Weekly Email 5/10/22

Dear Common Ground Community,

Last Sunday evening while Wynn Fricke was giving a Dharma Talk on fear, there was gun fire between two motorists on 27th Ave and our building was hit by several bullets. Most gratefully, nobody in the building was hurt. The damage to the building included 2 broken windows and some minor damage to the exterior. Common Ground has had a home in the Seward neighborhood for 29 years and we remain invested in being in the heart of our Twin Cities community so that these teachings and practices are accessible for all. These rare and unfortunate events remind us of our human vulnerability and our capacity to respond with compassion. Our practice is to keep opening to the truth of uncertainty while cultivating the sensitivity and stability of present moment awareness. Common Ground will continue to prioritize the safety of all who walk through the doors at our city center, and we will continue to offer in-person dharma programs to all who seek a reliable place to cultivate the heart of wisdom and love. One of the blessings of adversity is the many ways the community expresses its natural goodness. We were reminded of this on Sunday night when so many people stayed to help clean up glass and we were reminded of this again on Monday when community members and neighbors stopped by just to check in.

We welcome your thoughts and concerns that this news might bring forward for you. If you happened to be at the Sunday evening practice group, we’d love to hear how you’re practicing with your immediate experience of being there. We continue to be grateful for this community and the neighborhood we are part of.

Warmly,

Mark, Shelly, and Wynn


Weekly Programs

To view our entire list of programs and to access Zoom links to participate in online programs, please visit the online calendar

Weekly Practice Groups

  • Sunday mornings, 10:30-11:45am on Zoom with Mark Nunberg (with an option to watch the livestream together in person in the meditation hall)
    • Sunday, May 15th with Nils Heymann
    • Sunday, May 22nd with Shelly Graf
  • Sunday evenings, 7:00-8:30pm in-person with Mark Nunberg
    • Sunday, May 15th with Ramesh Sairam
    • Sunday, May 22nd with Stacy McClendon
  • Wednesday evenings, 7:30-9:00pm on Zoom with Shelly Graf
    • Wednesday, May 11th with Patrice Koelsch
Monthly Practice Groups
  • Fourth Fridays, 7:00-8:30pm on Zoom, Lovingkindness with Stacy McClendon
  • First Fridays, 7-8:30pm on Zoom, Lovingkindness with Mark Nunberg

Community Practice Check-Ins

  • Sundays, 4:30-5:30pm with Mark Nunberg and Wynn Fricke, on Zoom
  • Tuesdays, 12:00-1:00pm with Stacy McClendon (Mark Nunberg joining on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month), on Zoom
  • Fridays, 9:00-10:00am with Shelly Graf, on Zoom
  • Every other Saturday, 10:30am-12:00pm with Ramesh Sairam, on Zoom
  • Every first Tuesday of the month, 8:00-9:00am, with Mark Nunberg, in person
Open Meditation
Join fellow community members for meditation practice in person or online, 7 days a week. Visit the calendar for times and details.Yoga & Qigong
We offer Yoga and Qigong several times a week, both in person and online. Click here for times and details.
Mindfulness, Recovery, and the Twelve Steps
Meets every Friday, 7:00-8:30pm. Zoom only.
From June 3rd – July 29th, the Mindfulness, Recovery, and Twelve Steps group will be offered in-person and over Zoom. For more info click here.

Upcoming Programs: Online

To see full list of programs and access Zoom links for online programs visit our calendar.

MBSR-Based Mindfulness Practice with Nancy Boros
Mondays, 12:00 -1:00pm

Book Study: The Citadel of Awareness with Merra Young
Wednesday, May 18th, 12:15–1:30pm

InterPlay with Spruce Krause
Thursday, May 12th. 7:00 -8:30pm

Mindful Self-Compassion Practice Group with Jean Haley and Jane Rauenhorst
Friday, May 20th 7:00 -8:30pm

Upcoming Programs: In Person/Hybrid at Common Ground

Introduction to Mindfulness Meditation with Stacy McClendon & Shelly Graf
3 Tuesdays: May 17th – May 31st, 7:30 – 9:00pm
More info and registration here.

Daylong Retreat with Mark Nunberg 
Saturday, May 28th, 9:30am – 4:00pm
In-person or on Zoom. More info and registration here.

Sound Bath Meditation with Marc Anderson
Sunday, May 22nd 2:00 – 4:00pm
In-person Only
More info and registration here.

Half-day Retreat with Mark Nunberg
Saturday, June 4th 1:00 – 5:00pm
In-person or on Zoom. More info and registration here.

Workshop with Shannon Gibney: Writing as a Practice of Freedom
June 19th, 2:00 – 4:00pm
In-person only
More info and registration here.

Upcoming In-Person/Hybrid Programs at our retreat center

Common Ground Retreat Center is located in Wisconsin, about an hour-and-fifteen-minute drive from Minneapolis. Registration is now open for the following programs there and can be found here.

Practice Period for BIPOC Practitioners with Jen Racho & Zenzele Isoke
5:30pm Thursday, May 26th – 2:00pm Sunday, May 29th

BIPOC Community Day of Mindfulness Practice
With Jen Racho & Zenzele Isoke
Saturday, May 27th from 9:30 – 4:30pm

Embodied Dharma: an Insight Meditation Retreat with Ayya Niyyanika, Shelly Graf, and Wynn Fricke
5:30pm Thursday, June 2nd – 12:30pm Sunday, June 5th

June Practice Periods with Wynn Fricke & Gabe Keller-Flores:

  • 5:30pm Wednesday, June 8th – 2:00pm Sunday, June 12th.
  • 5:30pm Thursday June 16th – 2:00pm Sunday, June 19th.
  • 5:30pm Wednesday June 22nd – 2:00pm Sunday, June 26th.

In addition to these weekend retreats, we also offer public drop-in groups on select Wednesdays at the retreat center, 6:30-7:45pm.

  • First Wednesday of the month: Community Group led by Matthew King and other practice leaders
  • Third Wednesday of the month: Monthly Practice Group with Mark Nunberg and guest teachers
More info about these Wednesday night programs here.

The Practice of Generosity

Continuing in the tradition of Buddhist monasteries in Southeast Asia, all programs at Common Ground are offered free of charge in the spirit of generosity. This offering is possible because of the generosity of people like you—from the Buddha on down to all the people in our community—who contribute their practice, time, and financial resources to support the continuation of the center.

To learn how to support the center and our teachers, visit this page. Let us know if you have any questions.

Current Volunteer Needs 

  • Wish List for the retreat center: We are looking for a large cooking pot (sized for 15 or more servings) and comfy sitting chairs for the bedrooms.
  • Weekly Sunday Evening Cleaning: Every Sunday evening there is a drop-in Community Cleaning time from 6-7pm, led by community leaders Brad Dupre and Dave Redelman. No RSVP needed.
  • Bellringers (in-person): We’re looking for volunteers interested in ringing the bell for the morning sits on Tuesday mornings, 8:00- 8:30am.  Email info@commongroundmeditation.org if interested.

Community News

 Spring Maintenance Day!

Thursday, May 19th from 9:00am – 12:30pm
Join the city center Building Committee to participate in a day of maintenance, repairs and deep cleaning of the building.
Refreshments will be providedJoin the Mowers!
We are looking for a few more volunteers to join the city center mowing team. Emailinfo@commongroundmeditation.org if you are interested.Garden Work Days
Garden work days are on the first Saturday of the month from 10am – 12pm. If you’d like to be added to the garden listserv, please contact Kathleen at keschuler47@gmail.comor robin@commongroundmeditation.org. The next garden work day will be Saturday, June 4th.

Upcoming Community Group Meetings:

  • Be Queer Now, weekly on Wednesday, 7:30-9:00pm
  • Community Group for Organizers & Social Justice Activists, Thursday May 12th, 6:00-7:30pm
  • Christianity-Buddhism Book Group, May 14th, 9:00 – 10:15am
  • Mindfulness & Depression, Sunday, May 15th, 4:00-5:30pm
  • Black, Indigenous, People of Color Community Group, Thursday May 19th, 6:30-8:00pm
  • Refirement Community Group for Retirees, Thursday May 19th, 12:00-2:00pm
  • Millenials Sangha, Friday May 27th, 7:00 – 8:30pm

View public calendar for Zoom links and more information.
To see the complete list of community groups, click here.

Teen Practice Group
For more info, click here.

Weekly Tejaniya

Try to practice meditation
wherever you are, as much
as you can. Keep persevering
and don’t let what you have
learned go to waste.

 Thanks to The Daily Tejaniya for this quote


Kuan Yin resting in the garden

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