Our generosity practice for the month of May 2020

Dear Thay, Dear Sangha,
 
As part of OHMC’s response to the global pandemic, we have decided to dedicate the month of May to the practice of generosity. The themes for our Monday night gatherings will be related to generosity, and we, as a sangha, will practice generosity with ourselves, each other and with communities in need. By practicing generosity as individuals and as a community, and by learning about how our practice affects us, we can nourish ourselves, each other and the larger society of which we’re a part.

What would happen if we, as a sangha, decided to be the second body of another community? We invite you to join us and find out. Thich Nhat Hanh lives his life through the practice of engaged mindfulness, of which the second body practice is a part.  We propose that our community become a second body to a group of Latina cancer patients/survivors and their families, who are supported by Nueva Vida (New Life), a local charity. We learned about this organization from Adriana, a long time regular on Monday nights, who has worked with them for years. By second bodying with Nueva Vida, we can help take care of individuals and help create a healthier society.    

Thich Nhat Hanh shares: “The practice of the second body is one way we take care of each other in the Sangha...

Each member of the Sangha needs a second body. When you go to sitting meditation, you invite your second body. If your second body is sick, you have to know that your second body is sick and look for a doctor or someone to help. The second body doesn't need to be younger, the second body can be older. The second person also has his or her second body, that third person also has a second body, and so forth……

…When each Sangha member takes care of his or her second body, the whole Sangha is taken care of. When your second body has some happiness, you share that happiness. If your second body has difficulties, you need to understand these difficulties. And if alone, you cannot help your second body, you need to ask for help from somebody else. You don't have to be better than your second body, you need to help your second body.

Practicing like this, you will see a miraculous result. You are responsible for everything that happens to your second body. When you take care of your second body, your third, fourth, and fifth bodies are also taken care of. Taking care of your second body, you take care of everybody else.”

For the month of May, OHMC, as a community, will take Nueva Vida and the women survivors as our second body. Nueva Vida is a small, local organization with a proven track record that supports under-served Latina cancer patients/survivors and their families.  

With over 90% of their clients experiencing food insecurity and at risk of hunger, Nueva Vida has  launched an emergency response and  is raising funds to help their clients to survive this difficult time. What follows is a brief description of Nueva Vida, and more will be shared in the coming weeks:

Nueva Vida’s clients are currently in crisis with little to no financial resources during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most are extremely low-wage workers (housekeepers, restaurant workers) who have lost their jobs, are ineligible for safety net assets such as SNAP (food stamps), Medicaid and/or Affordable Care Act (ACA).  As a result, they are in critical need of the basics, such as prescription medications, doctor fees, support with their rent, electrical and other utility bills and essentials such as food for themselves and families. Nueva Vida’s clients live below the Federal Poverty Level: on a monthly basis they make an average of $1,414.

Nueva Vida (NV) is one of a very small group of organizations nationwide, and the only organization in the Washington DC/Baltimore region, that offers a “high-touch”* comprehensive program dedicated to providing evidence-based interventions that support Latino families during a traumatic time in their life. Nueva Vida is a nonprofit 501(3)(c) organization founded in 1999 by a group of Latina breast cancer survivors and health professionals to fill the gap for culturally sensitive bilingual support services for the Latino community. It is the only independent, community-based, nonprofit organization providing free, comprehensive, and culturally competent services in Spanish to Latinos with or at high-risk for developing cancer.
You can learn more about Nueva Vida here and by watching this video.

So, what does this mean, in concrete terms? Throughout May, we will:

• Raise awareness about Nueva Vida, so that through us, as a sangha and as individuals, others can learn about the organization and the community it serves and have an opportunity to offer their support

• Raise at least $5000 for Nueva Vida through several methods: 
  - direct donations (You can donate HERE); When you make a donation, please state that you heard about Nueva Vida through OHMC so we can match the funds. 
  - OHMC will give all donations received from the sangha directly to Nueva Vida; 
  - OHMC will match donations made to Nueva Vida tagged as from OHMC up to $500. 

• Communicate the result of this collective effort with the sangha at the end of May

When the campaign is over, we will reflect on our experience, share what we learned and explore the implications for us as individuals and as a community.
 
We close with a quote from Thay:
“It takes time to practice generosity, but being generous is the best use of our time.”

 
*“High-touch is a model that requires above average interaction with clients/patients, versus “low-touch” where interaction is minimal.

Our community asked that we share the poem from Monday night’s sangha (led by camille on may 11):

For our gathering on Monday, I invite you to reflect on some questions and please see the lovely poem below shared to me by my friend Mercedes: 

*In what ways might you find hope and generosity connected?

*To what extent do you think hope can help spread the message of generosity?

A couple questions from last week to consider again:

*To what extent do you feel like your practice of generosity with your larger community/communities also supports our sangha?

*How can you help your larger community to be a better place to be?

The poem.....

When Giving Is All We Have

Alberto Ríos - 1952-

One river gives

Its journey to the next.

We give because someone gave to us.

We give because nobody gave to us.

We give because giving has changed us.

We give because giving could have changed us.

We have been better for it,

We have been wounded by it—

Giving has many faces: It is loud and quiet,

Big, though small, diamond in wood-nails.

Its story is old, the plot worn and the pages too,

But we read this book, anyway, over and again:

Giving is, first and every time, hand to hand,

Mine to yours, yours to mine.

You gave me blue and I gave you yellow.

Together we are simple green. You gave me

What you did not have, and I gave you

What I had to give—together, we made

Something greater from the difference.

For the full topic by Camille, click here.