Dear Friends,
Looking deeply the OHS Care Taking Council has decided to suspend our regular Tuesday and Sunday gatherings through the end of the month. We are hoping to set up virtual meetings and will let you know as those plans manifest. We believe this is Right Action and ask for your compassion in doing so.
Deer Park Monastery decided to close through the end of April. Please read their beautiful love letter announcing this and why.
Dharma Bum Temple has also decided to close their doors through the end of the month.
While we usually think of Sangha as a way to grow community and the mind of love, the practice of “non meeting” can do the same. We are not feeding fear - we are growing our collective energy of love and compassion by doing what we can to flatten the curve of disease transmission and protect those who may be vulnerable. Let us continue to practice connecting from the heart. In the words of Rabbi Yosef Kanefsky:
“Every hand that we don’t shake must become a phone call that we place. Every embrace that we avoid must become a verbal expression of warmth and concern. Every inch and every foot that we physically place between ourselves and another, must become a thought as to how we might be of help to that other, should the need arise.”
May we continue to practice beautifully together,
Your Care Taking Council
practicing mindfulness in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh