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Interbeing Sangha of Kingston - Weekly Electronic Bulletin Issue #17 - October 14th, 2017

Interbeing Sangha
of Kingston

Weekly Meeting

Please join us for our next weekly gathering, taking place this Sunday, October 15th, for meditation and dharma sharing, 6:30pm at Unitarian Place (Kingston Unitarian Fellowship), 206 Concession Street. Linda Tucker will be bell minding.

Continuation Day

"The day you call your birthday is really a day to remember your continuation. Every day you are alive is a continuation day. Within your body, birth and death are always taking place. We are coming into existence and going out of existence at every moment of our life. When you scratch or scrub yourself, dry skin is flaked off and new skin cells are born. In the time it takes you to read this paragraph, thousands of cells will have died. But there are so many, you do not have time to organize funerals for them. At the same time, thousands of new cells have been born, but it would be impossible to organize birth certifications. Every day you transform. Some part of you is been born and some part is dying."

-- Thich Nhat Hanh, "We are the Continuation of our Ancestors"

Happy Continuation Day

Thich Nhat Hanh

This past Wednesday, October 11th, Thay and members of his worldwide movement celebrated his 91st birthday. The Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation shares:

"For the month of October (and beyond if you’d like), we invite you and your Sangha to offer Thay and the world the gift of compassion.

One compassionate word, action, or thought can reduce another person’s suffering and bring them joy. A gift of compassion could be big or small. It could be for another person, or it could be for yourself." Read more suggestions on the Foundation's blog.

Doodle Poll

Sangha Care Meeting

All members of our sangha family are invited to take the Doodle Poll linked here to help choose the best date for our next Sangha Care Meeting. Along with ongoing sangha care, we have two very important topics to discuss:

1) Joyfully, our sangha has been invited to lead Kingston Unitarian Fellowship's Sunday morning service on February 25th, 2018, and we need to begin our plans for the service, scheduled with the working title "Interbeing & the UU Seventh Principle."
2) Plans continue for our sangha to host a 3-day regional retreat in Kingston, May 9th-12th, 2019 led by the monastics of Blue Cliff Monastery, in conjunction with Ottawa Pagoda Sangha, and we need to decide upon, and reserve, a location in Kingston with overnight accommodations. Please take the poll and plan to attend.

Community Announcement

Fall Feast Bags

Here is an opportunity to give the "gift of compassion" for #ContinutingThay and #EngagedBuddhism (as suggested in the blog post cited above). Sangha member Linda Tucker shared the following, regarding the fall feast bags she is collecting in conjunction with Friends of the North - Misiway for the northern Ontario indigenous community of Moose Factory: "Gratitude to everyone supporting our 'Feast Bag' project and connecting with our Northern friends. Two shipments sent already and many pledges to come! Sharing our abundance.....and our caring."

Linda will be collecting the fall feast bags through October and into November. Bags to fill (donated by Metro) are available. Download the flyer here with instructions on how you can participate. Last year, over 3000 pounds of food were sent.

Community Announcement

Soulful Singing

Sangha member (and KUF Affiliated Community Minister) Rev. Wendy Luella Perkins, who led us in song at our Summer Day of Mindfulness, will offer her signature meditative practice, Soulful Singing at our regular meeting place, this Tuesday, October 17th, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm. Experience freedom, joy, and peace through the power of communal singing and chanting, in a safe, nurturing, open space to explore. $5-20 by donation, pay what you can. For more information, contact Wendy Luella.

Kingston Unitarian Fellowship

This Sunday

10:30 am this Sunday, October 15th, KUF's new minister, Rev. Beckett Coppola will be joined by Rev. Wendy Luella Perkins for "This is the Sound of Voices Two," inspired by their calls to ministry, their work here in Kingston, and by the legacy of relationship and covenant among Unitarian Universalist ministers across Canada and around the world.

Planting Wholesome Seeds

"Every positive experience we live deeply, in full awareness, is like a wholesome seed planted in our consciousness. We need to practice mindfulness all the time so that we can plant healing, positive seeds in ourselves. Then, when we need them, they will be able to take care of us."

-- Thich Nhat Hanh, No Mud, No Lotus

Our sangha has two teams helping to share leadership and facilitation of our meetings. Our Bell Minders Team are mindful facilitators for our weekly gatherings, as well as retreats, taking beautiful care of our friends in the practice including the bell. Our Sangha Care Team facilitates sangha care meetings, plans retreats, minds our library and resources, and coordinates outreach. If you are interested in helping with either or both, contact interbeingkingston@gmail.com for more information.

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