Lehigh Valley Humanists

The smiling trio above, plus yours truly, collected that impressive pile of trash in the foreground. Two new members joined us for our 10/26 sweep. You'll notice the jackets and flannel, a sign of the cooler weather moving in.

Our final event for 2024 will be on December 7th, the 83rd anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Weather in December can be downright cold, so watch the local forecasts for suggestions.

Sign up today and mark your calendar. Bring a smile and a friend if you like and we'll make quick work of our three sections. Look for our enthusiastic group under the tree at the entrance to the Lil'-Le-Hi Trout Nursery parking lot.

And, of course, the boilerplate...

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Adopt-a-Highway is one of the ways our group gives back to the
community. The road we maintain is one which is heavily used by local
people and visitors alike because of the park, hiking and biking
trails, fishing locations, the Indian Culture Museum, and proximity to
the hospital. Keeping it looking nice allows travelers a better
experience, and our signs let them know it is our group that cares
enough to do the work. Please come lend a hand!

We go rain or shine as long as it's not a downpour. Dress for the weather but stay optimistic. We usually have plenty of sunshine and camaraderie!

PennDOT supplies bags, gloves, vests and signs so all you need to bring is yourself and a pick-up stick if you have one you prefer. Expect a short safety meeting before we head out.

There is an overflow parking lot just 100 yards to the east of our paved lot on the opposite side of Fish Hatchery Road. It's a gravel lot, but only a short walk from there to our "Assembly Tree". So, don't be discouraged if the paved lot is full.

Contact me ([email protected]) if you need more info.

January: Book Selection Month: Please bring a book to recommend.
January 2025: Steve’s 10 year anniversary organizing the book club!
Note: All the upcoming books and those that we didn’t select are listed at the bottom of this section.
January: The Other Significant Others: Reimagining Life with Friendship at the Center by Rhaina Cohen
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
AN INDIE BESTSELLER
Why do we assume romantic relationships are more important than friendships? What do we lose when we expect a spouse to meet all our needs? And what can we learn about commitment, love, and family from people who put deep friendship at the center of their lives?
In The Other Significant Others, NPR's Rhaina Cohen invites us into the lives of people who have defied convention by choosing a friend as a life partner―these are friends who are home co-owners, co-parents or each other’s caregivers. Their riveting stories unsettle widespread assumptions about relationships, including the idea that sex is a defining feature of partnership and that people who raise kids together should be in a romantic relationship. Platonic partners from different walks of life―spanning age and religion, gender and sexuality and more―reveal how freeing and challenging it can be to embrace a relationship model that society doesn't recognize. And they show that orienting your world around friends isn't limited to daydreams and episodes of The Golden Girls, but actually possible in real life.
Based on years of original reporting and striking social science research, Cohen argues that we undermine romantic relationships by expecting too much of them, while we diminish friendships by expecting too little of them. She traces how, throughout history, our society hasn’t always fixated on marriage as the greatest source of meaning, or even love. At a time when many Americans are spending large stretches of their lives single, widowed or divorced, or feeling the effects of the "loneliness epidemic," Cohen insists that we recognize the many forms of profound connection that can anchor our lives. A rousing and incisive book, The Other Significant Others challenges us to ask what we want from our relationships―not just what we’re supposed to want―and transforms how we define a fulfilling life.
Jim will be moderating this month. Hope you can join us for some thoughtful discussion.
Upcoming books:
February: The Almost Nearly Perfect People: Behind the Myth of the Scandinavian Utopia by Michael Booth (Pat)
Not selected this time:
Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson