July 7th, 2024
As I sit to write this newsletter on July 4th, I’m having mixed feelings about what to celebrate. Certainly our country has fared better than many in its quest for democracy and equality in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Yet, the current chaos in our beautiful country has me searching for deeper meanings of freedom. Most times, the freedoms we create and recognize in our personal lives, our loving communities, and in nature are what will nurture and sustain us through troubling times. We’ve read some remarkable essays and blogs over the last few days and will share some of their wisdom. Of course we also want to hear from you and how you define and find freedom in your lives. We’re scheduled to be on ZOOM this week and the link is below. Recovery from surgery has had its ups and downs, so we are reserving the choice to cancel should it not feel prudent to meet with you all on Sunday. Thanks for your understanding!
Holding Space, Colleen and Mark
Paths of Heart ZOOM
Time: Jul 7, 2024 10:30 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81323458338?pwd=WdrEj8xbd4Ehb2fjC5jJ2iErXTtCb5.1
Meeting ID: 813 2345 8338
Passcode: 478664
Quotes to ponder
“Your choices are your only freedom.”
~ Lailah Gifty Akita
“True freedom is always spiritual. It has something to do with your innermost being, which cannot be chained, handcuffed, or put into a jail.”
~ Osho
“Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness. If, in our heart, we still cling to anything – anger, anxiety, or possessions – we cannot be free.”
~ Thich Nhat Hanh
“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.”
~ Albert Camus
“Freedom is what you do with what’s been done to you.”
~ Jean-Paul Sartre
“I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.”
~ Robert A. Heinlein
“The really important kind of freedom involves attention, and awareness, and discipline, and effort, and being able truly to care about other people….every day.”
~ David Foster Wallace
Looking Ahead/Notes of Interest
(dates subject to change)
Sunday, July 7th – ZOOM POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, July 14th – In Person POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, July 21st – In Person POH Gathering, 10:30 a.m. with Community Potluck afterwards.
Sunday, July 28th – ZOOM Paths of Heart Gathering, 10:30 a.m.
Sunday, August 4th – NO Paths of Heart Gathering
Sunday, August 11th – NO Paths of Heart Gathering
Sunday, August 18th – In Person Paths of Heart Gathering, 10:30 a.m. with Community Potluck afterwards
Sunday, August 25th – NO Paths of Heart Gathering
Please mark your calendars for the above scheduled dates!
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 so grateful to Colleen’s entire surgery team for their excellent skill and care. Recovery is happening, slow and steady!
We are grateful for friends and family stepping in to do household and garden chores during this time. We are also OVERWHELMINGLY GRATEFUL to several folks who stepped up to make significant monetary contributions to Paths of Heart in our time of need! We are again solvent, though we will still need to explore more steady and permanent fixes to this ongoing challenge if we are to continue our passionate work in the coming years. Thank you all for whatever support you can give and have given in the past.
What are you grateful for today?
“Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul.”
~ Henry Ward Beecher
“When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.”
~ Willie Nelson
“If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough.”
~ Meister Eckhart
“Gratitude is the sweetest thing in a seekers life – in all human life. If there is gratitude in your heart, then there will be tremendous sweetness in your eyes.”
~ Sri Chinmoy
“Gratitude for the present moment and the fullness of life now is the true prosperity.”
~ Eckhart Tolle
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!