Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, March 16, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, March 18, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, March 20, 12-1PM ET online.

On Monday night, Magda will guide us through a meditation for healing our inner child and strengthening our connection with our ancestors. She will share her insights on the topic.

Thầy’s teachings help my inner child heal. They also bring healing to my relationship with my ancestors and allow my ancestors to heal through me.

I have noticed how much of the suffering we experience as children comes from our parents and their parents. During dharma sharing with my sangha and with my Plum Village retreat families, I often hear people lamenting their relationships with one or both parents. I have also heard monastics speak about similar difficulties. Often, however, they conclude their sharing by expressing how their meditation practice has helped transform and release that suffering. For instance, when Brother Pháp Dung spoke at the Huế retreat for the pilgrims who attended Thích Nhất Hạnh’s ashes ceremony, he shared how his practice helped him heal his anger toward his father.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, March 9, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, March 11, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, March 13, 12-1PM ET online/in person (Hybrid).

Camille will facilitate on Monday evening. Camille shares:

My mother passed away four weeks ago. She was almost 96 and had been declining for a couple of years. Although she had become sick and weak, I was still not prepared for her to pass. She was a most compassionate, beautiful, loving, and kind soul and a beloved mother, wife, grandmother, great-grandmother, teacher, and friend to all.

I have been holding a lot of sadness and grief and loneliness as I miss my mother deeply, and at the same time have been generously nourished by friends, family, and sangha. I am so thankful for that. I am grateful for our teacher Thay and our practice of mindfulness, as I have found much peace, wisdom, and solace during these challenging times.

Dear Thay, dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, March 2, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, March 4, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Thursday morning, March 5, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, March 6, 12-1PM ET online.

On Monday night, Marie will facilitate. She shares:

When it comes to my body, I have a habit energy of attending to the squeaky wheel - the part that is causing me pain and/or not working as I want it to. Recently, I’ve been experimenting with a radically different approach that Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) describes as practicing with the “non-toothache.” This is what I do:  

I generate the energy of mindfulness and then invite different parts of my body, one by one, to bask in that energy for as long as they like. Then, if it feels right, I bring compassion to that body part, and spaciousness and gratitude. I take as much time as the body part seems to need and then move on to a different part.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, February 23, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, February 25, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, February 27, 12-1PM ET online/in person (Hybrid).

Ellen will facilitate on Monday evening. Ellen shares:

I’ve been struck by two intersecting things lately. First, I recently heard a wonderful episode of the Hidden Brain podcast (Dec. 22, 2025) about the sense of awe-how we often miss moments of awe and how we can find them. Second, I’ve been thinking about how I rarely feel a sense of happiness and joy, and how I’m likely missing out on simple, clear things around me when I’m not really present. These are troubling times for so many, when having some joy, some pleasure, and discovering something that helps us feel awe about nature, people, a pet, or something else is so critically important.

In Be Free Where You Are, Thay wrote a small piece called “Touching Miracles.” In it, he describes how many of us don’t feel that happiness is possible in the present moment, that we feel we need more and look to the future.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, February 16, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, February 18, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, February 20, 12-1PM ET online.

Marie will facilitate. She shares:

Many of us have been following and supporting the Buddhist monks Walk for Peace. For students of Thich Nhat Hanh, walking meditation is a familiar and integral part of our practice.

“We walked together—people from different cultures, traditions, faiths, and walks of life—all moving as one river of peace through our nation’s capital. This is what it looks like when we choose unity over division, love over fear, and peace over conflict. When we can bring peace to our daily lives, that is when we truly walk for peace together…

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, February 9, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, February 11, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, February 13, 12-1PM ET online/in person (Hybrid).

Rachel H. will facilitate on Monday evening. Rachel shares:

One reason I am grateful to the monks from Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center and their walk for peace is that it creates images of peace that people can see, absorb, and share. Walking mindfully, along highways lined with people, day after day, with love in their faces, these monks make being at peace visible in a very powerful and needed way. The gift of seeing this 100+ day act of peace is profound and moving. 

That idea has been on my mind since the walk started, so I’ve had this question in the back of my mind: What does peace look like? I often think of peace as the feeling that comes when things are settled and tranquil. There are lovely, mundane examples: birds at a bird feeder, smiling at a stranger in a very nice hat on the Metro, lying down at the end of a long day, a hug, and so on. I’ve been looking. 

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, February 2, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, February 4, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Thursday morning, February 5, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, February 6, 12-1PM ET online.

On Monday night, Marie will facilitate and we’ll make time to water the wholesome seeds in ourselves and each other.

Like many, I am suffering. In a time of great uncertainty, swimming in a 24/7 news cycle, sometimes I run away from my emotions because they feel unbearable. 

Right now, there’s a part of me that’s convinced that, if I can just read enough articles from enough legitimate sources, I’ll be better prepared to take care of my family, friends, and those in need. When I identify with that part, I keep scrolling–long past the point of gleaning useful information that would enable right action. 

At other times, I stop reading before having reached that tipping point. Instead, I notice and take care of my difficult emotions. I remember that scrolling can be a form of unmindful consumption, making me feel more isolated and emotional, even when I dress it up as being well informed. I slow down and nourish myself without feeling guilty for being in a position to do so.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, January 26, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, January 28, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, January 30, 12-1PM ET online.

Please Note: The prediction is for a snowstorm starting Sunday and extremely cold temperatures for a few days. If the weather is unsafe, we will move our Monday Sangha meeting online. Please stay tuned, and we will send an email on Monday to let you know whether we will be meeting in person or online.

Annie will facilitate with Sharon and Suzanne S. 

On Monday, after our meditation period we will again read theFive Mindfulness Trainings with a focus on the third training.

The Five Mindfulness Trainings have their root in the Five Precepts offered by the Buddha. They have been expanded and updated so that they represent a way to bring mindfulness into every area of life. 

Rather than hard and fast rules, the mindfulness trainings offer us a path to cultivate and develop actions of body, speech, and mind that can create a more healthy and compassionate world. We read them each month as a way to deepen our understanding of them and to recommit ourselves to practicing the way of understanding and love.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, January 19, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, January 21, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Thursday morning, January 23, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, January 9, 12-1PM ET online.

As we approach the three year anniversary of Thich Nhat Hanh’s (Thay’s) transition, we invite you to join us for an evening of reflection and gratitude.

On Monday night, we will enjoy sitting and walking meditation, and then listen to a talk by Thay about selective seed watering, a practical way to nourish our consciousness. (A brief description is below.) Then, we will enjoy sharing the ways that Thay’s presence, teachings, and/or practices have influenced our lives.

In the coming days, we invite you to reflect on these questions:

• How have Thay’s teachings nourished you?

• What practices do you turn to in times of need?

• Are there other aspects about Thay or his teachings that have had an impact on you?

If you scroll down, you’ll find our responses to some of these questions. 

Also, if you would like to bring a remembrance to share, such as a poem, song, or quote, you are most welcome.

We look forward to practicing together.
Camille & Marie

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, January 12, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, January 14, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, January 16, 12-1PM ET online/in person (Hybrid).

Magda will facilitate on Monday evening. Magda share:

During this season, when we have just celebrated Christmas and Hanukkah, and honored the continuation days of Thich Nhất Hạnh and Martin Luther King, Jr., I would like to recognize and honor the children who have done nothing to deserve the dehumanizing treatment they continue to endure.

Under the new administration, my recurring nightmare has been children returning home from school to find a parent deported. The home, meant to offer safety, becomes a site of loss. I encountered this suffering in the case of Kilmar Abrego García, supported by CASA, an organization I aided. His sudden deportation left his wife raising two young children—one with autism, one with epilepsy. The story haunts me, reflecting a cruelty hidden behind political rhetoric: children absorbing trauma they did nothing to cause.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, January 5, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, January 7, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Thursday morning, January 8, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, January 9, 12-1PM ET online.

On Monday, Ellen will facilitate. Ellen shares:

As we start the new year, I’ve been focusing on breaking the tradition of making well-intentioned resolutions that I quickly forget and then feel as though I’ve failed to achieve. Instead, I have been thinking about how mindfulness helps me grow in ways that nurture the “good seeds” within us all. In particular, I’ve been thinking about “intention.”

Now, I feel a bit of tension here. Mindfulness and our practice is centered on living in the present moment and not the past or the future. For me, it’s not inconsistent to also think about being more intentional and thinking about the specific mindful “seeds” I want to cultivate in the year ahead.  get older and plan to retire in a few years from my stressful job, and as my husband retires this week, I can’t help but think about my future.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, December 29, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, December 31, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, January 2, 12-1PM ET online/in person (Hybrid).

Annie and Camille will co-facilitate on Monday evening. They share:

As the year comes to a close, we will come together for a relaxing year end tea ceremony to share our gratitudes, joys, hopes, wishes, and challenges with each other.

In Plum Village and at other Thich Nhat Hanh monasteries, we often enjoy a tea ceremony. It’s not as formal as classical tea ceremonies in Japan, and it provides a lovely backdrop for us to spend time together and get to know and care for each other. It’s a lot of fun and a wonderful way to feel connected to the sangha. 

On Monday evening, we will gather and enjoy meditation as we usually do. Then we will sit in a cozy circle and enjoy some moments of silently drinking tea and eating cookies together. After a sound of the bell, we will open the floor to sharing. 

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, December 22, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, December 24, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, December 26, 12-1PM ET online.

Camille will facilitate. Camille shares:

In Plum Village, the Buddhist monastic community in France founded by Thich Nhat Hanh, there is regular singing and chanting at sangha gatherings.  At Plum Village retreat centers throughout the United States and other countries, music is often at the heart of the tradition to share the practice and warm the heart.  Like gathas, singing helps us return to the present moment and truly practice mindfulness.

In celebration of the Second Mindfulness Training (see below), True Happiness, I would like to share a Monday night facilitation I shared several years ago. It was how singing brought much joy and happiness to me, and others, particularly during times of suffering. In remembering and reflecting back on that write-up, it brought a smile to my face, and I wanted to share part of that write-up with you.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, December 15, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, December 17, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, December 19, 12-1PM ET online/in person (Hybrid).

Annie will facilitate on Monday evening. Annie shares:

Sometimes life can feel overwhelming and, for some of us, the holidays can ramp up our thinking and busyness. I would guess that we all have experienced times when we are so distracted that we forget to notice our life passing by.

Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) used to share a story about a time he stayed in a cabin in the woods. He went out for a walk, and while he was out a windy storm came up. Unfortunately, he had left the windows of his cabin open, and when he returned, his papers were everywhere. This is sometimes how our minds can feel: as though thoughts and feelings are blowing around inside, and it doesn’t feel like we can sort it all out.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, December 8, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, December 10, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, December 12, 12-1PM ET online.

On Monday night, OHMC’s Engaged Mindfulness Circle will host the Oak Flat Buddhist Working Group, made up of Plum Village practitioners who are working with the Apache Stronghold in an effort to protect their sacred land.

Oak Flat is a sacred site in Arizona's Tonto National Forest that is vital for Apache religious ceremonies but is slated for destruction by a copper mine. The site is also a popular recreational area for activities like camping, hiking, and rock climbing. A 2014 defense bill authorized the transfer of the land to the international mining company Resolution Copper, leading to a legal battle by groups like Apache Stronghold to protect it.

Oak Flat Buddhist Working Group members Limei Kat Chen, Cathy Cockrell, and Joanne Connelly (bios are below) will be guests at our sangha and will share their experiences of supporting Apache Stronghold over the last year. Known in Apache as Chi’chil Bildagoteel, Oak Flat is a sacred site cared for by the Western Apache from time immemorial. This holy land is in danger of being destroyed by Resolution Copper.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, December 1, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, December 3, from 7-8AM ET online; Thursday morning, December 4, from 7-8AM EDT online; and Friday, December 5, 12-1PM ET online/in person (Hybrid).

This week we will recite the Five Mindfulness Trainings and focus our discussion on the First Training. Rachel H will facilitate.

I am too often surprised by the anger I find in myself when I stop long enough to pay attention. How can that be – that such an important feeling can go around in disguise so much of the time? 

In reading the First Mindfulness Training: Reverence for Life, I was struck by the reference to anger. While I generally don’t kill, I certainly get angry. Sometimes I can see it and handle it skillfully. Other times, I get overcome or I shut down. In those cases, harmful actions are more likely to arise. 

In the Buddha’s Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness (from Thich Nhat Hanh’s book, Awakening of the Heart: Essential Buddhist Sutras and Commentaries) it reads: 

When anger is present in him, he is aware, “Anger is present in me.” When anger is not present in him, he is aware, “Anger is not present in me.” When anger begins to arise, he is aware of it. When anger already abandoned will not arise again in the future, he is aware of it. 

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, November 24, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, November 26, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, November 28, 12-1PM ET online.

On Monday, as we continue our celebration of Native American Day, Magda will guide us in exploring Thich Nhat Hanh’s teachings on reverence for our ancestors. She will share reflections on the gifts of wisdom and healing offered by three more Indigenous traditions.

This week, Magda will honor the Navajo, Apache, and Lakota peoples—especially the women she has encountered throughout her life and deeply admires.

Please wear comfortable clothing, as Magda will also guide us in an Earth Touching Ceremony.

The Navajo

“With beauty before me, I walk.

With beauty behind me, I walk.

With beauty below me, I walk.

With beauty above me, I walk.

With beauty all around me, I walk.” 

Prayer of the Navajo 

The Navajo (Diné) people hold a vast treasury of spiritual, artistic, and ecological wisdom. Their gifts arise from the principle of Hózhó—living in beauty and in balance with all beings. To walk in Hózhó is to live with awareness that every thought, word, and action affects the harmony of life. This worldview is reflected in such practices as the Blessing Way Ceremony, in which prayer, song, and sand painting restore balance between humanity and nature, reminding us that healing is both communal and spiritual.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, November 17, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, November 19, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, November 21, from 12-1PM ET in person/online (hybrid).

On Monday, in celebration of Native American Day, Magda will guide us in exploring Thich Nhat Hanh’s teachings on reverence for our ancestors.

Magda will share reflections on the gifts of wisdom and healing from Indigenous traditions in a special two-week series.

This week, Magda will honor the Piscataway, Tainx, and Osage peoples—especially the women she has encountered throughout her life and deeply admires. Next week, she will honor the Navajo and New Mexico Pueblos, the Apache involved in the Oak Flat movement, and the Sioux.

Please wear comfortable clothing, as Magda will also guide us in an Earth Touching Ceremony.

Warriors, Artists, and Meditators: Honoring Indigenous Women and Their Most Precious Gifts

“A nation is not conquered until the hearts of its women are on the ground; then, no matter how brave its warriors nor how strong their weapons, it is done.” The Spirit of Indian Women, p. 93

“I was ready to spend ten days in the mountain wilderness as a young woman. This was my final preparation for a future as a renowned medicine woman.” The Spirit of Indian Women, p, 123

In Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet, Thich Nhat Hanh writes that Earth will be saved by warriors, artists, and meditators. As we celebrate Native American life, I think of the Indigenous women whose courage, creativity, and spirituality have deeply touched my heart. I think of their strength and of the ways they have used their creative and healing hands to serve their communities.

Dear Friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, November 10, from 7-8:30PM ET online; Wednesday morning, November 12, from 7-8AM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, November 14, 12-1PM ET online.

On Monday, Annie will facilitate. Annie shares:

Sometimes it is helpful to sidestep our rational minds in order to connect to the non-rational world and see things in a new way. Poetry, and many other arts, can help us see freshly, feel in new ways, and ground us in the present moment. Sometimes, a brush stroke or a few words can even help us awaken to the truth of interbeing. 

So, this week, we will read together and then reflect on some Buddhist practice poems from 6th Century BC through the present. How might these poems speak to us today? How might they guide us? 

Tissa - The Third (from The First Free Women: Poems of the Early Buddhist Nuns, circa 6th Century BCE)

Why stay here

in your little 

dungeon?

If you really want

to be free,

make

every

thought

a thought of freedom.

Break your chains.

Tear down the walls.

Then walk the world a free woman.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, November 3, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, November 5, from 7-8AM ET online; Thursday morning, November 6, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, November 7, from 12-1PM ET in person/online (hybrid).

On Monday, our evening meditation will be co-facilitated by Rachel H and Camille. They share:

Thich Nhat Hanh introduced the Lazy Day practice to Plum Village in 1984. In a dharma talk from 2002, Thay explains: 

“A lazy day is a day when you refrain from doing anything; you resist doing things, because you are used to doing things. It can be a bad habit: if you are not doing anything, you have to die. You cannot bear the thought of doing nothing. It has become a habit. That is why, when you do not do anything, you suffer. The lazy day is a kind of drastic measure against that kind of habit energy. On lazy days, you refrain! You do your best in order to refrain from trying to do something. You try to do nothing. It’s hard. It’s hard, but we have to learn.…. We think that when we are not doing anything, we are wasting our time. That is not true. Our time is first of all, is for us to be. To be what? To be alive, to be peace, to be joy, to be loving. And that is what the world needs the most – so, we train ourself in order to be.” 

When I visited Deer Park Monastery a few summers ago, I felt the effort it took to be and not do. There was all this time! Think of what I could accomplish!  It took me a few days to settle my mind and begin to practice being without doing. While I initially resisted the slowness of life there – and certainly on the Lazy Day – by the end of the week, my body had gotten a delicious taste of a new way of experiencing time. There was a spaciousness and unfolding to the days there that felt transformative.