Beach in November

Who says that the beach in November is a dreary place? Not I!

Sarah's Birthday Party

Family and friends gathered to join me in celebrating my 31st birthday. It was a gorgeous day, and we went out to Georges Island in the Boston Harbor for a beautiful afternoon.

Shambhala Abroad

(post written for Wake up Boston!)

Shambhala doesn’t exist just in Boston. On a recent trip to Europe, I was fortunate enough to be hosted by Shambhala friends in Kiev and Odessa, Ukraine. A week later, I joined an intensive practice retreat on the island of Aegina in Greece led by Acharya Eric Spiegel.

In both the Ukraine and Greece, being Buddhist is not really okay. These Center’s are tiny, supported by a small group of very passionate and dedicated practitioners who have connected with the vision of the Great Eastern Sun. Both countries have an overwhelmingly large emphasis on Orthodox Christianity, and while not exactly illegal, it could be dangerous to advertise a Shambhala Buddhist Meditation Center.

In Kiev, I was most warmly hosted by dear sangha friend Sasha. I also had the opportunity to visit

Shambhala Kiev

their tiny one-room Center that they have access to once a week. We sat together for a couple of hot hours, the meditation gong signaling us to walk and the wooden blocks clacking us back to the cushion. In Shambhala, these sounds and our practitioner’s smiles cross language borders. I was asked to give a talk about the Boston Shambhala Center to the room of 10 practitioners. I had a translator (a new experience for me), and talked about how we do things here in this big city at this big Center in Boston, until it dawned on me that they might be curious about how to do things there in such a tiny Center. I began to ask for questions, and they began to pour in. I learned probably more than they did (isn’t that always the case - the one presenting always seems to learn more than the ones receiving the presentation), but was incredibly moved by their passion for creating enlightened society in a place that is so consumed with entertainment and materialism.

The core group in Kiev taught me (without knowing it) a precious perspective about what we have here in Boston. We have a very large Center (even if it’s not big enough for us) that we can come to for practice at anytime during the week. We have daily meditation programs - imagine that - daily. We are able to support 2-3 full-time staff people (I have not forgotten how unbelievably fortunate I am to be one of them), and have enough volunteer staff to support not only the daily programs but also weekend programs almost every week.

Wake up Boston - remember that we are so incredibly fortunate to be able to flourish with the dharma so easily!

Odessa’s Center is also a tiny one-room rental, run by my friend Oleg. They only have about 5

Odessa Shambhala

practitioners. He asked me not to mention to anyone in Eastern Europe that they exist, saying “It could be difficult for us if you do.” I got to meet one other practitioner there, and Oleg and I practiced ngondro together in 110 degree heat. It was so inspiring to practice with him on Ukrainian soil (I was on the journey to visit the land some of my ancestors come from - more on that in another post soon), and to lend my support to my European sangha in this way.

The Greek sangha has a similar story. They are a group of about 10 or 12, and are quite possibly

Shambhala retreat in Greece

the most generous and hospitable sangha I have encountered. So warm, such good cooks, such large smiles! But they also struggle to expand, to get organized, and to engage their neighbors in the practice of Shambhala and the view of enlightened society. They are a very strong group, and I have no fear that they will overcome all obstacles, especially with the support of all the dralas of beautiful Greece.

If you ever get the chance to visit our Shambhala sisters and brothers in Europe - do not miss the opportunity! Shambhala is alive and flourishing, even in the smaller gardens of the old countries.

Photos

The photos are finally here! At some point, I will fill out the stories of the photos and experiences on this blog, but for now, enjoy the slideshows!

Enjoy!!!

Paris:


Kiev:


Dnipopetrovsk:


Odessa:


Tiraspol:


Chishinau:

Dharma....with a dish of Cornflakes

Home. Home from journeying, but my heart is so fully still on the journey! How to explain this? Love flows like an unending river, and I am but a small boat upon it.

Returning last Sunday from a week of a dream on an island retreat in Greece, space/time distorted with the long soak in the teachings and the Aegean sea....this is more of a poem than a story, and I don't know how else to sing it.

A day after I returned, Scott returned glowing and tired from Warrior Assembly at Karme Choling. A few hours later, Zurmang Gharwang Rinpoche and his lovely Dubgyud Lama (attendant) arrived on our doorstep and have been living with us ever since.

So, dharma with a dish of cornflakes has been the theme of the week.

What can I say? I've barely returned from the journey, have not had any downtime, have not had a chance to absorb the richness of all that I received and encountered upon the journey and the journey upon my very own doorstep has been so rich that in some ways, I feel I am just spinning, spinning, spinning in the present moment, and there is just nothing else, no ground, no mind, no no-mind.

Forgive this warrior if she makes no sense right now!

Dniepopetrovsk

Land of my ancestors, you shine with love, with love and a bright, big sun, resting on the Dnipr river.

I'm still learning how to post photos, so this is a teaser until I can post the rest. Enjoy!

Wine at 11am and Russian lessons

Vachyslav Gregorovich and his son Serge brought us to the large old cemetary where Vachyslav's parents are buried (Serge's babushka y deodushka) and a few other friends. It was gorgeous, and we helped clean off the graves and put new flowers there. It was really a beautiful moment with the family.

Then, they took us into town and on our way to the National History Museum, they saw a local wine-tasting bar and said, come let's go and have a little wine (chut, chut - just a little). So, I got a wee bit drunk on delicious Moldavian wine at 11 o'clock in the morning! Hilarious! It was really very delicious.

Last night, quite late, once it finally cooled down, Vachyslav Gregorovich wanted to go for a walk and he wanted me to come with him. So, I went. He wants me to carry two watermelons home from the bazaar, so, I carry them. It reminds me completely of living with Aamaa in Nepal - I become who they want me to be.....and it's a blast.

Anyhoo, he and I went for a long, long walk late at night in the cool air and he taught me Russian. From a week ago when I knew maybe two words of Russian (niet, da - no, yes), I know many, many more now. Can't have much of a conversation, but can at least follow along fairly well while listening (hand gestures and facial expressions make this easier by a long shot), and I can say a bunch of stuff too now. It's delightful learning a new language. The ONLY way to do this, of course, is by immersion, and that's what Carolinka and I have been experiencing these last few (two? a year?) days in Kishinev, Moldova - true immersion.

What can I say? Connections with people happen all over the world, sometimes over the simplest things, and it is quite possibly the most delicious thing ever.

Seeing Vachyslav Gregorovich and his son pray and thank their ancestors this morning felt like we had come full circle with this trip of ancestral pilgrimmage. I cried quietly while they prayed. It was perfect.

Carolinka and I are flying to Bucharest tonight where we have a room at a hostel and she will be meeting up with her friend who she's traveling with for the next week and a half, and then really early tomorrow morning I turn around and fly to Athens and then make my way to the port of Pireaus to catch the ferry to the island of Aigina where I'll be picked up and taken to the retreat I'll be attending for the last week of this years-long trip.

Not sure if I'll have internet again. Definitely more to share, so I may just catch up on blogging when I get back home and write up excerpts from my over-half full new journal from the trip.

Till next time, go with wellness!