Advent ~ Season of Arrival

 

Thanksgiving weekend found me very gratefully gathering pinecones and cutting pine boughs on a chilly Tahoe evening to decorate my Advent altar. Sun dropped below the mountains as moon rose in the sky, glorious and near full. I pondered week 1 ~ Hope.

Advent, means “arrival,” and I was reminded of a practice poem as I snipped and placed my greens, coming back to breathing deep the delicious scents of pine and vanilla candles ~ I have arrived, I am home ~ In the here and in the now ~ I am solid, I am free ~ In the Ultimate I dwell. 

“Hope” by it’s nature implies somewhere in the future, yet isn’t there always some glimmer available, a flickering, arrival of light if we train our eyes to find it? Can we arrive with an open, hopeful heart in every moment?

Lighting the match, 

extending flame to wick. 

Advent candle, week 1: Hope ~ 

I have arrived, 

I am home.         

Beginning Anew: November 15, 2020

Are your relationships feeling a strain during quarantine? I’ve increasingly heard folks expressing challenges arising from being together more during home isolation. Perhaps it’s time to go deep into the practice of Beginning Anew to gain clarity, insight and renewal. 

In the time of the Buddha, during full and new moons, communities of practice partook in a ceremony allowing loved ones to clear the air so hurts didn’t accumulate. This ancient ceremony has been passed down and expressed in 4 elegant steps to help us see ourselves, situations and those we love more clearly. The practice is called Beginning Anew.

On November 15 New Moon, the opportunity to Begin Anew with oneself, a situation or a loved one is being extended. We have 10 spots at The Studio, measured to ensure 6 feet of physical distancing (unless you are in the same family group). This is an RSVP event due to space constrictions. All you need bring is the loved one with whom you are experiencing conflict and a commitment to listen and speak with your whole heart. If Beginning Anew is best directed towards yourself or a situation which has been difficult to resolve, you can be paired with either the facilitator or another participant with a similar focus. 

You will be guided through four steps of conscious breathing, loving speech, and compassionate listening as ways of keeping communication open and resolving conflicts. When practiced regularly, Beginning Anew brings deeper understanding and harmony to any relationship or situation. 

Invite a loved one, bring a mask and come experience Beginning Anew which teaches—with every breath, you and the present moment are reborn and can begin again. 

Time: Sunday, November 15 from 9:30a-11:00a 

Sliding Scale Suggested Donation:  $15-30 per person - no one turned away for lack of funds

Location: The Studio Lake Tahoe, 3200 US Hwy 50, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150

Facilitator: Karla Johnston, True Compassionate Dwelling, Certified HeartMath Clinician, 
owner InnerConstellation.com

RSVP: Karla@InnerConstellation.com

Inner Constellation Continuation

Yesterday was a tender day of celebration as Thich Nhat Hanh celebrated his 94th birthday. Friends and practitioners of mindfulness gathered on ZOOM and shared stories of how Thay ("teacher" in Vietnamese) has touched our lives. As so many transformations were shared, I thought back to the first time I came in contact with the concrete practice of mindfulness....

The year was 2014 when I visited Deer Park Monastery, a practice center in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh and spent a week on a private retreat in Clarity Hamlet, living with the nuns. I felt, for the first time in my life, a sense of home--as if a peaceful and happy life was possible. I remember returning from my stay and describing the nuns to my husband with the only language I knew at the time, "They were holy." I aspired within me to walk with such peace, smile with such peace, live with their degree of presence. I remember wrestling with the idea that to live like at the monastery was not "real life." My sweet husband challenged this idea, and I will never forget what he asked, "Why do you assume the monastery is not real life?" At the time, I had no idea how to live so calm, peaceful and happy in the midst of absolute, chaotic busyness. A three year journey began that led to ordination at Deer Park in 2017 and a continued aspiration to grow my heart's capacity for compassion, peace and understanding. 

In March 2020, COVID hit, the brakes were applied, and the way I live has changed drastically, as it has for everyone. But here's the thing--life slowed down: my interpreting business, teaching, commitments, everything. It's been a blessing to feel, very visirally, the tremendous refuge of a personal practice in the midst of a post COVID world. 

A few weeks ago, I was asked to return to The Studio Lake Tahoe to offer private Inner Constellation sessions. I accepted, knowing it was a step in deepening my commitment to peace and well-being while offering The Studio as a sanctuary for those benefiting from support during these times. Now, Thich Nhat Hanh permeates my offerings, contemplation infuses my approach to any suffering and offers a way to remember joy and happiness even in the midst of challenges. I've used the last 7 months of slow-time and became HeartMath certified, something I wanted to do for years. 

If you feel you would like to partner with me in discovering ways contemplation--going within the sacred, and yes, "holy" refuge of your own body and mind--to grow peace and happiness to your life, please consider contacting me. At a time when so many folks are struggling, it's important to me and Crissy (owner of The Studio) to offer sliding scale gift economy payment options so that care is affordable and The Studio can stay afloat during restrictions in operation. When I think of the Inner Constellation motto in which I set up shop 10 years ago, I smile, knowing I have indeed come home: 

What if everything you need is inherent in you right now—profuse, abundant
 and perfectly sufficient. 

Mothers of Unrest

The following was written after hearing the goose-bump speech of Julia Jackson, in response to her son being shot by police in Kenosha, WI. Her speech was not sad, it was not hopeless, but rather the exact opposite. At the end of the poem is a link to view the powerful speech. As we move into September and the theme, “Community in the Eye of the Storm,” Julia Jackson is a North Star to watch, listen and soak in:

Mothers of Unrest

©2020 Karla Johnston, InnerConstellation.com

September 1, 2020

A storm brews more powerful than a hurricane,

people whipped up, circling, caught in the maelstrom.

Young men

shot by police,

call into question

excessive use of force.

 

Eyes rest upon the scene,

seeing black men, young sons, neighborhoods echoing the shots

amidst mothers, calling for peace.

 

“Clearly, you can see by now

That I have beautiful brown skin,

But take a look at your hand

And whatever shade it is, it is beautiful as well.

How dare we hate what we are.

We are humans.

God did not make one type of tree

or flower, or fish, or horse, or grass, or rock. 

How dare you ask him to make one type of human

that looks just like you.

I’m not talking to just Caucasian people. 

I am talking to everyone:

White, black, Japanese, Chinese, red, brown,

No one is superior to the other….

We are the United States.

Have we been united?

Do you understand what’s going to happen when we fall?

Because a house that is against each other can not stand. 

 

“Citizens, police officers, firemen, clergy, politicians: 

Do Jacob justice on this level and examine your hearts. 

We need healing. 

As I pray for my son’s healing—physically, emotionally and spiritually—

I also have been praying even before this for the healing of our country.

Everybody, let’s use our hearts, our love,

and our intelligence to work together

to show the rest of the world how humans are supposed to treat each other. 

America is great when we behave greatly.”

 

Julia Jackson, Eye of the Storm,

Holy Mother,

walk, stand, show 

in this suffrage,

True North.

 

 

Video of Julia Jackson’s speech

Love Languages Amidst A Circus Act

In this time of COVID-19, we’ve heard many people lament the difficulties of physical and social distancing. Undoubtedly, when I hear our struggles, the Love Languages come to mind, and this question—how do you express your love? And, equally important—how do you best receive love?

Here are the five supposed Love Languages (there are probably far more than 5):

• Kind Words (spoken or written)
• Physical Touch
• Deep Listening
• Acts of Service
• Gift Giving

What is your dominant expression of love? During this time of self-isolation (that word makes me cringe! Kind Words are my primary Love Language!)—I shall try again—during this time of sequestering away :) is it possible to practice developing Love Languages other than Physical Touch? How might we strengthen the other four? 

Here’s a most recent example of how this might play out. This weekend I was looking forward to a bit of writing (Love Language uno) but instead was needed to bend pipe! My husband is constructing a garden box for me (Love Language Acts of Service) and due to our cool and crisp Tahoe summers, plans include a cold-frame. However, to achieve a cold frame capable of supporting our snow load, we must...bend pipe. 

As we began this process, I joked (Love Language Kind Words) that we were performing a circus act. The Strong Man smiled, then, freakishly bent pipe while the Lovely Assistant held the pipe and sang carnival songs...until what we thought would be a couple hours, turned into late evening. The Lovely Assistant threatened to turn nasty until...yep, she remembered the Love Languages. I gratefully realized that I had the opportunity to practice an Act of (lengthy) Service to my adored Strong Man, our beautiful yard and the vegetables that will be so happy in the warmth of the cold frame. I bit my tongue and realized it takes mindfulness, tremendous awareness, especially in pandemic times, to care for one another and strengthen our love. 

Let us practice together, especially now—when we feel our resistances kick into high gear. For our friends who Speak the Language of Touch, might we find other ways to show them our love? Can we strengthen our recognition of what others need during this trying time? 

Life is a circus: sing, dance, bend pipe, practice the Love Languages and grow vegetables!

 

Good Trouble RIP John Lewis

Precious, conscience-of-the-nation, John Lewis, has died and since hearing the news of his passing this weekend, I have walked, sung and watched two thunderstorms build in the clouds and unleash their blessings, while touching the hero nature of this man.

I remember some years ago hearing an interview John Lewis gave to Krista Tippett that permanently changed my world. He spoke directly to my soul, expanding my sense of engaging other beings with dignity—especially those who disagreed with you— and by doing so, the beloved community grows.

John Lewis internalized a loving heart during the civil rights movement, even as he was mocked, tear-gassed, trampled by horses, beaten to an inch of his life and jailed. During a time when it was only natural to close down for self preservation, he did the opposite, he opened. He claims that he felt no bitterness, no animosity toward his persecutors. His life in every way shows dedication to peace and love as ultimate North Stars.

He has said, “Non-violence is not the absence of violence but the presence of justice, presence of bringing the dirt and the filth out into the light so we can deal with it.” During the non-violent campaign, participants were trained to look into the eyes of the ones who disagreed with you, address them as holy and sacred. He stressed that we must be taught to love and to see the spark of divinity in every fellow human being, and that we don’t have the right to extinguish the sacred spark. We are often taught to hate, to abuse and so we must appeal to the goodness in every human being and never give up, never give up on anyone. This way of engaging is conflict resolution for holy beings, those who have their sights and their feet in the Eternal Dimension, in the land of freedom.

One of his most recent quotes of 2018 is a Tweeted-torch, a lamp for this time we find ourselves:

"Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble."

He speaks of being pulled into The Spirit of History and that we have a moral obligation, a mandate to engage suffering, to recognize what is harmful and cast light on it. But, here’s the mandate: engage with love, peace and strong faith in the goodness of humanity. John Lewis taught that our civility demonstrates the absurdity of the other side.

"Freedom is not a state; it is an act. It is not some enchanted garden perched high on a distant plateau where we can finally sit down and rest. Freedom is the continuous action we all must take, and each generation must do its part to create an even more fair, more just society.”

John Lewis, Rest In Peace, knowing you have made a mark on history that is incomprehensibly good. As your divine spark shines inside future generations, may we nourish its light and tend it like a beacon.

All Is Well Even In Social Upheavals!

After writing about an amazing experience yesterday, poem below came through on Facebook as a past memory/post from a few years ago— I just love synchronicity and the confirmation that all is well. It deserves reposting here, especially with George Floyd and our current unrest, RIP:

Child of God
©Karla Johnston, 2007

If you only knew who surrounds you always,
fear would have no hold.
my protection would suffice.

Realize you are mine,
and courage thrives,
imagination unbinds.

If you only knew what we have shared,
you would feel, taste, smell, see, hear
all I offer you.

Understand I am alive,
dry bones dance,
holy breathe enlivens thee.

If you only knew how much you are cherished,
love would have no boundaries,
abundance would be your birthright.

In all things,
joyous or mundane,
each and every day,
I am here, inside,
waiting for your
remembrance.