2009-07-17T10:37:00.000-07:00

Flowering Tree Meditation

Calm your body

Still your mind

Open your heart

Take root in well being

Flowering Tree is a place - a simple, quiet meditation room and garden.

Flowering Tree is a community - an open, accepting group of people who practice meditation and mindful living.

Flowering Tree is a path - a way of coming to know inner wisdom, gentle strength and sincere kindness.

Meditation is an intentional practice of breathing in and breathing out... Touching your thoughts and emotions and letting go... Whatever you may be experiencing, meditation often brings clearing and space. Meditation helps you pause, rest and organically heal.

Meditation is about learning to swim - not drown - in a sea of continual change, connection, beauty and suffering. It is about learning to let go - again and again - of the need for security and resolution. It is about deeply accepting and relaxing with what is - within yourself, within others and within the meanders of life.

With steady practice, breath meditation often cultivates patience, understanding, flexibility, dignity, tenderness and simple joy. It is not blissful peace or magic medicine. It is a moment to moment intention to be awake, present and kind.

Much of the philosophy and practice offered at Flowering Tree is drawn from the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Core teachings such as...

... do no harm

... live with a tender, fearless, unprotected heart

... receive and offer refuge

... train under fire

...water the seeds of joy

Yet at Flowering Tree our understanding is that everyone and everything offers teachings. The wind in the leaves. The voice of a bird. The smile of a dog. Honesty. Loss. Love. Annoyance.

Each moment gives an opportunity to learn provided we stay awake, direct and curious.

People come here from all sorts of spiritual and religious backgrounds. This array of experiences and perspectives, gives us all fertile ground. No one is expected to be or become a Buddhist (or any other way) here. The intention is simply to offer a sheltering space, an affirming community and a meaningful path of meditation and mindful living.

Classes

Small, group classes are offered:

Monday noontime 12:00 - 1:00 coed

Monday evenings 4:45 - 5:50pm coed

Wednesday evenings 5:30 - 6:45 women

Each class has a brief transitional sit, an opening circle, teachings on posture, technique and philosophy and then a longer time of breath meditation. There are themes associated with each semester.

Class size is limited to 8. People register for entire semester.

Fall is generally 12 weeks $120.00

Spring is generally 16 weeks $160.00

Weather allowing, we may meditate outside.

Please never let limited money stop you.

Call 315-470-0778

Weekly Silent Meditation

Every Wednesday from 7:00 - 7:30pm there is an open, silent sit. People simply come and meditate. There are no readings, teachings or opening circle. Participants will vary. This is an opportunity to expand your meditation time each week. No fee.

Breathing with Nature

Each summer there are weekly sits outside at Barry Park. We read poetry and prose about nature then meditate near the water beneath the magnificent cottonwoods.

Workshops

Throughout the year, there are a handful of Saturday workshops. Themes for these workshops include body meditation, music meditation, drawing meditation, chakra cleansing meditation or grieving meditation.

Lead Teacher/Facilitator

Stacey Smith is the lead teacher/facilitator of Flowering Tree. Stacey has studied and practiced breath meditation and other forms of meditation her whole adult life. While studying comparative religion at Colgate University, she concentrated in the Buddhist tradition. She participated in intensive vipasanna meditation training in Sri Lanka. After graduating, she returned to Asia to continue learning from and living within eastern cultures. She spent time in Sri Lanka, India, Nepal and Tibet. Stacey has a graduate degree in counseling. In addition to teaching meditation, she offers private practice counseling and does environmental conservation work. She is a single-parent, homeschooling, gardening mama who has lived in the Syracuse, NY area for 25 years.

Meditation Out in the World

One of the visions of Flowering Tree is to bring breath meditation and mindfulness out into the larger world, especially to places and people who otherwise may not have an opportunity to experience this very profound, helpful practice.

Over the years, Stacey has taught in schools, congregations, jails, shelters and clinics.

Young children often respond immediately and beautifully. They don't need philosophy. They just need to learn how to sit still - away from constant, over stimulus - breathe silently and go within. (Please read some quotes by Edward Smith Elementary School first graders.) Teenagers often find it sort of cool, so give it a try. People in the midst of severe trauma and chaos often experience palpable relief. Some return again and again to the quiet and find it incredibly beneficial.

If your school, congregation, clinic or corporation, has a interest in offering on-going classes or a one-time workshop, please call. We can craft something to fit your context and needs.

Some Quotes...

"I have worked with Stacey for many years and have come to value her tremendously. She brings great insight along with creating a caring and safe place, not only to "practice," but to live the teachings. She is a jewel in my life." Chris

"I started in 2006 and enjoy it greatly. It relaxes my mind and is a great way to reduce stress. I always look forward to returning for the next session." Mike

Some Quotes from Young Meditators...

What is meditation?

"You sit down in half lotus or full lotus and close your eyes and breath and rest. At night you rest like this (shows his head on a pillow and body lying down), during the day you sit and meditate and rest like this (shows lotus position)."

How do you feel after you meditate?

"After, you feel good."

Can you tell me something about doing yoga?

"It felt nice to me."

Josh age 8

When you meditate what do you do?

"Meditating is closing my eyes and um like meditating... being quiet and thinking about peaceful things."

What sort of peaceful things?

"Trees, wind, flying, leaves falling off the trees."

How do you feel after you meditate?

"After, I fee nice and quiet."

Can you tell me something about yoga?

"I like the flowering tree (demonstrates the posture). I like getting to learn to stand on one foot and bend my other leg. I felt like a tree. Like an apple tree."

Cache age 7

What is meditating?

Meditating is sort of about calming your body and emptying your mind of everything that's around it and everything that's sad."

What happens then?

"You get happy."

What are some of the things that make you sad?

"Brownie and White Shell dying."

Who are Brownie and White Shell?

"My pet snails."

Noah age 8

If you would like to learn more

or register for a class or private instruction,

please give Flowering Tree a call.

Be well.

Flowering Tree Meditation

Westcott St,

Syracuse, NY

315-470-0778

floweringtree@gmail.com