging on her walls.  She was angry.

Penny finally figured out why Koko was unhappy:  Koko was disappointd in her presents, she didn’t want a toy cat.  Koko wanted a real cat.  Koko wanted a pet, someone to love and care for.

It was almost Koko’s next birthday when one of the researchers brought three kittens to Koko so she could choose one

When the researcher showed the kittens to Koko, Koko signed -

“Love that.”

Koko examined each kitten carefully, and then chose a little tailless gray tabby.

Perhaps Koko liked the tabby best because he didn’t have a tail  - a gorilla has no tail, after all, and neither do other primates – like chimpanzees and humans.

Koko carried the little kitten on her thigh.  Then, she pushed him up onto the back of her neck.  This is how gorillas carry their babies.  “Baby,” Koko signed.

She cradled the tabby in her legs and examined its paws.  Koko gently squeezed, and the tabby’s tiny claws came out.

“Cat do scratch,” Koko signed, “Koko love.”

Penny asked, “What will you name the kitty?”

“All-Ball,” Koko signed.

For a while, the kitten only came to visit in the evenings.  “What happens at night?” Penny asked.  “All-Ball,” signed Koko.  And when the kitty came, Koko signed, “Visit love tiger cat.”

Soon All-Ball stayed all the time, and was a permanent member of the family.  Koko had her kitten at last.

All-Ball grew to be a very aggressive cat.  He bit people for no reason, and bit Koko, too.  So when Ball started sneaking into Koko’s trailer by himself, Koko’s human friends were worried, because they didn’t know how she would treat All-Ball if no one else was around.  But even when All-Ball would bite her, Koko would sign, “Cat bite.  Obnoxious,” but never, ever hurt her kitty.  “Koko love Ball,” she signed.

Koko treated Ball as if he were her baby and she was a good gorilla mother.  She carried him around.    She combed and petted and kept him clean.  She examined his eyes, ears, and mouth to make sure he was healthy.  It was Koko who discovered Ball’s ear mites. 

When asked about Ball, Koko once signed  “Soft, good cat, cat” 

On a foggy December morning, Ball was killed when he was accidentally hit by a car. 

When Penny told Koko that Ball had been hit by a car and Koko would not see him again, Koko began to cry.  She cried a long series of high-pitched hoots.

A few days later, Penny asked Koko, “Do you want to talk about your kitty?”

“Cry,” Koko signed.

Penny told Koko she too had cried for Ball. and asked Koko  “What happened to your kitty?”

“Sleep cat“ Koko signed.

Koko was sad about All-Ball for some time.  Later, though, she began again to ask for, “Cat, cat, tiger cat,” for her birthday and Christmas.

As soon as she could find one, Penny brought Koko a new kitten:  a red tiger-striped Manx, which also has no tail.  Red is Koko’s favorite color.  Koko purred with pleasure.  She put the kitten on her chest and petted him.

“Baby,” she signed.

Koko named the new kitten “Lips-Lipstick” because it was red!

This story happened many years ago, and Koko has had other cats.  The one she has now is named “Smoky,” just like my leopard.  Koko understands what having a pet is about and has always been very good to her cats. 

Would you like to learn how Koko talks?

Here is the sign for “red”

Here is the sign for “Cat”

Here is the sign for “visit”

Here is the sign for “Love”

And here is the sign for “Koko”

Koko is a kind of ambassador:  she’s the first animal that we’ve been able to have long conversations with, the first animal of any kind that can “speak” one of our languages.  Scientists may tell us that our bodies are not very different from gorillas, our closest relatives among other animals.  Talking with Koko, we learn that we are very like Koko in other ways too.

 

A Place in the Choir (All God's Critters) - Bill Staines

 

Chorus:

G             

All God's critters got a place in the choir

D7                                   G

Some sing low, some sing higher

C                                                        G

Some sing out loud on the telephone wire and

D7                                       G

Some just clap their hands or paws or anything they got now.

G             

Listen to the bass; it's the one on the bottom

                                 D7                                        G

Where the bullfrog groans and the hippopotamus

C                                                        G

Moans and groans with a big to-do

D7                                                        G

The old cow just goes moo.

<<< chorus >>>

G             

The dogs and the cats they take up the middle

                     D7                                               G

The hummingbird hums and the cricket fiddles

           C                                               G

The donkey brays and the pony neighs

                    D7                               G

And the old coyote howls.

<<< chorus >>>

G             

Listen to the top where the little birds sing

                     D7                           G

On the melody with the high note ringing

           C                                               G

The hoot owl hollers over everything

                    D7                                 G

And the Jaybird disagrees

<<< chorus >>> 

We Celebrate the Web of Life  #175 in Singing the Living Tradition

                 D                   Bm 

We celebrate the web of life,

            Em               A7       D

its magnitude we sing;

           Bm                   G

for we can see divinity

Em                A7       D

in every living thing. 

                 D                   Bm 

A fragment of the perfect whole

       Em            A7       D

in cactus and in quail,

           Bm                   G

as much in tiny barnacle

Em                A7                  D

as in the great blue whale.

                 D                               Bm 

Of ancient dreams we are the sum;

       Em                       A7           D

our bones link stone to star,

           Bm                   G

and bind our future worlds to come

              Em                   A7                D

with worlds that were and are.

               D                            Bm 

Respect the water, land, and air

       Em                       A7                 D

which gave all creatures birth;

           Bm                          G

protect the lives of all that

          Em                  A7                D

share the glory of the earth. 

Closing words – Martin Bryant

Many millennia ago, an arboreal, vegetarian animal came down out of the trees, the slowest and weakest creature it's size.  By working together, we have come now from those humble beginnings to what we can only describe as God-like domination of the planet. 

For thousands of species of domesticated animals, we are their designers, either through selective breeding, or now, direct genetic manipulation.  For many of these animals we also tightly control the circumstances of their birth, mating, their every meal, and their death.

For almost every species of animal, including the “wild” ones, we hold life and death in our hands.  We determine whether or not they are hunted with our superior technology, and whether or not their predators or prey are hunted.  We determine the quality of their environment.  We decide whether their current way of life will be passed on to their young, or whether they will have to adapt to garbage dumpster diving or some other form of sustenance. We hold apocalyptic power in the form of nuclear capability, slash and burn agriculture, and urban sprawl to end their ecosystem altogether.

We punish them for their sins, like pottying on the carpet or killing sheep.  We reward their virtues, like winning races or retrieving frisbees.  No doubt some of these vices and virtues seem rather arcane to them.  We are Gods.

In this building, directly or indirectly we spend some time talking about God.  If our surveys are correct, around half of us are humanists and therefore believe we have some role in what kind of God we have.  So one of the topics we have around here is “What kind of God would you like?”

I’d like you to return to your three-year-old imagination and dwell a moment on what kind of God your dog would like, or a seal, a pig, a gorilla, or an elephant.  And then I’d like you to ask yourself.  “What kind of God will we be?”