Greetings from Jonathan Foust: Pragmatic Dharma... A Day of Intense Practice... Fresh Photos... and More

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

  This time of year can be a bleak.

The fall foliage was muted and dull. Then two days and nights of intense wind sucked away the remaining leaves and on a bright and clear morning and the front moved through it was suddenly 'stick season.'

Other than a few Buffleheads who've migrated south, it's pretty barren on the river. An owl or hawk wiped out all the birds at our feeder. Things look a little bleak in our society, too.

But as we hit the holidays there's an opportunity to drop below the seasonal platitudes about gratitude and generosity.

We can actually remember to contemplate and cultivate these qualities of the heart.

When I do, everything changes. Life feels magical again.

I wish you well into the holiday season.    

Pragmatic Dharma

  For a board-certified introvert, I talk a lot.

I'm actually pretty quiet, but I do offer about 45 public talks each year.

I'm not a scholar. I don't spend time scouring original texts or teasing out the finer points of different schools of philosophy. What fascinates me is what I think of as "Pragmatic Dharma."

How do you apply these classic and perennial teachings to your day-to-day challenges in a way that not only makes your life easier, but may actually point toward freedom?

That's the theme of the talks from this month: Wise Action.

Here they are if you're interested:

From Anxiety to Wise Action From Anger to Wise Action From Conflict to Wise Action

My talks are available on iTunes as well as YouTube.      

A Day of Intensive Practice

  A Meditative Journey: Dynamic Meditation December 16, 2017, Bethesda, MD

Created in 1970 by the teacher, Osho, Dynamic Meditation is a powerful method of releasing deep-seated tensions and cultivating a state prime for meditation. Jonathan offers a variation consisting of five phases: * Phase 1: Energetic movement

* Phase 2: Free flow movement

* Phase 3: Chanting

* Phase 4: Sitting meditation

* Phase 5: Deep relaxation

Dynamic Meditation is safe and and the same time, deeply engaging. No prior experience in yoga or meditation required. The second half of the day will follow a more traditional format. To deepen your day of practice, much of the day will be in social silence.

For more information and to register online, click the pic:

Fresh Photos

  Despite the dull foliage this fall, a few moments from November:   Every now and then, you get a heart-stopping sunrise like this.   Murmuration in action.   All there is left on the trees are these Beech leaves.   An empty nest on a cold morning.   But they’re back for another winter!   Some mornings are like this.   And some are like this. Note the eagle’s nest on the right side, on the island.   Headed into infinity.   Massive morning murmuration.   This time of year the Sycamores seem to pop out from the riverbanks.      

Video: Wise Action with Jonathan Foust at the IMCW

  I have a 'face made for radio,' but if you're interested in actually watching a talk, I recently subbed for Tara's class offering this talk, "From Anxiety to Wise Action."        

You can help bring mindfulness to Richmond, Virginia

  The Chrysalis Institute in Richmond, Virginia is the business of offering transformational programs for the greater Richmond area.

https://www.chrysalisinstitute.org

If you are inspired to help this group of volunteers create a safe sanctuary for healing and growth, check out this crowd-funding video:

Click the pic to learn more:

I can vouch for the dedication, love and wisdom these folks bring to Richmond to create a more compassionate world. They are dedicated to serving the underserved and making these practices available to all.    

Latest from the Blog

From Addiction to Wise Action

Your Man in Washington

From Anxiety to Wise Action at IMCW

Starlings on the Move

From Conflict to Wise Action

From Anger to Wise Action

From Anxiety to Wise Action

The Power of Restraint

Back in the Saddle Again

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

      iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.

Your Man in Washington

It’s been a privilege to offer, along with my wife Tara and with fellow teacher Hugh Byrne, a series of live-streaming classes on "Mindfulness at Work" at the US Senate.

These eight hour-long classes are available to all the US Senate offices in DC and around all offices around country live, through archives and through an app.

I’m happy to be offering some direct support in these stressful times.     At the Hart US Senate Office Building.       Lights, camera … all we need is action.       iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Starlings on the Move

The sky can get bleak in November, but the collections of Starlings can be quite entertaining.                 iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Back in the Saddle Again

The eagles are back.         iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Greetings from Jonathan Foust: Resources for You From the Fall Retreat... A Day of Intense Practice... Fresh Photos... and More

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

  It’s kind of freaky to do an evening walk outside in late October and hear the crickets still chirping at full volume and with such gusto.

By now they are usually long dormant.

I guess this is just one of the many adjustments to this changing climate.

On the river I’m happy to report the eagles have returned and are keeping vigil at their renovated nest. Cormorants and most of the Great Blue Herons have left for warmer weather and the main movement these days is the murmurations of starlings and the various sizes of the Canada Geese wedges passing overhead.

Robert Frost offers this line:

"In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: It goes on."

Best wishes to you in the new season.

Resources for You From the Fall Retreat

  Imagine seven days in silence. No cell phone or media. No reading. A regimented schedule that never varies from day to day with bells that guide you to the next event. Your meals are provided for you. Folks clean up after you. There are people who's full time job is thinking about you and supporting you.

Your job is to relax and pay attention, moment-to-moment, as best you can.

During the course of a meditation retreat you ride a roller coaster from deep fatigue to increasing vitality. From emotional lows to sometime expansive highs. From a sense of dread to a sense of awe. The 10,000 joys and sorrows of your life open up and flower in a space like this.

I thought I'd share a few talks and guided meditations from this recent retreat. These are also available on my podcast as well as my youtube channel. I hope you find them helpful.

Day #3: Morning Instructions (Mindful Movement, Body Scan and Anchor) This meditation begins with seated mindful movement, moves through a body scan (8:30), guides you to an anchor of your choice (14:24) and focuses on cultivating attention to the present moment.

Day #4: Evening Talk: Polishing the Lens of Perception You'll learn the distinctions between energy and feeling, thoughts and thought-forms as you can expand your capacity to see clearly and with an open heart.

Day #5: After a short introduction on this unique technique you'll be guided into open focus meditation and an exploration of spacious awareness and loving presence.

Day #6: Evening Talk: Qualities of an Awakened Being The final evening of the retreat. You'll learn how to determine your progress on the path, how an awakened being accepts this life with full responsibility, actively investigates the shadows and cultivates a world of new possibility.

You'll also hear me chant a little Sanskrit as part of an homage to the Diwali celebration (the festival of lights celebrated by millions) which started that night.      

A Day of Intensive Practice

  A Meditative Journey: Dynamic Meditation December 16, 2017, Bethesda, MD

Created in 1970 by the teacher, Osho, Dynamic Meditation is a powerful method of releasing deep-seated tensions and cultivating a state prime for meditation. Jonathan offers a variation consisting of five phases: * Phase 1: Energetic movement

* Phase 2: Free flow movement

* Phase 3: Chanting

* Phase 4: Sitting meditation

* Phase 5: Deep relaxation

Dynamic Meditation is safe and and the same time, deeply engaging. No prior experience in yoga or meditation required. The second half of the day will follow a more traditional format. To deepen your day of practice, much of the day will be in social silence.

For more information and to register online, click the pic:

Fresh Photos

  I was away on retreat this month and thereby without a camera in hand, but I do have a few images from this month commemorating October:   A still, fall morning on the Potomac.   Muted colors this year in the mid-Atlantic.   Post-flood foliage on an island.   Floating down the river in a thick fog, my first siting of the Bald Eagles this season.   Later, when things cleared up, an eagle keeps vigil over the recently repaired nest.   One of the remaining herons, preening at first light.   Just one of the many shots from my Left (from the) Behind series.   Our awesome fall retreat crew. Pat Coffey, Janet Merrick, La Sarmiento, Sebene Sallasie, Gary Hillesland and moi. (Missing Jess Frey.)   All Souls Church, downtown DC, just before the IMCW 20th Anniversary celebration.   A great collection of souls at All Souls Church.      

Video: Murmurations

  A short reflection on inter-connectedness while watching flocks of starlings gather on an island on the river.        

Is There a Topic You’d Like to Me to Explore?

  I'm working up new dharma talk titles for the next six months.

Is there a particular topic you would like to hear me go after?

If so, please shoot me at email at jonathanfoust@mac.me. I'm happy to entertain your suggestions.    

Latest from the Blog

Qualities of an Awakened Being (Retreat Talk)

Polishing the Lens of Perception (Retreat Talk)

Meditation: Open Focus and Loving Presence (Retreat Meditation)

Meditation: Morning Instructions on Retreat (Mindful Movement, Body Scan and Anchor)

Why I Dislike the Word ‘Mindfulness’

Retreat

Going with the Flow

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

      iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.

Retreat

Just back from the weeklong Fall IMCW Retreat.

I’m always blown away by the power of pausing.

Do plan a retreat if you can. There’s nothing like slowing down and in silence, training yourself to be fully present.

Day after day after day after day ….       With fellow teachers Pat Coffey, La Sarmiento, Sebene Salassie and moi.     iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Going with the Flow

Today we got .72 inches of rain.

The river fluctuates as much as ten feet on a regular year, from typical flooding to droughts. This has been a time of little rain, particularly in West Virginia, which feeds the Potomac.

In the shot above, taken on a foggy morning, you can definitely see which way the water flows. And you can see how the river dramatically low. Imagine the trees on that island up to their necks in raging water.

From the looks of things, a lot of rain fell in the mountains in these last days which means the accumulated drek: algae, scum, leaves and other detritus will get washed through.     Since the drama of wind, it’s been days of fog.     iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Greetings from Jonathan Foust: Three Ways to Train Your Attention... Don't Just Do Something - Sit There!... Fresh Photos... and More

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

  Focus on being present in meditation and you'll automatically become aware of how you are scattered and distracted.

Focus on kindness and you'll notice how you can be petty, judgmental and mean.

This month has been dedicated to writing.

I've been fantasizing about these four weeks when I could take a deep dive into my book proposal, undistracted and in a seamless flow of creativity.

Hah!

I picked up a bad chest cold flying back from California so the first ten days were dedicated to coughing and phlegm production. When that started clearing up I was beset with computer issues.

Finally I hit a rhythm and even though writing can be hard, I've had a few spasms of insight and rushes of enthusiasm.

I keep returning to one of the best mantras I know: "Keep Going."

Hurricane Jose brushed against Cape Cod so much of our weather was grey and windy.

The bad news? No swimming. The good news? No shark attacks.

I hope this finds you well and in a good groove.

Three Ways to Train Your Attention

  As I spent the last month on Cape Cod, I thought I'd explore three states of paying attention in relationship to swimming in the Atlantic.

Focus Have you noticed how often the happiest times in your life are when you are fully engaged?

The other day I was plotting out a long distance swim. Hurricane Jose had blown in intensely cold water. I knew that in order to swim a mile or more in cold chop, I had to really pay attention.

As I focused on the rhythm of the breath and the details my stroke, the more I felt a sense of absorption and intimacy in each moment. What started out scary ended up feeling blissful.

Flow Have you noticed that sometimes you experience life like a movie, one moment opening right into the next?

Some describe the ‘flow' state as being aware of change but at the same time, allowing it to be. Some report these experiences when they are engaged in sports, absorbed in a task, in moments of intimacy, being in nature, making art, sometimes in yoga, prayer or meditation itself.

I started my swim with a focused intention on not dying. That moment-to-moment hyper-focused attention gradually led to relaxation and then opened up into the flow state.

I became the observer of all the details, somehow both outside my experience, but at the same time, deeply connected.

Let Go Have you noticed sometimes you can feel completely, deeply relaxed but at the time time, intensely and vibrantly alert?

I got back to shore, still in my wet suit, wrapped up in towel and relaxed. The sun was dropping toward the horizon. Gulls gathered in front of me squabbling over fishing rights. A seal popped to the surface. All seemed perfect in the world.

There was nothing to add, nothing to take away.

Each of these states provides particular qualities that can be useful in your life.

Focus collects your attention in the here and now.

Flow cultivates your capacity to be the witness of change.

Let Go develops your capacity to surrender into the mystery of life.

To hear more about these qualities and how to develop them, you can listen to this talk here on my iTunes podcast and here on youtube.      

Don't Just Do Something - Sit There!

  There may still be a space for you in our fall retreat.

All great traditions speak of the power of slowing down and pausing.

When you do, the most amazing things can happen.

For more information and to register online, click the pic:

Fresh Photos

  Me keeping an eye on Hurricane Jose.   Fresh crab AGAIN?!?   Longnook Beach before the storm.   Longnook Beach under duress. Hurricane Jose brought some drama with 65mph winds. It’s almost impossible to imagine winds twice this much and more further south.   The pastels of late summer. The sun sets behind a bank of clouds.   Another day of grey.   Tara in way over her head.   At low tide a seal settled on this rock just under the surface. It must have fallen asleep, then woke up a bit stranded.   The infinite horizon.   After the seal left, another resident arrives.      

Video: Take A Few Moments to Hang with Some Bathing Geese

  Early in the morning on the river I encountered these two geese doing their morning ablutions when a Great Blue Heron chose to stroll through the scene.

Shot with my Lumix GH5 at 35% speed.        

Video: 12 Breaths Meditation: Images from Cape Cod

  Explore the effect of a few minutes of Coherence Breathing and if you would like to keep your eyes open, some footage from Cape Cod.        

Two Apps That Help Me Focus

  Have you heard of the Pomodoro Technique?

I've been using this practice for a number of years now. This month especially, slogging through designing a book and writing, I used it for much of the day.

If you have trouble keeping exclusive focus on one topic at a time, consider giving this a shot.

It's pretty simple.

* Choose a task. * Set a timer for 25 minutes. For those 25 minutes, focus all your attention on that one task. * Take a forced 5 minute break. Even if you're on a roll. * Do it again. * After a certain number of rounds, take a longer break.

Twenty five minutes is a decent amount of time for me to focus. If I'm on a roll and skip the forced break, I tend to burnout and throw myself off balance.

You can read about the process here - and find out how it got the name "Pomodoro".

An even better way to help you focus?

Add either dual binaural beats or a scientifically-engineered soundtrack.

The two apps I highly recommend:

Brain Wave This is for iOS and Android, both iPad and iPhone. You'll find a number of dual-binaural beat programs that range from high focus to meditation and deep relaxation.

Link to the iTunes store.

Focus@Will I've been using this app all month. It's been enormously beneficial in helping me sustain focus.

Focus@Will has done a ton of research into acoustics and their effect on concentration and removing distractions.

This is web-based as well as an iOS app. It struck me as pretty expensive, but there's no question that I've already gotten my money back through my increased productivity.

This link gives you a free trial and a $20.00 discount if you sign up.    

Latest from the Blog

12 Breaths Meditation: Images from Cape Cod

Home Again

Hurricane Jose

Seal of Approval

Bathing Geese

Watching the Storm

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

      iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.

Home Again

I am incredibly fortunate to be able to spend so much time near moving water.

This morning started with dense fog. I pushed off into the river with about 3 foot visibility.

Over time the fog started to burn off. Here are a few images that started my day.             iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Hurricane Jose

Hurricane Jose brushed by Cape Cod and stirred things up a little bit. We went to the ocean side to experience 6omph winds and got a tiny sampling of what happened in Florida and the Caribbean. On the beach we were literally sand-blasted off.     Since the drama of wind, it’s been days of fog.         iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Seal of Approval

This morning two seals stopped by and took up resting spots on two rocks as the tide went out.

This one stayed for quite a while, in fact until it was high and dry. The fog burned off and you can see the early morning light warming it up.         iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Watching the Storm

From our writing retreat on the cape. A rare warm moment before a cold front comes in.       iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Greetings from Jonathan Foust: Shining Light on Your Shadow... The October Retreat... Fresh Photos... and More

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

  It's great to wake up in my own bed. After a month on the road I've had three weeks back in Northern Virginia.

Despite the political turmoil here, I enjoy late summer in the DC area. With so much heat and rain, the river is churning with life.

Each year I'm a little more aware of the passing details of each season. Blue Bells and Flox are distance memories and Morning Glories and Crepe Myrtle rule.

My friend Chun was fishing nearby and was surrounded by a family of chirping River Otters recently, the little ones curious and playful.

Off again, teaching at the 1440 Multiversity (https://1440.org) in California. In September, Tara and I will be on a writing retreat.

I hope you're feeling creative as we turn toward harvest time.

Shining Light on Your Shadow

  Spiritual traditions point toward the possibility of increasing your capacity for true happiness. This concept seems harder and harder to grasp, though, with such social turmoil and polarization around us.

I just completed a series of talks on the "Ten Perfections," qualities of character and presence, that when polished, reflect back the light of an awakened heart and mind.

The Tenth Perfection is Equanimity - a quality of presence untouched by anything external. It's a quality of presence beyond what we think of as 'happiness.'

This quality of serenity and steadiness is the fruit of spiritual practice.

You can't make it happen, but it's easy to try to make it happen. When you do, you'll slip into premature transcendence and overlook what is between you and feeling free.

And so, the events of Charlottesville.

That Saturday I led a retreat with 115 people called "The Inquiry Intensive." It was a love-fest. It was a day of thoughtful sharing, deep listening and care, tenderness and good humor. By the end of the day I felt awe at the power of sincere, caring people exploring shared questions.

When I got home I checked the news and saw the photographs from the march. I forced myself to study the images and sit with my reaction. I was filled with not just sadness and hopelessness, but anger and outrage. And to be honest, something in me bitterly wanted revenge. It was then that I realized I was experiencing the flip side of equanimity. I was caught in the shadow of anger.

During the Buddha's lifetime he was surrounded by war and violence. Many of his relatives were directly involved in brutal conflicts. It was then that he allegedly said:

"Hatred never ceases by hatred in this world. Hatred only ceases by love. This is an unending, eternal truth."

I had the benefit of a day of slowing down to help me recognize the vitriol I was fostering.

I know that anger is connected to an unmet need. When I looked again at the images I saw a little deeper into the suffering in those photographs.

We are all influenced by unconscious forces of desire, aversion, confusion.

Unless we slow down and pay attention, our lives are nothing more than living out of reaction to what is happening. No creativity. No compassion. No love.

When we can bring loving presence to the shadow, new possibilities can emerge.

I offered a talk on this topic: Shining Light on Your Shadow. It's a personal reflection on how to recognize the early warning signs of living from a place that is less than fully alive and how to work with what you find.

As I get older I've come to see the safest refuge of all is reality.

Recent talks: Shining Light on Your Shadow

Serenity Now! How to Cultivate Equanimity

How to Cultivate a Kind and Friendly Heart

How to Cultivate Determination and Resolve      

The October Retreat

  Every great tradition speaks of the power of pausing and slowing down.

If you're drawn to both silence and good company, come join us!

I'll be joined by a wonderful teaching team: La Sarmiento, Pat Coffey and Sebene Selassie. Jess Frey will be leading twice-daily Kripalu-style yoga to support your sitting and walking practice.

You'll have wholesome food from the farm, visits with the goats and chickens and walks in the Maryland woods west of Baltimore.

You'll also have a few interviews with a teacher over the course of the week to help you stay present to your practice and your deepest intention.

For more information and to register online, click the pic:

Fresh Photos From This Month

  Cormorants gather at first light.   I drifted downriver to catch the sunrise lighting up the morning mist.   Waiting for the sun.   The sun burns through a late summer haze.   For about a month, Morning Glories rule the little islands on the river.   Protecting the turf.   This is the time of year when the spiders seems to know their time is up and they dramatically step up their activity.   Hanging with the family.   First light. Another day.      

Video: Branta Canadensis Belchus

  I got some amazing footage this month. I'm getting to know my new camera. My Lumix GH5 has five-axis image stabilization, can shoot 60fps at 4k as well as high definition (1080p) slow motion.

Due to the fact that I'm heading to California early, I've not had time to edit these clips into form. You'll see them next month. I did have a few minutes to put together this video: Branta Canadensis Belchus.

I'm happy to see that my commitment to the visual arts is reaching new depths of expression.        

The Awaken App on Kickstarter

  Ravi Mishra attended the Fall retreat last year. Among the many ideas popping through during the course of the week was the idea for an app that would support people in their practice. As he describes it, "This is my way of responding, not reacting." It's called Awaken and it's on Kickstarter.

It's called Awaken and it's on Kickstarter.   You can read more here: https://whynotawaken.com/kickstarter    

Latest from the Blog

The form of a Heron

Branta Canadensis Belchus

Shining Light on Your Shadow

Serenity Now! How to Cultivate Equanimity

How to Cultivate a Kind and Friendly Heart

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

      iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.

The Mystery of Each Morning

I woke up in morning gloom. Heavy grey clouds. An impulse to turn over and try to go back to sleep.

Something inside would not be denied, though, and so I put on my paddling clothes, life vest, pack, two cameras, a tripod and a thermos of green tea and made my way to the river.

Then this image, a soft flash of light and color before the dark clouds closed in again.

Two bows of gratitude: First, to the still, small voice that quietly said 'Go. Now."

Second, to that which heard, listened and responded.         iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

The Form of a Heron

      iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Greetings from Jonathan Foust: Don't Just Do Something... The Inquiry Intensive... Fresh Photos... and More

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

  Sometimes it’s great to get away. Life feels a bit too rote and a shake up sharpens the mind. On the other hand, too much travel leads to a craving for routine and structure.

I’ve been on the road most of the month.

I’ve been swimming on Cape Cod, with the very real concern on a shark on my tail and swimming shark-free in the Stockbridge Bowl in Western Massachusetts.

What a blessed life I’m living. I led a week intensive exploring the technologies of meditation and intuition with the “Still, Small Voice Within” retreat and a nine-day immersion with a group of amazing yoga teachers exploring how to bring the practice of meditation out into the world.

I hope your summer is filled with unexpected pleasures.    

Don't Just Do Something...

  While in college and grad school I lived and worked on a farm. Not a play farm. A real one.

We grew corn, soybeans, wheat and alfalfa on about 1,000 acres. I was the livestock manager, overseeing a 'farrow-to-finish' operation, breeding and raising hogs. I spent countless hours driving and maintaining a wide variety of tractors, trucks, farm implements and the occasional combine.

We were also dedication to the practice of meditation. Twice a day, no matter what, we meditated for twenty minutes.

In Spring we were always rushing to get the fields ready for planting. From first light to after dark we ran plows, disks, a culta-multure, the corn planter and a seed drill. But at an appointed hour we’d shut everything down, pile into a pick up truck, drive to a corner of a field and sit.

One afternoon I was setting up a piece of complicated equipment - a maze of drive belts, tension pulleys and bearings.

I could not, no matter how I tried, set it up correctly. Every time I went through the process, something was wrong.

After the fourth or fifth attempt, I was so frustrated I started kicking the tires of tractor.

I glanced at my watch and realized it was time for meditation. I stomped off and sat quietly for twenty minutes with my mantra.

When I was done I made my way back to the machinery and studied the jigsaw puzzle in front of me. In about ten seconds, I saw what was needed.

Ten seconds.

Problem solved.

I was raised a Quaker. There’s a saying they like to throw around:. "Don't just do something. Sit there."

By pausing, I experienced something Einstein famously declared: "No problem was ever solved in the same consciousness that created it."

Yesterday I had a backlog of 85 emails, this newsletter to write, a dharma talk to put together, two copy deadlines, a presentation to assemble and an already-packed schedule.

Fortunately, I remembered to not ‘do something’.

I sat there.

When I opened my eyes the to-do list was still waiting for me but the path looked a little more clear.

The farm I lived and worked on is now one of the largest Community Supported Agriculture organizations in the country, delivering biodynamic and organic vegetables to it's members in the midwest. John Peterson, the owner of the farm and my mentor, is an amazing visionary, artist, writer and story-teller. A film was done on him a few years ago, called "The Real Dirt on Farmer John."

You can learn more about John and Angelic Organics here: https://angelicorganics.com      

The IMCW Fall Vipassana Meditation Retreat: October 13 - 20, 2017

  The more dynamic your rest, the more dynamic your activity.

Step back from your life, pause deeply, and you’ll see more clearly.

In my opinion, there’s no better investment of time and fortune than a formal meditation retreat where you restrain from habitual activity and immerse deeply into moment-to-moment presence.

This fall I’ll be joined by a wonderful teaching team: La Sarmiento, Pat Coffey and Sebene Selassie.

Jess Frey will be down from Kripalu Center leading twice-daily yoga to support your sitting and walking practice.

Pearlstone Retreat Center is on a farm and and offers visits with goats and chickens and walks in the Maryland woods west of Baltimore.

You’ll also have a few interviews with a teacher over the course of the week to help you stay present to your practice and your deepest intention.

For more information and to register.

Fresh Photos From This Month

Big skies, big water and a bountiful planet.   Berkshire Mountain sky at my dear buddy Dharani’s memorial service.   Above the Great Falls.   Potomac River sunrise.   A morning with more mid-Atlantic humidity.   A rare cool morning with mist on the Potomac River.   A even more rare morning with clear, sharp light.   Vrksanana Pose.   Taking refuge in Sangha. Cape Cod.   Low, low tide. Cape Cod.   Mom? Mom?!? Great Falls, Virginia.      

Video: Moving Meditation on the River

  I didn't have time to do a fresh video this month so I thought I'd share a favorite.

This five-minute meditation follows a fogged-in morning paddle on the Potomac River.        

The Inquiry Intensive: Explore the Questions That Can Change Your Life

  Saturday, August 12th, 9:30-4:30 at the Unitarian Universalist Church on Arlington

Contemplating the right questions can help you: * Change your perspective. * Make important decisions. * Solve problems. * Point your attention toward your true nature.

This is a highly experiential and interactive retreat.

You'll learn how to use intuitive inquiry as a tool for transformation, the meditation techniques that help calm the mind and cultivate clear-seeing and a model for intuitive exploration.   For more information and to register online:

   

Latest from the Blog

When You Really, Really Want to Swim

Happy For No Reason, Part 2

Happy For No Reason, Part 1

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

      iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.

Happy For No Reason, Part 2

Also not dead yet!

        iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Happy For No Reason, Part 1

Not dead yet!

        iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.    

Greetings from Jonathan Foust: How to Cultivate Determination and Resolve... The IMCW Fall Vipassana Meditation Retreat... Fresh Photos... and More

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

Is time speeding up?

  This season seems to have taken on the characteristics of the dragon flies and hummingbirds. It’s whizzing by. Almost a blur.

The antidote seems to be embracing ‘the pause’. Slowing down the breath, opening the senses and remembering this is all changing seem to increase my capacity for ecstatic appreciation.

By the way, an interview I did with Tami Simon, the founder of Sounds True just came out.

It was an honor to be interviewed by her for her podcast, "Insights at the Edge," on the topic "The Issue Are in Your Tissues".

You can listen to it here.

May your summer be filled with joy and new discoveries!    

How to Cultivate Determination and Resolve

  I recently asked a friend this question:

"Was there a time when you really wanted something and gave yourself to it fully only to realize it wasn’t what you really wanted?"

He paused for about one second and responded, “The first forty years of my life?”

As part of a series on the "Ten Perfections," I recently talked about the eighth topic in the series: How to Cultivate Determination and Resolve

The keys:

1. Know What You Really Want

You might be really good at climbing ladders. It’s important, though, to make sure the ladder is on the right wall. What do you really really want?

2. Set Your Course

What are the best practices that will move you toward your goal? Who would be a role model for you? What kind of support would you need?

3. Develop Grit

Studies suggest that beyond social intelligence, good looks and IQ there is factor that makes all the difference: Grit.

Grit is your capacity to stay the course. The good news is that you can learn how to develop grit.

4. Stay Open and Adjust as Needed

It’s easy to fall into a trap of thinking that moving toward a goal is a never-ending grind, when it fact it’s a balance of focus and deep rest and renewal.

If you lift weights and don’t provide enough recovery time, you won’t develop fully.

Where is the balance point between dynamic, focused activity and rejuvenating rest?

If you don’t pause and ask if what you are doing today is aligned with where you want to be down the road, you may find yourself living life as if you are in a pinball machine - caught in endless reactivity.

When you pause, reflect on what you really want, set the course, stay the course and savor the journey, life can open to new possibilities.

Podcast | Youtube      

The IMCW Fall Vipassana Meditation Retreat: October 13 - 20, 2017

  Do you Need a Time Out?

Imagine a week with no email and media, no speaking, no eye contact and training your heart and mind to be fully present in the here and now.

As the saying goes, “The more you’ve got going on in your life, the more you need to be on retreat.” In my opinion, there’s no better investment of time and fortune than stepping back and pausing in a formal meditation retreat.

I’ll be joined by a wonderful teaching team: La Sarmiento, Pat Coffey and Sebene Selassie. Jess Frey will be leading twice-daily Kripalu-style yoga to support your sitting and walking practice.

You’re supported in your practice with wholesome food from the farm, visits with the goats and chickens and walks in the Maryland woods west of Baltimore.

You’ll also have a few interviews with a teacher over the course of the week to help you stay present to your practice and your deepest intention.

For more information and to register.

Fresh Photos From This Month

June was a photogenic month with almost 2,000 images and video clips in the last thirty days.   After a lot of branch-hopping, in the beginning of June the young eagle finally took flight. The image here reminds me of when I was 14 and miserable.   Young deer before dawn for a river-side drink.   The local heron rookery makes for a lot of action on the river.   Up close and personal.   Moving through the morning mist.   Sushi.   Where’s Waldo?   Not dead yet. My annual birthday post proving I am still here. On the Colorado River.      

Video: A Morning Meditation on Mists and Moths

  A short video of a summer morning on the Potomac River.        

Latest from the Blog

My Interview with Tami Simon, Founder of Sounds True

How to Cultivate Determination and Resolve

How to Cultivate Honesty and Truthfulness

How to Cultivate Tolerance and Forbearance

Empty Nest Syndrome

How to Cultivate Vigor and Vitality

To receive a monthly newsletter,
please signup here.

      iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.

Empty Nest Syndrome

After many weeks of wing-flapping and hopping around, the adolescent eagle and parents have moved on.

This is the last shot I have of them. It looks like a surly teenager in this shot.

It’s been three days since I’ve seen them around.

The first time I paddled up toward the nest with no activity churned up a mixed palette of feelings.

Every since the eagles started building their nest in the fall I’ve had an almost daily relationship with them.

It must be a little bit like when a kid goes off to college … sweet sadness, a little pride and kvelling for what a great job they did.    

    iTunes podcast here, online listening here, stitcher here, and Jonathan’s YouTube channel here.