Courage
How many courageous people do you know?
What is courage after all?
To laugh when it feels like laughing,
To cry when it feels like crying,
To sing when it feels like singing,
To dance when it feels like dancing,
In the street, at work, in a hospital,
Wherever and whenever.
Yes there is fear.
Yes there is isolation.
Yes there is panic buying.
Yes there is sickness.
Yes there is even death.
But,
They say that in Wuhan after so many years of noise
You can hear the birds again.
They say that after just a few weeks of quiet
The sky is no longer thick with fumes
But blue and grey and clear.
They say that in the streets of Assisi
People are singing to each other
across the empty squares,
keeping their windows open
so that those who are alone
Pandemic
What if you thought of it
as the Jews consider the Sabbath—
the most sacred of times?
Cease from travel.
Cease from buying and selling.
Give up, just for now,
on trying to make the world
different than it is.
Sing. Pray. Touch only those
to whom you commit your life.
Center down.
And when your body has become still,
reach out with your heart.
Know that we are connected
in ways that are terrifying and beautiful.
I am the pain in your head, the knot in your stomach, the unspoken grief in your smile.
I am your high blood sugar, your elevated blood pressure, your fear of challenge, your lack of trust.
I am your hot flashes, your cold hands and feet, your agitation and your fatigue.
I am your shortness of breath, your fragile low back, the cramp in your neck, the despair in your sigh.
I am the pressure on your heart, the pain down your arm, your bloated abdomen, your constant hunger.
On those difficult days, when a frontier looms,
decisions seem called for
and the armies of your mind muster
and set off on a headlong gallop
towards the horizon,
they make so much noise
that the heart's soft voice
is drowned out,
and kick up so much dust
that compassion's anchor loses purchase.
The faster the armies gallop,
the farther away the horizon seems,
the bumpier the path
and the cloudier the dusty air
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I recently completed TT1 at Mindful Academy Solterreno. From the moment I started the course, I felt supported and encouraged. Bodhin led a well-paced and designed course and we were given the tools to maximize our learning both personally and professionally. The retreat center itself is run so…
TT1 April 2023
Testimonial As a very reflective person who likes to be in silent observation of the world, I must say that by the end of this retreat I have got to know a different silence - turning inward and actively listening to the reactions of my body, accompanied by thoughts and emotions…
5-days silent retreat, Sept 2022
Testimonial
TT3 is an amazing course. Highly recommended to anyone who wishes to deepen their own mindfulness practice and develop their teaching skills.
Training Staff feedback
Bodhin and Sheena you are…
TT3 June 2022
3 words best describe your experience of this course
belonging, kindness, deepening
Testimonial
I recommend TT3 to anyone who is interested in deepening their knowledge and skil ls for mindfulness teaching.
There is ample opportunity provided to deepen your practice including a 2-day silent retreat at the beginning. The instruction is superlative. The sessions…
TT3, June 2022
I loved how the course was structured. I took TT1 in the intense format of 1 week and TT2 was instead spread over 2 months. I really enjoyed both formats and I felt that TT2 was ideal in this format, because I really had the time to absorb what I learnt in each session and had time to prepare.…
What 3 words best describe your experience of this course
community, support, learning
TT2 Online, Oct 2021
Fantastic course. The structure of each day was fantastic. The days were long but every activity or teaching session felt like it was not rushed, there was spaciousness and yet things didn't often overrun or feel crammed in. Perfect balance. The teachers were absolutely wonderful, grounding,…
What 3 words best describe your experience of this course
Grounding. Safe. Comprehensive
TT1 8-day intensive
I would recommend this TT1 training course to anyone interested in doing the course. The material is well structured and laid out. It is taught experientially which aids in long term learning. The trainers are knowledgeable and impart their knowledge in showing rather than teaching at the…
What 3 words best describe your experience of this course
wonderful, insightful, formative
TT1 Online August 2021
Testimonial
I have loved the course. Very intense in a way, but the safe environment and the sense of community that is created around my colleagues and the trainers is incredible and made me change the perspective of being. It brought me to an incredible space of love and kindness. I…
TT1 online August 2021
