As Way Opens
I am taking a class this semester on Buddhism and Quakers. So many folks participate in a Buddhist practice and as I have been studying Zen Buddhism I can see the benefit and connection to Quakerism. We all know the value to sitting in silence and listening for God’s voice as we experience unprogrammed worship. In Buddhism, “sitting” is foundational to a spiritual practice and the work is to empty the mind of any thoughts, any attachments and to just be present in the moment. The practice of settling our bodies, minds and hearts is so needed in today’s world as we are bombarded with social media, texts, misinformation, streaming etc. As part of the class, I am in meditation every day and it really is powerful for my body and my mind to sit in awareness of my sitting and letting go of the thoughts that keep popping into my head. In the book, Everyday Zen, Charlotte Joko Beck writes “I don’t think we ever let go of anything. I think what we do is just wear things out. If we start forcing our mind to do something, we are right back into the dualism that we are trying to get out of. The best way to let go is to notice the thoughts as they come up and acknowledge them. Oh yes, I’m doing that one again and without judging, return to the clear experience of the present moment. Just be patient. We might have to do it ten thousand times, but the value for our practices is the constant return of the mind into the present, over and over and over.” (page 6)
Jill Frame sent me a great free app called Insight Timer that offers 32,000 free meditations. I have practiced several of them and they have helped me the last week to wake up to the moment and let go of my anxiousness and worry. Maybe more meditation for each of us will give us more calm and peace as we navigate through troubled waters.
Beth
Joys & Concerns
We had a wonderful Super BOWL Sunday with Friends at Woodland Bowl! What a great turnout of Friends to enjoy the afternoon. Congratulations to our high-scoring winners!
Announcements, Reports, & Opportunities
Please send us your bios! We are asking everyone who is comfortable, to share a short, 2-3 sentence bio about themselves. This bio will be used by the office in the bulletin when you serve on Facing Bench, or have news to share via Friend to Friend, social media, etc. It should be a short introduction about yourself so that everyone can know who you are, and maybe learn a little bit about you. Send us your info at https://forms.gle/XL89uH7uUoMJR9Pv5.
Notice: No Gentle Yoga ~ Please note there will be no Gentle Yoga on Fridays February 7th and February 14th.
Have a Room to Rent? A Friend is looking for living space to rent. Just a room is needed, with bathroom access. If you have a room available to rent, please contact the office at office@indyfriends.org with details and price. Thank you!
Do you enjoy the Singalongs with Jim K? Then you’re going to love this! Jim and Luke are in a band called The Rodney Boys, and they will be playing live on Saturday, February 8 at the Books and Brews in Noblesville, 13230 Harrel Parkway #100, from 8:00-10:00pm. Come one, come all, if you’re interested in hearing them play!
Scout Sunday~ Current and former Scouts, please let us know if there are any changes or updates for you and your family. This includes scouts, former scouts, and scout leaders. Please submit any updates to the office so we can recognize you that day. Please send your name, Scouting Organization, Troop number and Scout rank. Email office@indyfriends.org or call 317-255-2485. All are invited to our Scout Sunday Service on February 9th! We hope to see you there!
Seasoned Friends invites you! All Friends of retirement age are invited to our next Seasoned Friends luncheon which will be Wednesday, February 12 at 11:30am in the First Friends Parlor. There will be Moroccan stew, rice and fruit. After our luncheon we will watch the classic film Casablanca. If you would like to come and celebrate this day of love with us, please RSVP with the office at office@indyfriends.org or 317-255-2485.
Free Choir Concert ~ The Hamilton Southeastern Choirs, under the direction of Shawn Porter and Danielle Mullen, will hold its 28th annual Jesse Eastwood Memorial concert on Friday February 14. Concert takes places at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church on 86th and Meridian Streets and begins at 7:00 pm. Music includes all genres from patriotic to classical to spirituals to folk. Admission is free and so bring your Valentine for an evening of upbeat and uplifting music if you don’t already have plans!
Meditational Woods Bird of the Month for January
American Robin: The Truth about this “Harbinger of Spring”
Wait a minute! How can the robin be bird of the month for January? It is not even close to being spring! Friends, the truth is that robins have been hanging around our First Friends Meetinghouse all winter long. I have seen a few or even a flock on every one of my weekly walks here on the property. During this time they scratch on the woodland floor, turning over leaves to find grubs and other goodies which are wintering underneath. Robins also eat the berries of bushes.
When conditions get too difficult for robins to locate sufficient food, they will fly south just far enough to find some. In the rough winters of the late 1970s, we would visit the old part of Camp Atterbury, and see hundreds of robins which had gathered there to feast on the huge crop of berries of the ornamentals which had been planted. That is just 50 miles south of Indianapolis. As the conditions for food supply improve, the birds make their way back north. It may be that people aren’t really looking for them until early spring, and don’t realize they were here all along.
One question: Are the robins that are found here in the winter, the same individuals that nested here? In other words, could it be that the robins that nested here flew south for the winter to Kentucky or Tennessee, and were replaced by the robins that nested up in Michigan and Canada? One would have to find banded birds to get a possible answer. Hmmmm?
So what is the true sign of spring in the bird world? My vote goes to American Woodcock, a species that usually shows up in early March, or possibly a little earlier. ~Brad J
Help Care for Our Organ! The organ needs to have its leathers worked on. When the organ work was done 15 years ago, we did not have this done. It is now time to have this work done. We need to have this done before we lose all or some of the organ. I (Mindy) think Jenny M (choir member) says it all:
Several years ago when I could stand to speak in silent worship I recited this:
Bach gave us God’s Word
Mozart gave us God’s Laughter
Beethoven gave us God’s Fire
God gave us Music that we might pray without words.
We are blessed to have an exceptional organist in Shawn who consecrates us weekly with prayers of joy, prayers of sorrow, prayers of meditation and prayers of thanksgiving through the organ. I need music, organ music, to paint the silence of my worship, to connect me to others and to God. I am thankful I can come to First Friends and no matter the problems of the week, be filled with God’s word, laughter and fire through beautiful organ music.
Donations to help complete this organ work can be dropped in the offering plate or sent to the First Friends office.
Living Well with a Serious Medical Condition ~ All are invited to this online class which helps attendees learn how to thrive despite serious medical conditions. In this team-taught class, you’ll work at your own pace, using materials provided. You will be accompanied on this journey by your classmates and instructors who have been through, or have worked extensively with, this life altering transition. During life altering transitions one can tap into tools, resources, and the support network they already have. For more information on the class and information on registering, click here: http://bit.ly/2Slcpj9
Jim and the Band on the Third Friday ~ Singing Friday will be showing up on the calendar on the 21st of February. Jim, and probably Jesse and Luke will also be with us again. If we have as good a time as last month, everyone will have an enjoyable, relaxing evening. You may learn a new song or a few. Gather in the parlor from 7-8:30 or so.
FWCC Sustainability: An Online Conference with Friends Worldwide ~ All are invited to join Quakers around the world to gather the Quaker voice on sustainability. It is being held online on Saturday, February 22, 2020; there will be an online conference spanning 11 hours. You will be able to join one of three start times, for a duration of 3 hours. These start times include 9:00am and 11:00am EST. Each start time will have 45 minutes of videos with 5 speakers. The speakers will come from each of the four FWCC sections and represent diversity of Quaker traditions, ages, and gender in order to represent the fullness of who we are across the world. After hearing from the speakers, there will be two hours for worship sharing. For more information and to register, please visit http://fwcc.world/sustainability/conference2020.
Join us at the Oak Leaf: Meeting for Reading book club as we discuss Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari (498 pages) on Tuesday, February 25, 2020. In Sapiens, Dr Yuval Noah Harari spans the whole of human history, from the very first humans to walk the earth to the radical – and sometimes devastating – breakthroughs of the Cognitive, Agricultural and Scientific Revolutions. Drawing on insights from biology, anthropology, paleontology and economics, he explores how the currents of history have shaped our human societies, the animals and plants around us, and even our personalities. Have we become happier as history has unfolded? Can we ever free our behaviour from the heritage of our ancestors? And what, if anything, can we do to influence the course of the centuries to come? (Goodreads) Loryne C will be leading the discussion in the Parlor starting at 7 pm, if you’d like to receive the Oak Leaf email, please contact the office at office@indyfriends.org.
Queries for the Week
1. In what ways do you need to be “reconciled to God” – to bring true peace into your life?
2. What worries in your life do you need to shape into prayers this week?
3. How are you going to “think on these things” – whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, this week?