Way Seeking Mind

In this Wednesday Night Dharma Talk, longtime resident and novice priest Jimon Lorene Flaming tenderly offers her long and winding path to practice in her way-seeking mind talk. Inspired by overseas medical service by her father and the values of her Mennonite upbringing, Jimon blazed a passionate path in her life toward service. Aspiring to be of use to the world, she studied public policy at Harvard, soaking in their glorification of data and analytics, disregarding the ‘softer skills’ she would come to appreciate later like connections and leadership. Always striving, Jimon moved from the World Bank to positions scattered across Bosnia, Cambodia, Liberia, Afghanistan (and more). She reflects on the intense efforts she made to achieve her goals, foreshadowing experiences to come with the saying “When the gods want to punish you, they answer your prayers.” In Bosnia, an acute escalation of an autoimmune disease tempered her beliefs toward self-reliance and achievement, initiating an arcing journey to return to her true home of inner practice. Jimon shares pivotal moments with spiritual teachers who affirmed her growing belief that of all the challenging destinations where service can be done, within herself is the most important place to travel. As her reflections approach the present, Jimon shares the affinity that arose from finding not only a home inside herself, but a community and sangha at Upaya to practice alongside: “If I had had a magic wand, I could not have dreamed this place up.” Noting the challenges of practice in community, Jimon ends with an encouragement to trust our inner voice, or as Rumi says, “Let yourself be silently drawn by the stronger pull of what you truly love.”