My practice began in 1977 with Ruth Denison and the Nyingma Institute in Berkeley. I then moved on to a Zen Buddhist center in Southern Ca. before going off to live at Bodhinyanarama, a Theravada monastery, in New Zealand. I spent the next four years in Australia at the Brisbane Zen Centre, where I became a monk in the Kwan Um School of Zen. I eventually returned to the US and spent the next three years at Spirit Rock Meditation Centre as a volunteer and student of Sylvia Boorstein. It was there that I learned of Adyashanti, a former Zen monk, and adopted him as my primary teacher. The next move by way of Texas was to Tucson, where I became a student of Upasaka Culadasa and recently of Sensei Alfred Genkai Kaszniak.

Some time ago, the VA asked volunteers to share anything that helped them deal with their disability with Vets. I was particularly interested in Mindfulness as it was very beneficial in dealing with the effects of a past head injury. I volunteered to share what I learned with other vets and soon was leading classes on Mindfulness.

It was during this period at the VA that I began to develop a better understanding of how Mindfulness is used to “live in the present moment”. What emerged was a simple and straightforward view of that moment called the present and the connection between “living in it” and living an awakened life.