Singing for the Soul
The second Monday of December, at the height of the smoke and ash filling the air from the Thomas Fire, I donned my N95 mask and headed down to Yoga Soup for “The Big Sing”, the final session of the initial inCourage Community Chorus classes led by Britta Gudmunson and Ben Gould. It was quite a gathering, two hours of singing in rounds and call-and-response formats, those who had come for the previous five weeks joined by friends and other community members seeking to share their voices with others. We smiled and supported one another, reveling in the harmonies and feelings that were created as the fire burned behind Summerland and approached Montecito.
Now, two months later, and post-fire and mudslide, the couple are doing it again, re-launching The inCourage Chorus once again as a non-audition, nondenominational, all-ages community choir. As before, those who are comfortable singing and those who are brand-new to lifting their voices in song in public are equally welcome to join in communing with songs from around the world spanning culture, tradition, and language. All songs taught in the oral tradition, meaning no music-reading experience necessary, just ears and a willingness to listen.
The spring session begins with two open Mondays on February 12 and 19, when the drop in cost is $10. The full 13-week schedule (February 12 to May 7) is available for a $150 to $200 sliding scale fee. Please note: There are no paid drop-ins during the season after the first two weeks, though guests are welcome for one free entry anytime during this session. (No one will be turned away for lack of funds.). The session concludes with a concert on Friday, May 11, to raise funds for an as yet to be named local nonprofit.
Gudmunson and Gould approach music as medicine, as well as every human being’s birthright, which is what sparks their mission to bring community together in a spirit of courageous, musical expression, and activism while exploring the connective instrument of voice. Members of the Ubuntu Choir Network, the pair completed the immersive Community Choir Leadership Training in Victoria, B.C., last year and have been singing together for more than four years. Britta also teaches a weekly Sunday night Revive & Restore class at Yoga Soup from 5:45 to 7 pm, for which Ben provides an entirely live instrumental soundscape. Email britta@yogasoup.com for details.
Moving Mud at Maria
There was no loss of life or injuries at La Casa de Maria during the mudslide and debris flow that struck the Montecito hills and lands below on January 9 – thankfully, the mandatory evacuation notices were heeded. But the sacred grounds at the popular Montecito retreat center was inundated with the mud and boulders, causing anguish in the local spiritual community over the losses suffered at the long-established haven for workshops, prayer, meditation, and other forms of quiet contemplation.
Aerial views showed the extent of the disaster, which was confirmed when a few select staff were let back in to the property on the final Saturday in January and discovered that fully 10 structures were completely destroyed, including Casa Regina, the administrative offices, the meditation chapel and the dining room and pool area. As of last weekend, water, electricity, gas, and communications were all either off or minimal.
Clean up crews are on site, moving mud, clearing passageways and removing debris from the devastated lands, beginning the recovery process. Even more uplifting, La Casa director Steve Jacobson said on the center’s website, was discovering that several sections of the property and buildings were completely untouched by the debris flow, including the Center for Spiritual Renewal, which looks pristine in a video, while the stained-glass windows in the main chapel are still intact. Unfortunately, knowing that reopening is still many months away and in the wake of no possibilities for income, two-thirds of the staff were let go, adding to the growing economic and personal toll of the tragedy.
For those who want to help, contact the Santa Barbara Bucket Brigade, as the toxic materials and unstable buildings require only professionals on site. But they’re taking names of anyone who might want to help with re-planting and such once it’s safe. Meanwhile, monetary donations are welcome and easily accomplished via the website. Visit www.lacasademaria.org.
Shifting to Summerland
Meanwhile, Radhule Weininger Thursday Meditation Group, which had been held at La Casa de Maria’s loft for 15 years, is taking up temporary residence at Sacred Space, the charming Summerland shop featuring gardens and showrooms stocked with crystals, candles, incense, fountains, furniture, deity statues, and much more. Starting this Thursday, February 8, Weininger will lead guided mindful and compassionate meditations with simple instructions weekly, after which guests can enjoy tea, cookies, and connecting conversations. Among the upcoming guest leaders are Anthony Bonavita, Ph.D., a psychologist and psychotherapist, and grief counselor at Cottage Hospital, who is also a Buddhist chaplain and meditation teacher; Marjorie Schuman, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and meditation teacher and author of Mindfulness-Informed Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis: Inquiring Deeply; and Katherine Morrow, a meditation teacher who has a Ph.D. in mythology with emphasis in depth psychology from Pacifica. The Sacred Space is located at 2594 Lillie Ave. in Summerland. Call 565-5535 or visit www.thesacredspace.com. Visit the events calendar at www.radhuleweiningerphd.com for more information.
Weininger’s monthly Sunday half-day meditation retreats, which were also held at La Casa, will now take place at Trinity Episcopal Church in downtown Santa Barbara.
Thunder’s Recipe for Rain-induced Flooding
Shane Thunder 432hz Sound Healing – which features alchemical gemstone and Tibetan singing bowls, chimes, drums, aromatherapy, and guided meditation – returns on Friday, February 9, for one of his periodic regular dates. Twelve days later, he’s back at the studio again, this time for his HEAL Community: Montecito Disaster fundraiser. The event is specifically designed to help those who have suffered deeply from the Montecito mudslides, with the aim of bringing light and love to a community that needs healing. For details, visit www.yogasoup.com or www.artistecard.com/SpiritMetacine.
Dreaver on Disasters
How does an awakened person respond to tragic loss such as the double disasters of the Thomas Fire and Montecito mudslides? “When I read the stories about the victims, I burst into tears and sobbed uncontrollably,” said Jim Dreaver, the local author of End Your Story, Begin Your Life in his current email missive. But the awakened person doesn’t wallow in the sadness. “Eventually, I resumed my normal emotional state – of presence, ease, and a harmonious, inwardly happy flow.”
The point, Dreaver said, is that those who have awakened still feel all the normal human emotions but only in response to real events, such as the mudslide, as opposed to imagined threats and slights. “The whole world of ‘me, myself, and my story’ that exists between our ears, along with all our emotional reactivity, is a fiction, an illusion. Only now is real, which is the essential realization of awakening.”
This Monday, February 12, Dreaver continues his periodic gatherings to teach how simple it is to awaken just by stopping to look within and seeing that our ego-based judgments, expectations, and reactive emotions come and go, while our true self, the open-hearted awareness that sees all of that, remains. The event takes place 7 to 8:45 pm at a private residence on Verde Vista Drive. Call 563-4904.
Bountiful Buddhism
Mahakankala Buddhist Center’s Foundation Program classes – which is a structured study to enable participants to gain deeper understanding and experience of Buddhist teachings and to develop a regular meditation practice – resume on Tuesday, February 13. Geared toward those who have a general understanding of Buddhism but wish to learn more, the program uses regular teachings and meditation, systematic study, and group discussion to support growth in spiritual life. The class meets 7 to 9 pm on a total of Tuesdays and Fridays per month, and regular attendance is required, but newcomers may visit two consecutive classes at the center, located at 508 Brinkerhoff Avenue, before deciding whether to join the ongoing group. Call 563-6000 or email info@MeditationInSantaBarbara.org for details.
Regular attendance is also required for all sessions of Dawa Tarchin Phillips‘s next course at the Santa Barbara Bodhi Path Buddhist Center, which begins at 7 pm next Thursday, February 15. “Discover Joyful Mind”, which runs three consecutive weeks, serves as a practical introduction to mindfulness, meditation, and heart-centered compassion practice for the purpose of awakening. Phillips will teach the essential fundamentals of how to develop a meditation practice and show how to learn the building blocks of a successful practice to discover innate wakefulness and joyful mind. The program costs $60, but a sliding scale is available, and no one is turned away for lack of funds. Bodhi Path is at 102 W Mission St. Call 284-2704 or visit www.bodhipath.org/sb.
