Respected Thay, Dear Friends:

This is our first attempt to send out an email to those who have subscribed via the Winding Path Sangha website, so fingers crossed you received it! (And if there's someone you know who might like to get these communications in the future, please forward this email and let them know they can sign up using this link.)

We've experienced a great many transitions over the past couple of years, including with our local and global Sangha. We lost some friends, including dear Thay in January, and more recently the Rev. Dainei Page Appelbaum, former resident teacher at the Iowa City Zen Center and longtime follower of Thay, who passed away in July. Some members have drifted away, as can happen, and happily new ones have joined us (some from other countries) and become wonderful members of our community.  

We moved out of our Trinity Episcopal "home" when the pandemic arrived in early 2020, moved our weekly gatherings to Zoom, and in fits and starts have returned to in-person meetings some weeks while preserving Zoom opportunities for friends who for health concerns or distance from Iowa City are unable to join us in person. 

We seem, at last, to have struck a good balance that we hope will serve us into the foreseeable future. But if there's one lesson we can trust from the Dharma teachings, it's that everything is impermanent. Thankfully, our practice can help us see our way through life's changes without too much extra drama. A friend of Winding Path Sangha recently shared this with me from the Dhammapada, a collection of sayings attributed to the Buddha:

Your worst enemy cannot harm you

As much as your own thoughts, unguarded.

But once mastered,

No one can help you as much,

Not even your father or your mother.

To help us with the practice of taking care of our thoughts, we have a number of upcoming opportunities that I want to make you aware of, as we no longer use Meetup to push out meeting notifications. I'll try to make sure our website and its Google calendar also are up to date, so if in doubt, please check those between these occasional emails. (And if you find something incorrect, don't hesitate to email me at windingpathsangha@gmail.com). 

I hope you find the Sangha nourishing. Please know how much you each benefit us. 

Wishing you all a kind, generous, and centered week. 

Stephen

Mini-Day of Mindfulness

Join us for a half day of mindfulness at the Coralville home of one of our Sangha members from 9:30 a.m. until about 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24. Includes guided, sitting, and walking meditation, Dharma sharing, and more. Space is limited to about 12 people. (Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash)

Walking Meditation in Honor of Dainei

At 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 10, at the Conklin Lane entrance of Hickory Hill Park, we will hold a special walking meditation, followed by tea, in honor of the Rev. Dainei Page Appelbaum, former resident teacher of the Iowa City Zen Center, longtime friend of Winding Path Sangha, and student of Thay's. Dainei passed away July 24.

Garden Meditation

Winding Path Sangha member Janis Russell, who hosts a Garden Meditation at her home on occasional Mondays, has changed the start time for September to accommodate the waning daylight. The Sept. 12 and 26 meditations will run from 6-7 p.m. Find Janis at 1107 Rochester Ave., Iowa City (third house from corner of Clapp to Rochester Avenue).

'Thaypassana' Retreat

“Genuine Freedom,” a four-day Thaypassana retreat that blends Plum Village and Vipassana practices,  will be held at Siena Retreat Center in Racine, Wisconsin, Oct. 20-23. The retreat will be led by teachers Janice Cittasubha Sheppard and David Haskin. 

Trinity Front Door

We meet for in-person meditation at 7 p.m. the first and third Wednesdays of each month at Trinity Episcopal Church, but some have had problems getting in the front door, which must remain locked by church policy. We try to have a volunteer there from about 6:50 to 7:05 p.m.; after that, please ring the doorbell buzzer and we'll come down and let you in, unless we've begun meditation.

Sangha Member Seeks Room

A new Sangha member, Golden, is seeking to rent a room in a house. She shares the following: “Late-40s early retiree with professional background seeking a more natural home, without chemical cleaners, fragrance, new paints or carpet. She has a health condition that is highly worsened with these and around any smoking. She is glad to trade, and prefers to, for household chores, healthy cooking, organizing, etc. She has helped families in this way for 10 years.”