with Bryan Hindert, Maria Teresa Jaureguizar and Bill MacMillen
In our modern world, we have countless ways to stay busy, informed, entertained, and otherwise distracted from the moment we wake up until we go to bed at night. We can easily spend our entire day completely disconnected from our actual experience and unaware of what thoughts and mind-states we are cultivating throughout our busy days. If we do have a moment to stop, we may find that we feel uneasy, agitated, bored, anxious, stressed, in despair, or otherwise uncomfortable in our bodies and our minds.
Fortunately, as so many people throughout the world are discovering, there is another way. Through what the beloved Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh called, “The Miracle of Mindfulness,” we can learn how to be at ease in the present moment. We can learn to use our minds in a way that nourishes our well-being and helps us to feel whole again. Through cultivating mindfulness of the body, breath, and mind, we can learn to develop peace within ourselves and to enjoy the simple experience of being alive.
In this two-day Introductory Retreat, participants will learn mindfulness and meditation practices that calm and nourish the body and mind. There will be both formal instruction as well as “off-the-cushion” practice in areas such as walking, eating, mindful movements and work meditation. There will be periods of Q&A and deep sharing within a setting that is mostly silent, offering participants the opportunity to retreat from digital devices and other distractions that so often clutter our minds and cover the natural spaciousness that lies beneath the “noise.”
This retreat will be beneficial for both newcomers to meditation and more experienced mindfulness practitioners with an interest in living with more ease in the present moment.
Retreat Logistics
This retreat is in-person only participation at FCM ’s Tampa Center. The retreat will begin with orientation at 5:00 pm on Friday, March 1 and ends on Sunday at 4:00 pm, March 3. Participation is open to both FCM members and non-members.
The fee for in-person participation is $180 for overnighters and $140 for commuters. The deadline for application for this retreat is February 2. We will notify all applicants by February 5 as to whether or not they have been accepted into the retreat. For those accepted, the balance of the fee will be then be due by February 12, otherwise the spot will be given to another applicant. Please click here to read FCM's Retreat Cancellation Policy.
Retreat Scholarships are available; please click here to see FCM’s Retreat Scholarship Policy and for an Application, which needs to be submitted prior to the registration deadline for this retreat. The teachings are offered in the Buddhist tradition of Dana, wherein the teachers freely give of themselves to the students out of gratitude for what they’ve received from their teachers and a desire to be of service. The student’s response is also based on Dana, i.e. generosity that naturally flows from a sense of appreciation of the value of Dharma and gratitude to the living lineage. All retreat dana will go towards supporting the retreat teachers.
The retreat registrar will be sending additional information to accepted registrants once registration is closed.
Retreat Leaders
Bryan Hindert has been following the Buddhist path since 2008, when a strong desire to make changes in his life and to develop a better relationship with his mind drew him to the Florida Community of Mindfulness. This path has helped Bryan to transform his life in profound ways and continues to be a source of guidance, support, and joy in all of his endeavors. In addition to helping to develop and lead Wake Up Tampa Bay, a mindfulness and meditation group for people in their 20s and 30s, Bryan has served by teaching classes and presenting on mindfulness and on Buddhism, and leading intensive practice periods.
Maria Teresa Jaureguizar formally began on the Buddhist path in 1996 and became a student of Fred Eppsteiner in 2012. Deepening her commitment to personal transformation and selfless service she became an ordained member of the Order of Interbeing and completed the three year Dharma Transmission Program. Maria Teresa currently serves as FCM Community Leader and finds joy in sharing the dharma through mentoring, teaching mindfulness and meditation classes, assisting in leading retreats, and sangha building through facilitating community activities and helping care for the community. She is happily married, works for Hillsborough County Government and has two dogs, a bunny, and a bird.
Bill Mac Millen has been a Dharma practitioner with the Florida Community of Mindfulness and a student of FCM's teacher Fred Eppsteiner since 2013; in 2018 he completed the three year Dharma Transmission training taught by Fred. Bill was ordained as a member of the Order of Interbeing at Thich Nhat Hahn’s Magnolia Grove monastery in 2019. Aspiring to be of service to the community, he is on the Leadership Council overseeing the area of Center Care and also teaches and facilitates various classes and Intensive study programs offered by FCM.
Questions?
For more information, please contact Bryan at bbhindert@gmail.com.
