“Peace in oneself, peace in the world.” -Thich Nhat Hanh

We need more peace, justice, loving-kindness and joy in our world and mindfulness practice can help us cultivate these things. I have been practicing mindfulness meditation since 2012 and some of the benefits I experience are more compassion, clarity, stability, gratitude and loving-kindness. I want to continue growing in my practice and sharing mindfulness practices with others so we can move towards engaged community and “being peace.”

My three visits to Plum Village have been life-changing. I had the chance to attend an LGBTQ+ affinity lunch with a queer monk and about 40 other queer friends. Our sharing in that circle made me feel seen, understood and part of a loving community. Our circle felt like peaceful solid ground, a refuge in a scary and chaotic world. I got the chance to meet, meditate with and briefly speak with Sister Chan Khong, author of the book Beginning Anew, leader in Plum Village and one of my heroes, as well as many other amazing friends in the community. I got to experience the healing and sustaining power of joy more profoundly than I ever had before in a caring and joyful community.

I have been practicing in the Plum Village tradition (Thich Nhat Hanh) since 2012 and am now a certified Metta (Loving-Kindness) and Mindfulness Meditation Teacher (Dharma Moon and Tibet House), currently taking a Buddhist Psychology course with them! I am involved in several Plum Village sanghas (mindfulness meditation communities) where I guide meditations, facilitate a book club and participate in a caretaking council. I am also a certified Accessible Yoga teacher and Little Flower Children’s Yoga and Mindfulness teacher.

I received a 500 euro grant from the Rainbow Dharma Collective for queer meditators to attend the Plum Village Nurturing the Fire Retreat. https://plumvillage.org/event/retreat/nurturing-the-fire The funds will be reimbursed after the retreat. This is a fundraiser to help me cover the cost of transportation, accommodation and the one week retreat at Plum Village. Any amount helps and I would be happy to offer you a mindfulness or loving-kindness meditation class.

Thank you so much for your support!