TOPIC FOR THE NOVEMBER 30, 2022 ZOOM

WE HAVE RESUMED MEETING IN OUR MEDITATION HALL AT 1818 CARRIGAN AVENUE, IN WINTER PARK!!  PLEASE WEAR A MASK WHILE IN THE BUILDING, WHICH WILL HAVE OPEN WINDOWS AND ADEQUATE AIR CIRCULATION. 

   For those who haven’t been to the site, the house is the only one on the block with a sheet metal roof.  Park on the street or in the driveway—please be considerate of the neighbor’s property.  Prior to the pandemic, we have met there without complaint from the neighbors.  Walk to the left of the garage and through the gate in the chain link fence; the cottage in the back yard is where we meet. 

   We will meditate in silence from 7 to 7:45, then, after a break, the Dharma talk will begin.  I will make every effort to Zoom the meeting, but there may be some technical glitches during the process, and the meeting will be recorded and posted as usual. 

   There will be a small box near the front door for dana, the practice of donating to the teacher out of gratitude for the teaching.  The contribution is not required, and the money will be used to maintain the building and pay for the Zoom subscription.  There is a lending library of Dharma related books in the cottage that operates on a trust basis.

   As I understand how Zoom works, you must preregister at the site Zoom.us, entering the URL : https://us04web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUuf-2srDMtnERzureO8f2K4iQeRCf-dQ  and using the password 620329 in order to participate in the events; registering one time will provide access to all the upcoming meetings, as long as we continue streaming them.  The meeting can be accessed by smartphone as well as any internet-connected computer system, following the instructions at the Zoom website. The meetings will be recorded and posted on the website as usual.

The Dharma talk this evening will introduce three people who will be mentored as teachers by Peter to expand the range of what OIMG can offer Central Florida.  They are Lezlie Laws, April Koenig and Allie Vaknin.  Another person “waiting in the wings” as a future teacher is Barbara “Lili” Fernandez, who will be actively participating as a teacher when she and her family return to Windermere next year.  They will participate via the Zoom media platform.  All of them are either just completing or beginning nationally recognized certification teacher training and I am grateful and excited about the potential these folks have for providing us variety in teaching styles and providing opportunities for more people in our community to become aware of and trained in the practice of Secular Buddhism.  I certainly intend to continue teaching and welcome the opportunity for me to train these ladies from my own 30+ years as a meditation teacher.  I hope you will participate in-person or through streaming the meeting, and I wish you well.  Peter