WE’RE PERENNIALS
From La Paloma to Chalking the Sidewalks:
Stories of Floridian Queer Resistance & Flower Communion
What do we hide, what do we refuse to hide, and what does it cost us either way?
This Sunday is our Flower Communion. We hold the question of concealment and disclosure inside the long memory of Florida queer resistance. We tell two stories, eighty-eight years apart. A 1937 nightclub outside Miami was raided by hooded men and reopened within weeks, with the symbol of its attackers turned into a farce. A 2025 rainbow crosswalk painted over by the state and chalked back in, again, by hands that knew the chalk would not last. A perennial is a flower that knows how to come back. We belong to a long line of them.
The Unitarian Universalist Flower Communion service, a cherished tradition that dates back to 1923, was beautifully crafted by Dr. Norbert Capek, the visionary founder of the Unitarian movement in Czechoslovakia, and lovingly brought to the United States by his wife, Rev. Maya Capek. This uniquely Unitarian Universalist celebration serves as a vibrant affirmation of the rich human diversity and beauty that our congregation embodies. We invite you to bring your own flower(s) to the service, each representing your unique identity and story.
Join us live in the sanctuary or Live Stream on our YouTube Channel.
