Rev. Kathy Schmitz 
Rev. Dr. Steve Burt 
Jeannie Economos 
"The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it." – Thich Nhat Hanh
Blessings for welcoming the New Year with ease, gratitude, and joy. As one year closes on the calendar and another one opens, I am reminded of the joy I have found inside of myself through the practice of meditation. I am also grateful to share this practice with those who are interested in learning and practicing meditation in a group. Some topics we covered over the past year are: Mindfulness, The Four Noble Truths, The Eightfold Path, The 8 Pillars to Joy, and Hindrances.
Practicing regularly with a group enhances my personal practice and opens my mind and heart center to an internal spaciousness that allows me to mitigate whatever is happening externally. Developing a personal practice of meditation allows one to explore their internal landscape, creating a more expansive knowledge of oneself.
Most of us in the West have been fortunate enough to benefit from the work of Jon Kabat-Zinn, Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, Jack Kornfield, and more. Most Western Buddhist teachers have had the opportunity to actually study in the East with Buddhist teachers or Zen masters. You may or may not be familiar with their work, perhaps even have studied with one or more of them. There is a common thread that creates a beautiful tapestry of meditation practices, studies, and a way of living taught by these instructors. The primary thread is "Just sit... Just breathe... Let go." Sounds too simple, and it is; however, there are hindrances in meditation practice to overcome, and we learn about those in our studies and practice.
On behalf of the Meditation Group, I am inviting you to join us. The schedule is published in the Timetable.
"Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it." – Buddha
Joyce Axelson-Lorch 
