Name and pronouns: Linden Rayton, she/her
Cohort year: 2011-2012
Where are you living now? Hopkinton, New Hampshire
What are you doing now?I am taking on two new professional and family identities, and expanding my personal philosophy and theology as a result. In late January, I created a business called Living Water Nature Programs, LLC, which offers faith-informed nature education. My mission is to bring people into deeper relationship with the outdoors through exploration, education and reflection. It is a natural growth from the successful nature programs I have been offering to my community since the pandemic began and I lost what I thought was a safe job. Although the licensing happened in late January, this was a culmination of months of reflection, discernment and prayer on my part. I've never been one to so publicly combine my Christian faith and science/nature education profession. I definitely don't have quite the right language yet, and truly I have no idea what this will look like in four or five years. But it is a call from God that I am finally hearing clearly, so here I am. I wish I had a website I could hyperlink here, but I don't have that yet! So you can find me on Instagram @thefaithfulnaturalist where you will see my journey into this world.
Approximately four days before I finally made my business official, we welcomed our first foster placement into our family, a 9-day-old baby girl. She is now 7 weeks old and joins our 4yo son and 5yo daughter in filling our household. This too is the culmination of months of work, and it has been everything you imagine it is- very complicated, challenging and rewarding. Becoming part of "the system" has been intense, and driven home the need for social justice here in the US in ways deeper than I've experienced before. We are taking everything one day at a time. Which, frankly, feels annoyingly slow at the moment as she is going through a (normal) period of development that involves lots of crying. Hopefully by the time you read this things are different!
How has LT impacted your life?
One year ago I took an online class through Bexley Seabury called "Discerning My Path." One of the activities asked us to come up with four "contexts" that had formed us. One of the contexts that I immediately listed was Life Together. Life Together taught me practical skills such as the power of language, listening and good communication, but it also helped me experience a deeper, more inclusive and more contemporary kind of Episcopal Christian worship than I had before, and that forever changed me. I take a lot of pride in our church and I love the way we engage the world. But I think many Episcopalians have a hard time talking about God and accessing their faith. Life Together helped me break through that, and I couldn't be more grateful. I want to pass that gift along as best I can in my own vocation.
Anything else you’d like to share? I am looking forward to spring!!!