Januray 7th, 2024
Blessings to you in this New Year, ripe with bright possibility! It’s been a minute since we sent out a newsletter – we trust the last few weeks treated you to some comfort and joy and peaceful moments with friends and family. We sure enjoyed our family holiday time, and want to thank all that came out to our Christmas Eve concert – what a magical night! Now it’s time to contemplate this new year before us – perhaps reflecting upon the successes and challenges of 2023 and then setting intentions for 2024 – what we’d like to create and maybe change in our lives going forward. Some like to think of each new year as a “clean slate” or to approach the year with “Shoshin”, the Zen Buddhist concept meaning “beginner’s mind.” This will be the topic of our discussion on Sunday. We hope you’ll join us!
Love and Light, Colleen and Mark
Quotes to ponder
“If your mind is empty… it is open to everything. In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few.”
~ Shunryu Suzuki
“The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul and a new nose; new feet, a new backbone, new ears, and new eyes.”
~ G.K. Chesterton
“So, I close my eyes to old ends, and open my heart to new beginnings.”
~ Mandy Hale
“Start over, my darling. Be brave enough to find the life you want and courageous enough to chase it. Then start over and love yourself the way you were always meant to.”
~ Madalyn Beck
“Many years ago I resolved never to bother with New Year’s resolutions, and I’ve stuck with it ever since.”
~ Dave Beard
Looking Ahead/Notes of Interest
***Dates subject to change! Please always refer to latest newsletters for latest information and updates***
Sunday, January 7th – In person POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, January 14th – ZOOM POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, January 21st – NO Paths of Heart Gathering
Sunday, January 28th – In person POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, February 4th – In person POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, February 11th – ZOOM POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, February 18th – NO Paths of Heart Gathering
Sunday, February 25th – In person POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Please mark your calendars for the above scheduled dates!
Guest Presenters and Musicians Wanted! Now that we’re meeting on a more regular basis we’d love to get back to having other folks present a topic on some Sundays and having other musicians sit in as well. Please get in touch if you’re interested! A small honorarium is available.
Paths of Heart Song Circles have been discontinued due to lack of attendance. We’re sorry to see them go!
Giving Opportunities
Paths of Heart continues to welcome and appreciate your generous donations as we work to bolster our finances and return to regular Sunday gatherings. During the pandemic, online donations became increasingly important to our organization, and are always gratefully accepted on our website, https://www.pathsofheart.org/donate/. There is an option for recurring monthly donations, if you so choose. We have also added Venmo as an easy way to donate to Paths of Heart! Just type in @PathsofHeart to find us in the Venmo app. Thanks so much for supporting the continuation of Paths of Heart. Remember, we are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, so your donations are tax deductible!
Another easy way to further support Paths of Heart is through the King Soopers Community Rewards Program – If you shop at KS and have a rewards card, you can “link” it to Paths of Heart and King Soopers will donate a portion of your dollars spent (around 5%) to our non-profit. Go to https://www.kingsoopers.com/i/community/community-rewards to sign up and link your card. Our organization name is Paths of Heart and organization number is RG782. Let us know if you want help signing up! This one small gesture (by just 25 or so families at this point) helps to generate over $1,000 a year for Paths of Heart, so we appreciate your consideration in participating in this valuable program!!
“Paths of Heart” Labyrinth and Zen Meditation Garden
This was intentioned to be a community space, so know that you are always welcome to drop by and walk or sit – you do not need to let us know in advance. Do note that we have experienced the outer “halo” of glass blocks in the labyrinth to be slippery when wet, so it’s best to walk it on a dry day.
Gratitudes
We are grateful to have had some delightful “downtime” during the holidays, visiting with friends and family, sharing wonderful meals together, watching movies and “puzzling”. We’re renewed and ready for 2024!
What are you grateful for today?
I don’t have to chase extraordinary moments to find happiness – it’s right in front of me if I’m paying attention and practicing gratitude.
~ Brene Brown
What I’ve learned is there’s a scientifically proven phenomenon that’s attached to gratitude, and that if you consciously take note of what is good in your life, quantifiable benefits happen.
~ Deborah Norville
“If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough.”
~ Meister Eckhart
“Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Just an observation: it is impossible to be both grateful and depressed. Those with a grateful mindset tend to see the message in the mess. And even though life may knock them down, the grateful find reasons, if even small ones, to get up.”
~ Steve Maraboli
About Paths of Heart…
Paths of Heart is a high spirited, heart-centered community where we gather together (in new and creative ways!) for music, poetry, commentary, and dialogue to create and nurture joy, compassion, gratitude, and love – in our own lives and throughout the world. Paths of Heart is a 501(c)(3) Human Services/Educational non-profit organization that uses the arts, especially, to encourage and propel seekers of a better, more peaceful world to find ways to serve, while becoming more kind and compassionate human beings.
We welcome you as we collectively and individually explore the sweet mysteries of life – this is an invitation into co-creation!
Visit us on the web at https://www.pathsofheart.org
We hope our physical paths may cross soon!