60 Million Refugees

I typically don't comment on political hub-bub going on, but something struck me this week that I keep going back to, which usually means it's time to write it out. After the Republican Convention, President Obama was asked to comment on Donald Trump's speech on the worsening terrorist situation in the Middle East spreading into US and Europe and this was one of his replies:

...this vision of violence and chaos everywhere, doesn’t really jibe with the experience of most people. I hope people the next morning walked outside and birds were chirping and the sun was out, and this afternoon, people will be watching their kids play in sports teams and go to the swimming pool and folks are going to work and getting ready for the weekend.

I truly thank President Obama for so clearly confirming for me the importance of two things:

1) We must open our eyes and not turn away from the suffering in our world. The above statement is only applicable if one lives in the US! Here is a startling fact--at present we are experiencing the highest number of refugees in human history--over 60 million people are attempting to flee horrendous conditions. Do they walk outside and hear the birds chirping and sun warming their skin? Watch their kids play sports and go to the swimming pool? This leads us to number 2 point of thanks....

2) Engaged Compassion is a North Star worthy of consideration for our times - we must consider engagement with what is going on in the world, not turning away or being happy enough with our small piece of security here in the United States. How do we do this? By being mindful, i.e. aware of conditions with our neighbors and with compassion and understanding comprise a solution. In this quest of engaged compassion, I discovered a few links to check out. Please be inspired, and perhaps practice the North Star of engaged compassion:

Refugee Team Makes it to the 2016 Olympics

CARE website

CARE Facebook Page

Have a beautiful week, yes the birds are chirping and sun is shining. Soak it up! At the same time, there are many striving for life and for the world to notice and do something to help. Perhaps when you're all nourished and loved up, consider practicing engaged compassion--I would love to hear what you discovered.

Harmony in the Midst of Dissonance

Last night's drum celebration was awesome, celebrating the 2 year anniversary for Lake Tahoe Mindfulness Community and the continued strength and harmony of our community! We're just getting started as this coming Sunday is our Summer Mindfulness Retreat . As a community, we've been deeply touched by all the events going on across our country and world: shootings in Orlando, the loss of lives and suffering in the black communities, Dallas police shootings and most recently, last night's attack in Nice, France. Our theme for summer retreat is "Harmony," and the question naturally arises--how can we practice harmony in the midst of such seeming dissonance? 

We will be exploring answers to this question on at Retreat on Sunday. As a loose preparation here is one definition of harmony to use as our guide: 

Harmony - the blending of simultaneous sounds or voices of different pitches or qualities. 

Being a singer, I strive to recognize the lead vocalist. If this is strong, all kinds of harmonies can branch off and actually strengthen the lead with their support. If there's a voice that doesn't quite hear the harmony or is unskilled in producing a similar vocal range, the blending will not be in accord. In fact, this off-key voice will tend to pull others away and distract entirely from the ultimate production of sound. Every day we encounter different voices, different perceptions and clashing events. When these happen, can we still recognize, remember and maintain the lead?

Sunday's Summer Retreat will be a time to nourish the lead of compassion and understanding, a time to strengthen ourselves, our loved ones and our community. LTMC looks forward to diving into the question--how can we practice harmony in the midst of dissonance? We will explore Right View--noticing when suffering arises in ourselves and others and practicing not making the suffering worse...ie carrying the lead.

It is said that one of the greatest gifts we can give another is our freedom. LTMC looks forward to another year of practicing and strengthening freedom, please consider joining us, we would love to hear your voice.  

Independence Day

Freedom is an inside job, ya'all. It's natural to think of the Declaration of Independence today as we celebrate its signing in 1776--life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness--inalienable rights that America was founded upon. If we don't have reverence for life and freedom, then we can't begin to pursue a happy life. 

I think of Thich Nhat Hanh's eloquent definition of Reverence for Life in the first of the Five Mindfulness Trainings:

Reverence for Life 
Aware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life, I am committed to cultivating the insight of interbeing and compassion and learning ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to support any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, or in my way of life. Seeing that harmful actions arise from anger, fear, greed, and intolerance, which in turn come from dualistic and discriminative thinking, I will cultivate openness, non-discrimination, and non-attachment to views in order to transform violence, fanaticism, and dogmatism in myself and in the world. 

I've been pondering freedom today and thinking about living a life free of tension, I'm talking 100% free of anxiety, worry, fear, you name it. Is it possible? Inner Constellation clients are familiar with one of my favorite questions to ask--"What's keeping you from being 100% absolutely free?" The following helps us answer that question:

1) Recognize - when there is tension, slow down, look deeply, and take time to care for yourself and others. Often we push ourselves or push others in the direction we wish them to go, rather than...

2) Calming the Emotion - once tension is recognized, we can bring relief right away through the use of our breathing, our thinking, our actions and our words. This is the practice of peace and nonviolence, toward oneself and others. It's a choice and a necessary one on the path of freedom.  

3) Inspire - don't stay in the tension, recognize all the other conditions of goodness available, be grateful and recognize beauty, it surrounds us always, even in the midst of utter chaos.

As I finish writing this, a BBC news feed scrolls across my phone: Iraq suicide bomb attack, 165 dead in Baghdad. Three days of mourning has been issued. Freedom starts within. I come back to my Inner Constellation: recognize, calm, inspire. What do these events mean to me in light of Independence Day? Song, dedication, the sound of the bell, beginning a poem to set my intention....May all beings be happy, may they be healthy and strong, free from inner and outer harm, may they live in their world with ease and grace....*


*Lines adapted from the Metta Sutra

July 14: Celebrate LTMC's 2 Year Anniversary!!!

You're invited to join us for an evening of celebration! The native drum has just returned from Sundance Ceremony in Croyden, Utah and is ready to bless LTMC's continuation and initiate our Summer Retreat the following Sunday, July 17. We'll be singing inter-tribal songs and Sundance Ceremony Songs in celebration of the summer season when dancers and singers come together with prayers for the people and communities. This promises to be an extra special night. Visit our FB events page to join, invite friends and find out more:

https://www.facebook.com/events/713904325416298/

Dirty Angels

I had a few of them appear last evening (larger than mosquitoes) and tried to swat them away to no avail! Dang it, I thought I was beyond this...I had a blow up with a loved one last night and got sucked in!

I woke at 2:30a with a heavy heart and decided to take my sorry self outside to sleep beneath the moon and morning star. I dragged my Therm-A-Rest and sleeping bag onto my deck and as soon as I got settled, I knew--this is the stuff of transformation, the blow up is the practice. I missed the first opportunity to transform the crappy-crap, but garbage is in a constant process of becoming a rose, so, um...get to work.

"Hello, my dirty angels, I see you..." I tapped, I breathed, I identified, and I lay beneath the bright moon and finally drifted off to sleep, into dreamland, where I saw one of my precious "Tahoe" Moms. She sat in our green garden rocking chair directly next to where I was laying on the deck, and motioned to the dark sky overhead--a cosmic scene like the pictures from NASA unfolded. Black and crimson gases erupted from a bubbling star field. She looked into my soul, like she has a tendency to do, and asked, "Do you have the ability to pull from this glorious Creation?"

The swirling beauty of stars, filled me, "Yes, ma'am!" I say silently in my dream. It's that kind of moment. When I woke, I asked the dream question to the moon, which now hung directly over me--"Do you have the ability to pull from this glorious Creation?"

She answered, "Of course, My Dear." I closed my eyes and went back to sleep. Some things are best given over to the night sky.

I woke this morning entirely refreshed and committed to continuing the journey using my North Star of love and compassion as my guide. I know too, my dirty angels should not be swatted. Their wings are tattered enough. They appear to show me what needs tending. "Hello, Little Rose," they say, "it's time for transformation."

Orlando Nightclub

I showed up to class yesterday and felt the white elephant in the room, a blanket that seemed to lay heavy on us all. I have two students in the class who are part of the LGBT community and they looked devastated. I proceeded with curriculum, making a quick adjustment to the evening to allow for a solid 30 minutes of discussion before we closed for the night. I love my students with a ferocity that often surprises me, and often when something like the shooting in Orlando happens, I think...that could have been one of mine...one of mine, it is one of mine--this has affected us all. In our classroom conversation I asked the question, how many of you were angry? All but two of my seventeen raised their hands. How many of you were sad? All of them raised their hands. Then, the question that always seems to be asked in return? What can we do?

Hmmm, we contemplated and discussed that natural, beautiful impulse of wanting to do something to relieve the suffering we see. Here was my reply--take care of those seeds of anger and sadness within yourself, for they are a taste of what caused the gunman to shoot. 

I came home from school, and as is my nature, I went to the written word for comfort. I hope this provides nourishment....

Orlando Nightclub
©June 14, 2016 Karla Johnston, InnerConstellation.com

Watching events unfold, I feel my Avenging Angel sprout wings,
Hello, my anger…my sadness.
I threaten flight.
Then, I’m not sure how, but a sudden realization, a blessing is bestowed—
righteous anger is a taste of what caused such tremendous suffering.
Seeds of anger and intolerance when watered will grow.
Is this what happened to the gunman?

What can I do for those suffering?
Take care of my unwholesome seeds,
listen to my Dirty Angels—they show me what needs care,
practice looking at myself and others
with love and understanding.

I see you, our seeds, and practice another way—taking refuge:
in stillness,
deep listening,
and transformation.

In closing, here is a mantra that I found beautiful and healing. May you enjoy the voice of an angel, Ajeet Kaur, who sings a song to turn our minds toward peace and ease of rest. It's sung before sleep, or for the final sleep of dying: Antajaamee

Tender Vesak Day!!!

Last evening's beautiful full moon marked the celebration of  the Buddha: the cycle of his birth, enlightenment, passing and continuation.

Light plays a dominant role in the Vesak celebration festivities as a reminder of our own Buddha Nature--the seed of goodness within that if watered, grows throughout our lives and influences those around us.

This day's blessing is inspired by the light inside every living being:

Vesak
©Karla Johnston, InnerConstellation.com 

Seed of awakening
planted within,
Moon kissed.
Will you water it?

The importance of self care so we can care for others seems to perfectly encapsulate our May Inner Constellation theme of "tenderness." I've heard many laments this month about how difficult it can be to be tender towards ourselves. Tenderness is a daily practice--a commitment to mindfully attend to one's "Inner Constellation," take care of our sufferings and cultivate peace and understanding within. Mindfulness of one's body, mind, emotions and mental state is a vital part of the Buddha's teachings. When we are clear and without interferences, we are more fully present for our loved ones and our community. Mindfulness, gentle attending, practice, more mindfulness...thank you Buddha for your wisdom....

May you have a happy, full-moon, lighted up day with much love and care on this tender Vesak weekend!