A Zen Journey
Donation protected
Hello friends,
Many of you know that as I began retirement from almost 30 years in Montessori education, I became increasingly interested in working with the elderly. Some of you helped me to fund the tuition for a 9-month course called Foundations in Contemplative Care through the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care. This was a wonderful experience, and I have such gratitude for those who helped me take advantage of that opportunity. Over the last year, I've been doing volunteer work in a local elder care facility and teaching and leading workshops in the Buddhist recovery community. I also published a book titled Buddhist Recovery Daily Practice. I'm slowly beginning work on a second title aimed at sharing a particular style of meditation for people who have chosen a Buddhist-inspired recovery path.
In December 2022, I entered into a period of discernment, beginning my formal path toward ordination as a Zen priest. At the request of my teacher, Teshin Sweger, I plan to take part in as many as five 7-day meditation retreats (sesshin) in different Zen monasteries and centers over the next year, including Zen Mountain Monastery and the Rochester Zen Center in New York State, Mountain Cloud Zen Center in New Mexico, and my home practice place, the North Carolina Zen Center.
These retreats, as well as ongoing study with Teshin, will offer rich opportunities to deepen my Buddhist practice which, in turn, will help me grow in the pastoral roles to which I am called: Buddhist chaplaincy in hospital and hospice settings, and working with people in recovery.
As a retired school teacher, however, I can only manage these trips financially with the help of my community. Each of the places I visit will require meaningful donations ($300-400 each) and, of course, there will be travel expenses.
So I turn again to family and friends for aid. The smallest financial contribution is welcome, as are friendly thoughts and good wishes!
You'll find below three links. The first is a dharma talk I gave at the North Carolina Zen Center last May. The second is for an organization I've started called Buddhist Recovery Circle. BRC's goal is to offer more in-depth Buddhist teachings to people in recovery. The third is the Amazon link to Buddhist Recovery Daily Practice.
Dharma Talk
BRC Website
Amazon Link: Buddhist Recovery Daily Practice
Organizer
Sheldon Clark
Organizer
Pittsboro, NC