Last Lecture Series
Contributed by Rev. Sarah Welton, PhD
It is difficult to know where to start and how much information to provide! In June I was told that my cancer had returned and in July the scans confirmed it. In August, it was communicated to me that my cancer was terminal. I was quite surprised as I had had two miracle surgeries and was given at least a decade more of life. My window was said to be in the narrow time of months. I did not feel sick, and I do not feel sick as I write this essay. I chose not to have any treatment as the odds of the treatment helping me live longer and with a good quality of life are not that great. My oncologist told me to “go and live my life.” That is hard to do when you get that kind of news, and I have pursued living my life with more determination to enjoy it!
As you may know, I am the Pastor of The Meeting House, also known as the Church of the Covenant, Palmer, Alaska. I served on the Mat Su Borough School Board for 18 years. While serving on the school board, I taught at Mat Su College for 14 of those years. Some of the courses I taught included: Cultural Foundations of Human Behavior, Conflict Resolution, and many Psychology courses including Human Relations, Managing Stress, Enhancing Self Esteem, Death and Dying, and Rational Living. I have served on nonprofit boards and am currently serving on the board of Daybreak, Inc. While working as a mental health counselor in my private practice, I earned a PhD in Organizational Psychology. My research was on Moral Identity and the theoretical underpinnings of how we make moral decisions.
In September, I was involved in the International Day of Peace at The Meeting House in Palmer. This was supposed to be a day of sharing stories and of art related to peace. Children’s books were to be distributed and there would be light refreshments. While a few children attended there were more adults. The adults sat around a fellowship table and had great conversations and discussions about peace and other topics related to education and books. I thoroughly enjoyed that day of sharing with the people who came by and joined in. I received positive feedback about doing more discussion times.
I love those opportunities for discussion and learning. It has come to me that there might be interest in following up on the ideas of The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch (2008). He was given a terminal diagnosis and turned his last lecture into his understanding of his pursuit of knowledge, lessons learned, and with gratitude, and hope. I have thought long and hard over what I have to offer in the last part of my life. I am still preaching most Sundays and leading discussions which keeps me pursuing knowledge and spiritual growth. The relationships at The Table are so important to me and they fill my spirit. I am still doing mental health counseling, reviewing what I have forgotten and what new insights I have concerning issues of aging and death and dying. I am reading lots of books and discovering new genres that are of interest.
I have scheduled some time for free lectures, at The Meeting House (415 S. Bailey, Palmer) for the last Saturdays of the month, starting with an introductory lecture with follow up discussion on December 28, 2024, from 1 PM to 3 PM. Light refreshments will be served. My topic of presentation will be Making Meaning Out of Life or How to Begin a Mission Statement for Living. Other topics will be presented as people show interest. Come and meet with me and discuss my presentation or other themes that emerge. All are welcome.