Haitian Crisis/February 6 Day for Men

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Sacred Path Community,

Our hearts go out en masse to the Haitian people and their loved ones who are suffering the devastating losses of their relatives and friends. We are all witnessing the rescue effort and realize that much help is needed. In addition to our prayers and meditative practices, it is indicated that donating money is what’s really needed right now. For those who wish to contribute, the following is a list of ways to do so. If you text a donation using your cell phone the donation will appear on your phone bill. If you go to the various sites listed below on the Internet, you will find ways to donate and use your credit card. In addition to these resources there are many local churches and synagogues that support Haiti missions. If you contact a local organization I'm sure they can direct you to the most effective way to give without falling victim to unscrupulous opportunists. Many roads lead to supporting the help efforts. This Friday at 8pm, eleven broadcast and cable networks will televise a two-hour telethon, Hope for Haiti to benefit victims of last week's earthquake. ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CNN, BET, CW, HBO, MTV, VH1 and CMT will air the special in the US and MTV Networks International, CNN International and National Geographic channels will air it worldwide. Hope for Haiti, hosted by George Clooney, the Haitian-American musician Wyclef Jean and CNN's Anderson Cooper, will feature about twelve other celebrities.



Donate using your cell phone

Text "HAITI" to 90999 to donate $10 to Red Cross relief efforts

Text "HAITI" to 20222 to donate $10 to the Clinton Foundation relief efforts

Also: Contribute online to Doctors Without Borders

2009 was a challenging year for most, and as always, we wish for the best to follow as we enter the New Year. It’s difficult to necessarily predict what will eventuate this coming year, but I believe we have enough evidence to suggest that we’re squarely in the throes of a universal spiritual expansion of consciousness of major dimension leading up to December of 2012. Crises like the earthquake in Haiti do provide an opportunity for diverse countries to unite through merging humanitarian efforts. It’s a way for the world to come together and experience the importance of coalescing for a significant cause.

From another perspective, I was recently sharing with the members of the Sacred Path Wisdom Council my observations that men of all ages continue to be tested, and especially men in their 30’s and 40’s seem to be facing some major learning opportunities these days. For example, the fall that Tiger Woods has taken may turn out to be the most prominent Katabasis that we have witnessed in modern day. As in all generations, the journey that takes us through midlife presents challenges that can be harrowing, and for this current generation of men it is no exception.

In fact, I sense that the cycle we’re currently in is propelling and compounding the lessons for most. I further sense that younger men really need the support of older men who have experienced much of what they’re contending with, which strengthens my conviction that what we provide through MCLA/Sacred Path is still vital and necessary, maybe even more so now. In other words, the younger men need the elders to guide them through the rocky waters. And, the older men need to be around the younger men to remind them to remain open, flexible, resilient and youthful.

If you agree with me, then I’m sure you have your own perceptions, observations and conclusions that all that we have done for ourselves and others in years past has been in some ways a preparation for dealing with what will undoubtedly surface over the next few years.

The Day for Men on Saturday, February 6th is designed to provide an opportunity for men that have already been participating with us to reconnect as well as to offer for those that are being introduced to our community a taste of what we do on retreat. We can commence with some drumming, a meditation and ceremony. I believe Andrew Soliz will be able to participate with us. Associate Directors Steve Branker and Dan Franklin as well as many men from the Wisdom Council will be in attendance. In addition to our large group community council time, I envision some small group work in two sections during the day. Before lunch we will divide the participants into groups based on various themes. I have asked Nick Rath to lead a group for those interested in parenting issues, and Dr. Howard Elkin has accepted my invitation to lead the group interested in health issues. We can also have groups focused on relationship- and recovery-oriented concerns as well as other topics that might surface during the check-in round. After the community time following lunch we’ll divide the participants into groups based on age and then close the day with an open forum. The number and size of the groups will be determined based on the number of participants that register for the day. I’m envisioning a strong showing for this program as a launch for the New Year.

I invite and encourage you to participate. I truly feel that these one-day gatherings of men provide personal support for the individual participants as well as solidarity for the community. I believe you know that we host these one-day events as fund-raisers for MCLA/SP to raise money to cover ongoing operational costs. We have reduced the registration fee to $125. Over the past two years the fee had been $150 for the one-day retreats. We’re also offering partial scholarships for those in need. If you attend the Day for Men on the 6th and plan to register for the spring Sacred Path Retreat (April 15-18), you will receive a discounted fee for the April retreat. You can follow the links below to further information about the Gathering of Men event on February 6th and the registration form. See you there.

In as much as we wish we could be there to lay hands on those that are suffering so, it is helpful to at least remember to take periodic Mindfulness time-outs from our busy days to stop and meditate on the Haitian people, breathing in their suffering and breathing out love, peace and light for their healing and recovery. This is a Tonglen Buddhist meditative practice based on “sending and receiving.” It’s also described as exchanging self for other. In the practice of Tonglen, we breathe in whatever feels bad and we send out whatever feels good. Buddhist Nun Pema Chodron states in her book, Comfortable with Uncertainty, “You breathe in for yourself, in the sense that pain is a personal and real experience, but simultaneously there’s no doubt that you’re developing your kinship with all beings. If you can know it in yourself, you can know it in everyone… This practice cuts through culture, economic status, intelligence, race, religion… Everybody feels it in the painful way you feel it. The story lines vary, but the underlying feeling is the same for all of us… If you’re willing to drop the story line, you feel exactly what all other human beings feel. It’s shared by all of us. In this way if we do the practice personally and genuinely, it awakens our sense of kinship with all beings.” This helps to awaken our experience that we are all members of one massive spiritual family.

In the spirit of brotherhood,
Stephen


To Download the Flyer/Application for the February 6, 2010 DAY FOR MEN, Click HERE