“Once we see that something needs to be done, we must take action.

Seeing and action go together. Otherwise, what is the point in seeing?”

                                              -Thich Nhat Hanh

The Plum Village Earth Holder Community is encouraging sangha members around the world to support young people on Sept 20 in the Global Climate Strike, and then to follow this with various ways of caring for Mother Earth and all its beings over the next 18 months. Please join us in Washington DC along with other members of thousands of Sanghas around the globe — practicing in the Plum Village and other traditions — to support the young people’s Global Climate Strike.

Youth groups around the world are asking students and young people to attend climate events (rather than school or work) and they are asking people of all ages to support the movement by joining them.
A local group, DC Youth Climate Strike, is the lead organizer for the march and rally on the DC Mall. Several Buddhist organizations are planning to meet at 10 am for a sitting meditation prior to the march. Our intention is to support our young people (our continuation) with our peaceful, loving steps and presence. We hope that you will be able to join us for all or part of the event this Friday.

How to get there: Metro is the best way to get downtown. The closest Metro stations are: Metro Center (Blue and Orange Lines) and Gallery Place (Red, Green and Yellow Lines).Friday, Sept. 20, 10am - 2pm 
10am: Meditation with other local Buddhist communities
11am: Join the march to the Capitol
12 – 2pm: Strike Action
Where:  NW corner of the John Marshall Park located between the Canadian Embassy and the DC Law Courts. Click here for directions

Dear Friends,

Please join us for a Sangha picnic at the National Arboretum Saturday June 22nd from 10AM - 2PM.

We will meet at the M St. parking area. This is the only part of the Arboretum where picnicking is allowed. There are a few picnic tables there, and lots of open space in the grass to put down cloths. Please bring a vegetarian dish to share, along with a plate, utensils and a drink for yourself.

There is a very nice area next to it called Fern Valley with shaded woods, trails and a stream where we can take a mindful walk. Across the road from Fern Valley is a small children's area, next to the Youth Garden, with some wooden and metal xylophones built in. The Azalea Gardens are on the other side of the parking area; the blooms have peaked now, but there is an eagles nest and you may be lucky to see them come and go. A long walk (or drive to its own small parking area) leads to the Asian Valley area, with a pagoda overlooking the Anacostia River.

You're welcome to invite any friends. It covers 446 acres, so it's never too crowded.

A map is included below, but be sure to leave yourself plenty of time, as it can be tricky to navigate around the park. Any questions, contact Bill Jenkins billjenkinsmusic@gmail.com 

More info about the National Arboretum:

https://www.usna.usda.gov/

Maps:

https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3852n.ct005200/?r=0.041,0.483,0.246,0.118,0

https://www.google.com/maps/place/United+States+National+Arboretum/@38.91213,-76.9657782,15z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x97f8e732d5dd08b!8m2!3d38.91213!4d-76.9657782

Sunday, June 16th, from 8am-10am Pacific/11am-1pm Eastern

Join Kaira Jewel Lingo and Sr. Hai An in this two-hour, online Zoom event to mindfully celebrate Juneteenth—the historical moment when Union soldiers announced the end of slavery in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865. We will learn about the history of Juneteenth and the facilitators--a woman of color and a white woman--will offer their reflections on the meaning of this day for our mindfulness practice. Through guided meditation and discussion in identity groups, we will explore how we can apply mindfulness in the service of healing our ancestors and ourselves and in support of emancipation for all of us. We welcome people of all racial identities to explore together how this historical legacy of slavery and it's transformation impacts all of us and how we can practice together to create greater justice and racial healing.

Please register in advance using this link so that we can prepare the breakout groups according to your self-identified racial identity. This information will be kept private and used only for the purposes of this call.

The Zoom call information will be sent to you after you register.

There is no fee for this event. You are invited to offer a donation to support the teachers/facilitators via PayPal or Venmo (@Kaira-Lingo).

We hope to see you there!

About the facilitators:

Kaira Jewel Lingo began practicing mindfulness in 1997. An ordained nun of 15 years in Thich Nhat Hanh’s Order of Interbeing, she is now based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, leading retreats internationally, offering mindfulness programs for educators and youth in schools, as well as individual spiritual mentoring. She offers regular people of color mindfulness retreats and retreats and workshops on healing racism. She is in the current Spirit Rock Teacher Training Program. Visit kairajewel.com to learn more.

Sr. Hai An is a Bhikshuni, a Buddhist nun, based in Toronto. She received monastic ordination from Thich Nhat Hanh 2012 and trained at Plum Village Monastery in France and Blue Cliff Monastery in New York State. She is a founding member of the ARISE Sangha bringing racial justice to the forefront of the Plum Village community. She left the monastery in 2018, holding the teachings of Plum Village as her core practice while blending them with early Buddhist practices, social justice teachings, mystical Christianity, neuroscience, music, and poetry. Visit listenlovetrust.wordpress.com for more.