Welcome to Dharma Mamas!

Welcome to Dharma Mamas!

In November 2014 a group of mamas gathered for a women’s mindfulness retreat to strengthen our practice: to meditate, to share together, to nourish our bodies and spirits with silent meals, to stretch and move and hike, to make art, to be in nature, to sleep, and to celebrate our sisterhood and motherhood.

Some of us had been in mindfulness practice community for many years, some of us were neighbors, some were very close friends, some of us were meeting for the first time, and, some of us weren’t able to be there. We came together with a sense of belonging and community because of our connection to Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village practice tradition.

During that weekend a seed of aspiration was planted in me. I wanted to do more of this. More deep diving and honest sharing in circle with other mothers practicing mindfulness. Women on the path with whom I felt safe, supported and honored. A few awesome ideas took residence in my mind, complemented by much adrenaline and excitement!

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The day after our retreat closed, our beloved teacher Thich Nhat Hanh experienced a massive stroke and went into a coma. Still filled with the depth of our dharma mamas weekend and hearing the shocking news about Thay, I touched impermanence as if it were a solid object in my hands. Nothing is permanent. Nothing lasts or stays the same. And right next to impermanence sat interbeing. The essence that we are all connected and are not independent or separate from one another. Thay was in us. We were in Thay.

I was even more motivated to put energy into this seed: to build community for mothers through mindfulness.

Things got busy. Life happened. Family and work obligations, chores and errands, my father’s chronic illness… all this soon filled up every crack and crevice of free time I had envisioned using for creativity and community-building.

But that tiny seed sat quiet and still, and just waited. It waited for the causes and conditions to be favorable. It waited to be fed. It waited for the right energy and a clear intent.
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So the time is now to water the seed and launch the Dharma Mamas blog! A mindful parenting blog. A place for mindful mothers to build community and share as a sangha. A place to witnesses the ups and downs and realness of women who are living and loving and parenting with the intention and practice of mindfulness. Not one of us is perfect and we often stray from our path, but we are committed so we try. And we try again, and again, to go in the direction of love and compassion—our North Star.
Welcome to Dharma Mamas!

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