by Nomon Tim Burnett
September 11, 2007
Dear Sangha,
I hope these crisp end of summer days find you well. May there be contentment in your heart and acceptance of the passing of another summer and the coming of Fall and into the dark times of the year. Fall is when many of us renew our commitment to practice, it just feels natural to do so somehow. May this coming winter be one in which the tangles in our hearts untangle and the tightness in our minds releases and may it be that way for all people, animals, and plants. Let's pray for a winter that brings more peacefulness and joy to the world and do what we can to help that along.
From my Journal: 9/9/2007, Below Park Butte, Mount Baker Wilderness Area
Red Cedar Zen Community's 2007 Mountains and Rivers Hiking Retreat:
On the solo time, led to a wonderful mossy boulder - maybe a granitic erratic but to totally and lovingly covered with white-gray lichen and green-brown moss that I can't tell from where I sit.
Clear experience with preferences coming here. We started in zazen in the little log shelter zendo, then Bob gets up and whispers "solo" much as the jisha whispers "dokusan" to take you to the teacher. Whispered same to Latona and three of us set off up the trail. Walking pretty fast. Me in fleece camping togs with black okesa wrapped on top (maybe someday I'll create fleece & gortex robes for this retreat!).
Sun had just come over the ridge a half hour earlier. As we started walking I was cherishing the feeling of the sun on face, shoulders, ears, cheeks. But Bob kept walking right out of the sun, up the slope, into the cold shade. Suddenly found the mind to be very agitated and realized I didn't want to leave the sun. Then an image of the little nature spot where Bob took me for this solo time last I went on this retreat (six years ago!) appeared in the mind: a sunny little meadow by a little brook - warm, moist, luxuriant - and here we were hiking up into the trees, into the shade, to a rocky areas - hard and cold. It wasn't what I wanted - noticed shoulders tensing. Preferences are so powerful - are they always laced with this keep desire for continuity, do they spring from a kind of conservatism - wanting it all the same as last time, the solo time here supposed to be in that exact spot always? (Not that I could even find that spot if I tried!). IS the mind always so resistant to change? To something new?
We hiked a little farther - bush whacking a little now trying not to worry about wrecking the okesa - until on a moderately steep slope Bob stops. Turns to me, pat on the shoulder and then so tenderly saying "that rock, that's your spot." Giving me a gift. A gift of a spot. A seat. A place for being. What better gift could there be? And it's not just the spot itself, which is perfect, but the giving of it. So moving.
And it is the perfect spot too. In tall trees - hemlocks, cedars (but not I think Red Cedar this high - Alaska Yellow?), a fir (sub-alpine? Or silver fir?) beautiful tall mountain trees ahead down the slope and to the right. To the left a rock pile with a pika calling with their funny little squeak and above the rock pile is the soaring rock face of Park Butte framed by the trees with it's fire lookout sitting there - majestic is a bit worn as adjectives go but seems the one for the job - a majestic scene. A pleasant fantasy of reserving the lookup and somehow getting my family up there for a nice long stay came to the mind. Such a nice place. Such a spot on Earth.
And so helpful to have another reminder of the power of preferences and the suffering they create. And another reminder of the generosity of the world. When we get fixed on our preference we see the other as stringy and begrudging, we see the world as a place of scarcity and place that will not give us what we need. And when we put ourselves into a situation where we can see our preference for what it is and move past it, watch it slip away, and feel that deeply - if we can do that, a space opens up somehow and into that space this magically generous world gives us just what we need - and often something much better for us than we could have imagined appears.
Red Cedar Zen is now the Steward of the new Dharma Center
Preferences are much on my mind as we work to create the new center. I mentioned in my last letter that the Bellingham Dharma Hall was approached by a donor who wished to form a partnership with the Dharma Hall organization to help fund a newer, larger, more accessible dharma center in Bellingham which could include the donor's vision of an "Earth Room" - a meditation room devoted to practicing and experiencing our connection with the Earth. The project was to be coordinated by the Dharma Hall Board with the operational decisions made by a committee of the sanghas in residence there. Well a few weeks ago that shifted and we have been working hard to respond to the opportunity of that change.
The other sangha in residence at the Earth Room Project was to have been Bellingham Mindfulness Community. A few weeks ago Mindfulness realized that their community was not ready to move forward with the Earth Room Project with the fairly rapid timetable the donor had specified, and which the Dharma Hall Board had agreed to. That being the case the donor decided to shift the donation and the arrangements (a final agreement had not yet been signed between the Dharma Hall and the donor). With the support of the Leadership Council in a special meeting on August 29th our treasurer, Greg Greenan, and I signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the donor which I will paste at the bottom of this email laying out the agreement and making Red Cedar Zen Community the recipient of the donation of $100,000 towards support for paying the lease as the "Stewards" of the project. And then a few weeks later on September 6th I signed a five year lease on the building at 1021 N. Forest Street in downtown Bellingham which will become the new center.
We have happily agreed to invite the other Dharma Hall sanghas to join us in the new building if they are interested in doing so. And we have agreed to work on the new center in consultation with these sanghas to listen to and value their input, and of course to listen to our members as well! - but that in the end the Leadership Council of the Red Cedar Zen Community will make the operational and financial decisions about the new building. The donor's suggested term of Steward seems apt to me. It's kind of "our" center and it also isn't. We can't at this stage of our development come anywhere near to affording the rent ($2300/month) for example. It's the Earth Room donation that makes all of this possible. Makes it possible for us to offer more programming in a quieter, larger, and accessible building. I am very excited about the possibilities but it is also a bit overwhelming and like I said the nature of preferences and of human beings working together is a big part of that.
Many preferences about how to set up and run the new building are being expressed by many people, and we are of course interested to have your input as well. Many preferences, including my own, are colliding and mixing and we prepare to bake this new center. Some are thrown right at me in a delicate game of interpersonal throw and catch (those little email balls being lobbed over the net, sometimes the hard serve right to the face too) and it can be a challenge to respond.
How to truly listen to much excellent and well meaning advice tainted and confused by preferences as it always is? Sometimes my own preferences are activated - preferences not to sit in meetings, preferences to have it the way I first thought of it. Sometimes I can easily adapt, incorporate, shift my view, reflect back clearly the pros and cons of each idea. And through all of this we have such a wonderful opportunity to study the mind.
And so I am writing to invite you to come and study your preferences with us and to help out with this amazing opportunity to create a new center for dharma, for mindfulness, for peace in downtown Bellingham on a well trafficked road with a nice big sign. It can truly become an offering for ourselves and for the community. Despite my mused on preferences please do feel fully invited to come and participate. Do feel free to come give input, to help, and to contribute. The Leadership Council will do its very best to listen, to respond, to express our gratitude to the sangha and the sanghas involved. Of course strong preferences will generally not result in getting what you want but that's okay: it is likely that expressing your idea will trigger something positive into being even if it's not what your where picturing exactly.
But more important than making all of the arrangements just so is to come to help, to be a part of the community, and come to practice. Working together is the only way we can do this thing. It's a community effort. A beautiful new center, a place for practice, a place to study the mind, a place to settle and clarify the heart, a place where we can build a need and lasting peace and offer that to the Bellingham community and the world.
At this point there are four kinds of help we really need.
Way to Help #1 - be a lead volunteer on a project
Firstly is we need a few people with some time and energy to take the lead on specific projects - to be the lead volunteer and take responsibility to research, plan, and weight the options. This doesn't mean doing all of the work but it does mean taking the initiative and responsibility, making decisions and recommendations, and following up. Making phone calls, pricing options and so on. Here are the current leads (and their contact info if you want to give them some useful input) and open possibilities.
Business Arrangements - We are thinking that Dharma groups could opt for a group membership with a monthly fee (probably about $400 initially) giving them regular priority use on several time slots, and further to offer the space on an hourly and daily basis to all compatible groups. This job is working out the particulars of those arrangements.
Tim Burnett 223-0687 tim@redcedarzen.org
Heating System - The building has no heat, selecting a system and coordinating with contractors.
Latona Maillard 510-3167 nobody@akuna.com (with research by Karen Fitzgerald)
Flooring - The upstairs (meditation hall level) has no finish floor, selecting a floating wood-type floor, finding a source, purchasing materials.
Diane Mirro 933-1060
Paint Colors - The entire building is primer white. Pick a good set of colors in affordable paint.
Nancy Welch 671-3992 and Diane Mirro
Lighting Fixtures - The upstairs has no lighting.
Marti Bartlett 306-0038 mbartlett@fidalgo.net
Utilities - We'll have wireless internet, a new phone, and the usual gas and electric. Figure out the best choices, start the processes moving
Bernadette Prinster brndet@comcast.net 752-0888
Smoke Alarms/Fire Safety - Where should smoke
alarms and exit signs be placed to insure that our new building is safe? Get
advise from the Fire Dept.
Marti & Bernadette
Cushions - Red Cedar Zen will receive 1/4 of the current Dharma Hall inventory but we'll need more to outfit a full dharma center.
Chris Burkhart chrisburkhart@hotmail.com 312-1094
Partition Walls - Building new interior walls upstairs to create the Earth Room and the foyer/lobby
Lou Hinkley lou@daedalusaudio.com 312-3604 days, 503-317-6202 cell/eves.
Electrical Work - Study the current electrical situation upstairs - are there the right light boxes, switches, outlets for our use? And coordinate with an electrician to get it done.
John Keith johnlisa29@prodigy.net 510-9780
Sign Design - open, we need someone to design a sign for the road (there is a large sign mount), find out rules from the city, pick a vendor
Library setup - open, assuming the current Dharma Hall library comes to the new space (likely), we need someone to design and coordinate the building of shelving downstairs
Insurance - open, we need liability insurance: $1,000,000 per instance, $2,000,000 aggregate
Front Garden - open, there is a small patch of weedy grass in front. Design a simple garden in front, purchase plants and mulch, help organize a work party to put it in.
Furnishings - open, help find chairs, tables, couches as needed. Affordable but reasonably nice.
Insulation - open, hire a contractor (Gayle Insulation?) to insulate the subfloor of the upper floor - easy access to the crawl space. Coordinate with Latona on heating to be sure the system we use doesn't need to go under the floor before the insulation goes in.
Way to Help #2 - General Help, Work Parties, Sweat of your Brow
We plan to have 3 or 4 work parties in October into November to install floors, paint walls, do gardening, set up furniture and so on. Work parties are currently scheduled for the following Saturdays after the 10am "Buddhism in Bellingham 2008" public talk at the Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship.
Work party 1: Saturday October 13th 1pm - 5pm
Work party 2: Saturday October 20th 1pm - 5pm
Work party 3: Saturday October 27th 1pm - 5pm
Work party 4: Saturday November 3rd 1pm - 5pm
At these work parties we will need people to help in advance with planning the work party (lining up tools, getting there a little early, being a "go-to" person, etc.) and we will also be looking for people who would like to plan and cook a 3pm snack for the volunteers. Please let me know if you would like to help organize a work party or just show up in clothes that can dirty.
Also feel free to drop by the new center on any of these work party days just to see the place and say hi! We hope the work will go with a friendly and un-rushed spirit. Come by and see what we're doing.
Way to Help #3 - Make a donation
While we are receiving some support from the landlord and the Dharma Hall's general fund to purchase the building materials for this project we are facing some significant expenses which could drain the Red Cedar Zen Community's savings account down to nothing in a hurry. Please consider making a one-time donation for this project any amount is helpful.
A fundraising letter and a special page on our website for making donations will be coming along soon. Or in the meantime you can always mail a check to "Red Cedar Zen Community" at our new PO Box:
Red Cedar Zen Community
P.O. Box 5193
Bellingham, WA 98227
Or drop a check in the donations box in an envelope marked "Red Cedar Zen - new center"
You might also consider if there are any items you don't need which would be useful to a new dharma center. We will work on a list of in-kind donation requests but what comes to mind now is:
1) Garden tools
2) Garden hose
3) Couch for downstairs
4) Comfortable folding chairs for downstairs
5) Recent microwave for the kitchen
6) Small desk for office (check dimensions)
7) Filing cabinet for office (check dimensions)
8) art work for the walls and/or garden
9) picnic table and benches for the back garden
10) sitting cushions or sitting benches of all kinds
Ways to Help #4 - Giving Input to a "lead" or Come to a Meeting
The Leadership Council's regular meeting will be held this Saturday, September 15th, at the new space (1021 N. Forest St., two doors south of the Majestic which is at Forest and Maple, this is all just one block from the current Dharma Hall). Our meeting will be from 1pm - 4pm and we are inviting everyone in the sangha and all friends and supporters from the Dharma Hall and the Bellingham community to come from 2pm - 3pm to listen to proposals for the setup and organizing of the space and give input.
We will likely do the same with the next Leadership Council meeting which has not yet been scheduled.
And you are also invited to contact any of the lead volunteers listed above if you have experience or suggestions about the project they are doing.
Upcoming Events
"On Forgiveness" with Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Burai Rick Spencer
Friday October 5, 10:00am - 4:00pm
Woodstock Farm
Join Norman and myself for another "Zen Community Workshop" - this time on the topic of forgiveness. Gentle yoga, meditation, and intimate discussion of the topic with short talks by Norman and Rick. And most importantly a chance to spend a quiet day in community in a beautiful place. A chance to take stock and renew our spirits together while considering this important issue. Can we forgive others and ourselves?
Sangha Annual Meeting with Zoketsu Norman Fischer
Friday October 5, 6:00pm - 9:00pm
Bellingham Dharma Hall
Join Norman and the sangha Leadership Council for our annual meeting. All sangha members and supporters of our sangha are welcome. This has been a year of many changes with more on the horizon. Come listen and give input and spend an evening with sangha. Potluck dinner starts at 6pm, meeting starts at about 7pm.
Weekend Study Retreat with Zoketsu Norman Fischer: Prajna Paramita in 8000 Lines
Saturday October 6 , 8:00am - 5:00pm, and Sunday October 7, 8:00am - 4:00pm
Bellingham Dharma Hall
Norman's annual weekend study retreat. Topic to be announced. Zazen, two lectures with time for discussion each day. A great chance to study the dharma together. These retreats are also a great way to get to know Norman if you have not had the chance to study with him yet. For this retreat Norman will focus on the important wisdom sutra which the Heart Sutra is a distillation of, the Prajna Paramita Sutra in 8000 Lines.
Public talk by Zoketsu Norman Fischer: The Thundering Silence
Saturday, October 6 , 7:30pm
Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship
A public talk by Norman which kicks off our Fall lecture series: Buddhism in Bellingham 2008.
Buddhism in Bellingham 2008
Saturdays October 13 - November 3, Saturday mornings at 10am
Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship
Our second annual Saturday lecture series. Dharma talks by local Buddhist teachers including short meditation practice, question and answer, and a program for children to make it possible for parents to attend. Schedule of speakers and topics to be announced.
The Heart Sutra, a class with Nomon Tim Burnett
Mondays 7:30 - 9:00pm, October 15 - November 5
Location TBA (new Dharma Hall?)
A four session interactive class on this core text of Mahayana Buddhism which is chanted in Zen centers daily throughout the world. What do the Heart Sutra's teachings on emptiness and healing tell us? Join us for an inquiry into this densly packed text.
Early Teachings of the Buddha, session 2, with Nomon Tim Burnett
Fridays 1pm - 2:30pm, October 12 - November 2
Bellingham Dharma Hall
Continuing our exploration of the Pali Canon, the earliest complete record of the Buddha's teachings. Attendence in the first session last Spring is not required. We will continue but also start fresh in looking at these practical teachings of the Buddha. Text is "In the Buddha's Words: An Anthology of Discourses from the Pali Canon" by Bhikku Bodhi. Class follows immediately after Friday noon zazen. Come to one or come to both.
Buddhist Movie Night
Saturday October 20th
Details TBA
Join us for a fun evening of watching a Buddhist-related film and eating popcorn. Maybe at the new Dharma Hall space if we're lucky. Details TBA.
Loon Lake Sesshin with Zoketsu Norman Fischer
Friday afternoon November 11th - Saturday mid-day November 17th
Loon Lake Retreat Centre, near Mission, B.C.
Our friends north of the border, the Mountain Rain Zen Community, sponsor this annual Zen sesshin (formal meditation retreat) at this beautiful mountain retreat center. Very quiet place and a silent retreat. Up early to sit zazen most of the day. Daily talks by Norman and also this year by the MRZC shuso (head student) Burai Rick Spencer. Dokusan (private meeting) with Norman and practice discussion with me and other local teachers. And this is the one local retreat (so far!) where we get to practice the formal Zen eating style of oryoki (oryoki sets and instruction provided).
Rohatsu (Buddha's Enlightenment) Retreat with Nomon Tim Burnett
Saturday December 8 , 6:00am - noon
Bellingham Dharma Hall
Our annual celebration of the Buddha's enlightenment.
Winter Practice Period 2008
January 24 - March 2
Bellingham, Vancouver, and Samish Island
Opening with a shuso (head student) entering ceremony for John Bailes, long term priest who is visiting us from Massachutses to be shuso, on January 24th, including a weekend retreat with Zoketsu in Vancouver January 26-27, a weekend of sangha practice and work at Samish Island February 9-10, and a closing sesshin at the Dharma Hall Feb 28 - March 2nd. Mark your calendar especially for the Shuso's Dharma Inquiry Ceremony (hossenshiki) which closes the practice period on Sunday March 2nd in the afternoon. This is an important sangha event and a great ceremony for expressing the Dharma together. There will also be additional zazen meetings, a class by John, probably a class by me, and other events. We'll get details on the website as soon as we can.
yours,
Tim
Nomon Tim Burnett
Resident Priest
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN RED CEDAR ZEN COMMUNITY AND
AN ANNONYMOUS DONOR
Introduction
A Donor wishes to create a meditation space devoted to Mother Earth. This space, the Earth Room, will be a space for drop-in meditation and ceremonies devoted to the Earth and will be decorated with objects and photographs of the Earth and nature. The Donor will be funding this project with a $100,000 dedicated revocable donation.
Red Cedar Zen Community (RCZC) is invited to partner with the Donor to create the Earth Room in a new building. RCZC shall be the "Steward Sangha" of the project, coordinating the practice center and making all financial and building management decisions in consultation with other sanghas practicing in the center. If the RCZC chooses to enter into this partnership, RCZC will receive up to the monthly lease payment on the new building so long as the conditions of this Memorandum of Understanding are met. If RCZC wishes, any remaining balance may also be used as part of a down payment on building purchase. See conditions for continued disbursement and down payment conversion below.
The Earth Room
1. The Earth Room should be open to the public for meditation at all times when the main building is open.
2. The Earth Room should be at least 12’ by 12’ or minimum 150 square feet in size.
3. It should have a glass door or a door with a window to allow potential users to see in and be reasonably quiet inside for meditation practice. If possible there will be a partition door which opens to the main meditation space.
4. It should have a window or door to the outside, or some kind of air circulation and ventilation, and sufficient electrical outlets for fountain, space heater, fan, lamps. If possible there will be a main ceiling light fixture and wall switch, and a door buzzer which rings in the main building office and/or lounge.
5. It will be decorated initially by the Donor and those decorations will be maintained by the Donor. Decorations will be natural objects such as rocks, sea shells, driftwood, plants/flowers, and bird nests. Decorations will also include printed images of the Earth (such as “the Blue Marble”) and photographic displays of nature. Water sounds will be provided by an indoor fountain. There will be no permanent paintings, statues or text except as found on photographs or for room use-directions.
6. Furniture will be provided by Donor and will consist of stackable chairs, and several permanent sitting mats, and table/s, cabinet or shelves for nature objects, depending on size of room.
7. Utilities, building maintenance and routine cleaning will be provided by RCZC or building owner. Sanghas practicing in the building may use the Earth Room as a meditation space for Buddhist meditation so long as any ritual objects are removed after use.
8. The Earth Room should not be used for classes or talking meetings because it is a dedicated meditation space. Anyone may use the earth room for silent meditation.
9. The Earth Room should be comfortably accessible to all potential users whenever the Dharma Hall is open (e.g. people must not have to pass through another room in which meditation is in progress).
10. The building should be in a central Bellingham location. Not more than 2 miles from Bellingham City Hall, with good visibility and easy access by bicycle, bus, and walking. Earth-based practice groups, including non-Buddhist groups, should be allowed to use the Earth Room for ritual and meditation events.
11. The Earth Room may also be used by non-Buddhist spiritual groups by application. RCZC and the Donor will work together to establish guidelines and RCZC may reject applications which will disrupt other building uses. RCZC and Donor will review and adjust Earth Room guidelines periodically to better fulfill its public purpose.
The Practice Center
12. The requirements for stewardship are that Red Cedar Zen manage the building as a practice hall which will be made available to independent practitioners, local practice groups and related activities on a fair sharing of rent, scheduling of time and use-of-facilities. Red Cedar Zen will make financial and use-of-facilities decisions with input and consultation with all member groups and users of the building, and with respect to the terms of the Earth Room Project.
13. The building leased should be reasonably accessible to all people, however full ADA compliance is not required.
14. The current location at 1101 N. State Street is too inaccessible and the Donor is not willing to enter into an Earth Room partnership with the RCZC at this location.
15. RCZC must provide a clear means of communication with the Donor at all times by notifying the Donor of the contact information for the current RCZC Board officers.
The Donor
16. The Donor wishes to remain reasonably anonymous. She would like the relevant organizational leaders such as RCZC Board members and sangha leaders to know her name and be able to contact her as needed however she does not wish to be widely known or acknowledged in the community as the person making this donation. The Donor’s name should not be found in written material readily available to RCZC or other sangha members or the public, including meeting minutes, however the Donor understands that various legal and financial documents must bear the Donor’s name.
The Fund
17. A donor-advised fund at Whatcom Community Foundation (WCF) has been established. WCF will be advised by the Donor to make regular disbursements to RCZC after RCZC's tax status is finalized to qualify for WCF disbursements. Until that point the Donor will provide funds directly to RCZC via check. The fees for administering the Fund at WCF will be paid from the Fund, and full statements of all charges and disbursements will be made at regular intervals to Donor and RCZC Board.
18. RCZC will receive periodic disbursements, usually twice a year, from the fund and/or the Donor of up to the full amount of the monthly lease on the building.
19. The RCZC must first use these periodic funds to pay all or part of the lease, utility/taxes/other building obligations in any given month. Any surplus must be deposited into a capital building account owned by RCZC.
20. If the Earth Room is not maintained in the practice center according to the conditions listed above the Donor will notice the RCZC Board in writing describing the issue(s).
21. RCZC and the Donor will have six months to resolve the issue(s) described.
22. Should the issue(s) not be resolved the Donor will instruct the WCF to donate the entire remaining balance in the Fund to Whatcom Hospice.
23. The Fund may also be converted to cash to use as part of purchase price of a building in a central location in Bellingham which will include a similar Earth Room on the condition that RCZC has raised 2/3 of the building’s purchase price, including any balance remaining in the fund.
24. Up to $5,000 of the Fund may be used for any building modification or construction costs needed to create the Earth Room
Resident Priest Nomon Tim Burnett has been a student of Zoketsu Norman Fischer since 1987 when he was a resident at San Francisco Zen Center's Green Gulch Farm. After sitting practice periods at Green Gulch and Tassajara Zen Monastery, Tim helped found the Bellingham Zen Practice Group in 1991. Tim was ordained as a Zen Priest by Norman in June, 2000. Like his teacher, Tim is interested in the possibility of deep and complete practice by lay people.
A person of wide-ranging professional interests, Tim has been a botanist, elementary schoolteacher, writer, and computer programmer. In addition to his work at the Resident Priest of Red Cedar Zen Community, Tim works as a software developer.