Dear readers,
How are you doing now that summer has begun?
Here at the trapezium of the Mitten State, plants exuberate, thunderstorms startle, cygnets appear—while around the world (and here too, to varying degrees, as interbeing would indicate) wars rage, elections loom, and heat waves worry. Lately, I’ve been moving/sitting/thinking with contrasts, attention, identity’s interplay with art-making, literature’s liberations and failures, the love of grandmothers, “I am more than the work I make,” and the permission to—and practice of—rest.
Since books and bikes and other non-screens beckon, let me hew to the subject line for the remainder of this letter:
PODCAST
This Thursday, June 27, at 4pm PT / 7pm ET, I’ll be joining Elaine Lai, Chanhee Heo, and Xianfeng Shi to host the launch of Cha Tea Circle: A Podcast Series on Asian American Spiritualities. Drop by for an introduction to the episodes and a fun, intimate conversation. My episode weaves together soundscapes, interview, and narration to explore refuge-making and refuge-taking at Buddhist temples in the Merrimack Valley; the other episodes feature thoughtful, in-depth interviews with Helena Soholm, Julian Saporiti, Abbas Rattani, Reyhab Mohmed Patel, David Woo, and Karen Tan. You can check out the Cha-Tea Circle website to learn more, and listen to the episodes on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Amazon Music, and YouTube.
DAYLONG
On Saturday, July 13, Rev Liên Shutt and I will be co-leading “Home is Here: Refuge is Now: An Asian American Gathering” at Spirit Rock in Northern California. If our memory serves correctly, this is the first in-person gathering for people of Asian heritage at Spirit Rock since 2004. I hope this can be a meaningful day of practice, connection, and celebration; a space to deepen existing connections and forge new ones. Join us if you can!
KEYNOTE
For mental health professionals: First, thank you for all that you are and do. On July 25, I’ll be in Charleston, South Carolina at the Lowcountry Mental Health Conference to speak on “Story, Sound, Silence: Buddhist Wonderings On Grief & Loss.” It’ll be my first time in this complex city, though it feels like an apt destination after several recent, unexpected journeys: through the King Center, Ebenezer Baptist Church, and the site of the 2021 spa shootings in Atlanta; through the National Museum of African American History and Culture and Japanese American Memorial in Washington D.C.; through Atsuro Riley’s songful and unsettling poetry in Romey’s Order and Heard-Hoard (“A soul can hide like moth on bark. / My born name keeps but I don’t say.”) If you’ll be at the conference, please stop by and say hi at the book signing after my talk!
RETREAT
For my last trip of the summer, I’ll be headed to the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies from August 2–6 to facilitate and participate in Roots & Refuge: An Asian American Writing Retreat. There are a few spots remaining this year, and scholarships are available. True to its name and acronym, this retreat offers us an opportunity for rest(oration), (re)connection, refuge-making/refuge-receiving, and other rejuvenating activities that begin with “re”… as well as many that don’t, like chanting, meditaiton, dialogue, writing, etc.
With all of these events, your presence is the greatest gift. I hope I’ll cross paths with some of you this summer. Above all, may we be fully present wherever this season takes us.
Warmly,
~Chenxing
