My teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh
“When we are mindful, deeply in touch with the present moment, our understanding of what is going on deepens, and we begin to be filled with acceptance, joy, peace and love.”
At the end of August, I am taking my 6-year old daughter on a week-long retreat with Thich Nhat Hanh at the Blue Cliff monastery in NY. I have been reading books by Thay (or “teacher”) since I was a teenager, and his teachings on compassion, loving-kindness, and deep listening have shaped my life and my yoga teaching immensely. Many of my students have heard and practiced with his gathas (short mantras) such as, “Breathing in, calm. Breathing out, peace. Breathing in, smile. Breathing out, release.”
So I am taking this post today to introduce you to my teacher. You can enjoy this wonderful interview he did with Oprah by clicking here. Watch for Thay’s astute relationship advice towards the end of the interview!
“Peace is present right here and now, in ourselves and in everything we do and see. Every breath we take, every step we take, can be filled with peace, joy, and serenity. The question is whether or not we are in touch with it. We need only to be awake, alive in the present moment.”
Creating paintings is another way that I give service to the world. Now I am sharing this work with supporters in a way that they can inexpensively own some prints of the paintings.
The catalog is a full-sized, binded book with full-color prints of the paintings for my upcoming exhibition at the Delaware Center for Contemporary Art (DCCA). The bulk of the book will be images of my work. It will also contain an essay about my work by Maiza Hixon, the Curator of the DCCA, as well as an introduction written by Margaret Winslow, Associate Curator for Contemporary Art at the Delaware Art Museum.
I’m doing a Kickstarter program to cover for the costs of publication. This way supporters can pay ahead of time for the catalog ($25). The way it works is that when the whole thing is funded (pledged), then it goes through, otherwise, it’s not funded and supporters pay nothing.
Here is a link to the video to watch and to get the catalog yourself — and have a little piece of my work!
Thanks so much for reading! As always, discussion can begin below or the facebook page!
Be well,
P. S. Each week I share personal insights only in email. Plus subscriber yoga practices, meditations, and more. Click here to be part of it!