Friday Introductions: Heidi Smith, Community of Practice Member

Excerpts from Board Member, Susan Hayward’s interview with Heidi Smith

Tell me about your first encounter with Bread of Life.

I heard about Bread of Life thanks to Jane Rabin (who talked about it often) in our spiritual work together in our congregation, Bet Havarin.  When the Community of Practice pilot was offered it was very appealing to me. 

Tell me about the Community of Practice—what drew you to become a part of it? 

Being able to find people who want to be in a deepening community.  That had been hard to find in other places.  I had been in groups, had started groups, and they tended to evolve into more social situations with an overtone of spirituality.  I do a lot of reading on my own, I do a lot of classes.  I am actually starting a spiritual direction training program this weekend. 

 When the opportunity came up to be in community with others, I was very intrigued to explore it. Then I had such a positive experience I wanted to be on the planning committee so I could help. 

Did you experience what you were drawn toward? 

I really appreciate the way in which people engage with each other.  I am pretty introverted. I do much better at a calmer energy level. I so appreciate the way in which people engage—people really listen to each other; people are willing to be vulnerable and share at a reasonably deep level even though the community as a whole only comes together a few times a year. There is a container that allows for a safety that allows for people to share in a very meaningful way. 

It feels meaningful and nourishes me.  It goes at a slower pace, is a quieter, more contemplative energy, and that works much better for me. There is definitely a social aspect to it, but we stay in the spiritual realm most of the time.  I find that rare. 

What has been an unexpected experience/outcome of participating in Community of Practice? 

The thing that comes to mind—there are a couple of community members who are eager to instill the element of play in the community.  Outside of the community’s structured time together they have planned events or have inserted into our retreats a time that is very playful.  So there is an element of fun and silliness, and goofiness, a lightheartedness, yet feels like it is still in the container.  It feels part of our experience.  It has been fun. 

Another welcome surprise—reflections that Julie Garvey has been writing. They are nominally about her vineyard, but they are just so moving and so evocative.  This has been a beautiful gift! 

What will you/or are you doing differently in your life because of your participation in the Community of Practice? 

It has helped me identify more clearly that I thrive in a more contemplative setting.  High energy situations take a toll on me.  It has really helped me identify that.  Beyond that, not that much because I was already engaged…most of my discretionary time is devoted to spiritual pursuits.  I was already on that path, now I just have people to share it with.  The phrase “the solitary journey that you cannot take alone” feels perfect.  I was on the journey and now I have community to share it with. 

What is one message you would like to tell the world about Community of Practice/ 

How accepting and inclusive and non-denominational it is.  I am one of two Jewish people in the group and there has never been any moment when I felt like, “I’m accommodating you so I can feel comfortable here.”  I feel very comfortable even though most people do not share my faith traditions. 

How else does Bread of Life feed you? 

 I went to a mandala workshop recently that I really enjoyed.  The offerings are wonderful and increasingly so.  I think Jen has been a phenomenal addition that has enabled more.  Just knowing the workshops that are available is valuable. 

Julie Garvey: Past President of the Board

Excerpts from Susan Hayward’s interview with Julie Garvey as she prepared to end her term as the Board President of Bread of Life.

Tell me about your first encounter with Bread of Life.

Beginning in 2001, I left our family wine business and went to the Franciscan School of Theology at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley to earn my Master’s in Theology. Simultaneously I attended the San Francisco Theological Seminary to attain my Diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction. I absolutely loved my studies but as I studied the Gospels, I wondered why 4 gospels? Why these 4 gospels? And where were the women? My friend Marjorie Hoyer Smith introduced me to Alexander Shaia who was working with a small group of interested people at Bread of Life to explore his theory of the gospels as the key to the 4 fold path of transformation rather than 4 biographies of Jesus. Later, I was invited to join that group which allowed me to experience first-hand the richness of Bread of Life and the people who participate in it.

Share with me your experience of being Board President—what does it mean to you?

Being Board President is a privilege-I usually say no to other boards, but this board has heart. In summary:

“The work we do is how we do the work and how we do the work is the work we do.”

3 years ago I was invited to join the Board of Directors (a board of 3) and became Board President.  It was a time of uncertainty since the former board had voted to close Bread of Life but our conversations with supporters and participants of the Center indicated that there was life and energy and that our work was not complete.   A Board of three reopened the doors and a year later I was asked to replace Joan Stockbridge  as Board President.

It is thrilling to be a part of our current Board of Directors of five.  We work differently than most other boards. We use our strategic plan to form how we stay in alignment with our vision and mission.  We read through the vision and mission statements at the beginning of each board meeting to remind us of our responsibility as a board member.  

 I love humor to break the ice, to hopefully draw people out, and to balance the seriousness of our work.  We laugh a lot as a board. 

Board work was particularly challenging at first because we were in the midst of the pandemic and the office was not open.  Bread of Life had always been a gathering place so we wondered what would the future bring?  In hindsight, Covid had gifts for us.  We, by necessity, had to learn how to build a virtual community.  I have so much hope that Bread of Life will continue to be vital and generative through, not only through local offerings, but also hybrid and virtual ones.  I love to see how we are growing out of covid—able to be more expansive.

Tell me about the Community of Practice—what drew you to become a part of it?

Sometimes I get a call that is a little whisper—I may not know what it is saying, but know that I am to pay attention to it. We are in turbulent times and our human family is suffering.  It is easy to get sucked into despair and fear.  But this whisper seems to be saying to me, “Stay awake. Find Companions.  Go Deep. Trust Love. Be Love.”

I have been listening over time to Sandra Lommasson’s desire to create an intentional community.  I think the Community of Practice is the outgrowth of that desire.  It matched my own realization that I need others to stay on the contemplative depth journey.  Frances Weller calls it the “solitary journey we cannot make alone.”  I was particularly attracted to this group because it is open to people who do not necessarily live in close proximity or share the same faith.

What has been an unexpected experience/outcome of participating in Community of Practice?

Another surprise for me and for the group—I/we set out on a spiritual journey and find out it is not just my work, it is our work—this is the work we cannot do alone.   At a recent retreat, we were surprised during the check-in that each of us was sharing some expression of the same  deep sorrow for the world.  If we had not had this time together, we might not have recognized our local and global connections.  We might have been caught in a narrative of us and them or even despair.  Instead, I felt that we found support and understanding together – a safe harbor in a storm.

What is one message you would like to tell the world about Bread of Life’s Community of Practice?

The spiritual journey is not a solitary one—some people can be hermits but generally, we are communal people.  This is the important work we cannot do alone.  We do it with fellow travelers who want to share deeply, honestly and be vulnerable—for the benefit of the world we live in.  We need to be the light in a world where it is easy to lose heart, and this is heart work.

Thank you to Julie for her service on the Bread of Life Board from 2019-2023!

Friday Introductions: Roseanne Lopez

Roseanne Lopez began with the 4-day training for Dynamic Dialogue, moved into the two year practicum and now uses the tools learned as she consults with churches, businesses and other organizations. We were recently able to sit down for a zoom interview with Roseanne about the impact this Bread of Life program has had in her life.

Dynamic Dialogue is many things to many people—a set of learnings and tools to increase one’s self-awareness and your level of awareness of how to be in the world.  It pulls together various types of learnings and recognizes the different learning styles of the participants.  There is opportunity to utilize the tools enough to understand them in a way that you can call upon when a situation invites that type of tool.  

Dynamic Dialogue is about ways of being in the world—both the quality of our presence and the quality of our engagement in the world. We enter into engagement with the understanding that we need to be aware—having compassion with self and others.

At end of first 4 days  of training I realized it had truly changed my life.  The I went into the 2 year practicum, which gave me more depth to look at so many things in my life.

It changed the way I do the work I do professionally (consulting).  It took my interaction with my clients to a different level of quality—it stepped it up.  Made me realize that I so love the work I do.

Aha moments—many in the 4 day class—because there was such a variety of background in the  individuals participating, I heard perspectives very different than my own.

When I facilitate dialogue workshops—I see and hear the same thing happening, and the feedback at the end of a workshop often people saying, “I could never have imagined I could see things in this way.”

Looking at the aha moments—the clarity with which I could see things that I never anticipated and I was saying, “Oh my gosh, I have been living my whole life this way and now I see it so differently.”  That in itself was a blessing and a gift. I realized it is my choice now how I want to move through life and how I want to react.  Am I willing to be in a different space than the patterns of behavior I have been in for years? I never thought I would have that level and depth of clarity around choice.

It helps with how to sort through what do I really want to react to and how do I want to react.

How do I want to ask questions?  How do I want to deal with judgment versus inquiry?  Do I want to show up and judge everything that I hear?  Or do I want to be curious when I meet someone, and can I be open to seeing them, hearing them, and acknowledge them as a sacred being with value?

If I profess really wanting to be a “good human being”, then how am I going do that?  What are those tools that I can utilize so I can be clear and I can be open and meet others where they are and for who they are.

Roseanne’s Message to the world:

“Pause—think about how you want to show up and how you want to be.”

Friday Introductions: Lisa Sargent, Community of Practice and Past Board Member

While Bread of Life is an organization, it only exists through the people who participate, lead and contribute. We want to introduce you to some of those people. Today, meet Lisa Sargent.

Lisa is a current member of the Community of Practice and recently finished a term on our Board as Treasurer/ Secretary. Her involvement goes back many years as she has participated in multiple programs here alongside with her involvement in a local congregation.

Lisa Sargent

On her involvement with the Board from December 2019-June 2022:

My experience on the Board absolutely surpassed what I had as expectations. I was just hoping that we would come out the other end and I really didn’t know what that was going to mean. Maybe it was time for us to understand that we had done the work that we were meant to do. The time that we had together we experienced so many blessings and so many really wonderful experiences.

Working with the other individuals on the Board was truly a spiritual experience. And if you’ve ever been on a Board you know it’s usually about the business of the organization. And there was all that, but it was done in such a way that there was so much more. There was a depth of companionship, collegiality, the spirit of God was with us the entire time. We came out the other side and we are sounder financially now than any other time that I have been involved with Bread of Life. That doesn’t mean we have a lot of money. We are at a solid of enough place that we can occasionally take a chance, move into something that’s a little unknown and do that knowing that it’s a good risk to take.

It was a truly, truly blessed experience. The experience with Bread of Life allows me to live more freely and fully in my own personal life and to take more chances and live into being a little braver. That feels like part of the gift of the experience I’ve had at Bread of Life, specifically working with the Board.

On the Community of Practice:

With the Community of Practice I can already see the deepening of my spiritual walk and how that will enhance the life that I’ll have in the future and the life of the people that my life touches. I have come to understand how what I do and say affects everybody that I encounter in so many different ways. The more that I can bring caring and love and respect and curiosity into the world, the better my little corner of the world will be.

People that are part of the Community of Practice, the desire is that what they receive through the organization feeds them and encourages them to go out and plant seeds elsewhere and make a difference in their world in whatever way they are called to do that. There are so many ways that our world is suffering nowadays and there is a desire to make a positive difference out there and to help enable the people who come to Bread of Life to step out and do that. The desire is to take it in and then be able to give it out even more.

On why she became involved:

I first encountered Bread of Life when I was attending church and felt very comfortable there, but there was this feeling inside that I had that I needed something more. I had several people encourage me to look into the spiritual direction internship. In that program I grew in ways that I didn’t even know existed. I felt that I was going into this program in order to grow my relationship with God, to help other people find their faith and their relationship with God and deepen that, and that was true. But there was also a very strong part that had to do with getting to know myself better. Getting to know who I was, who I am and in some respects learning to accept and love the person I am.

Not only was everyone else a loveable human being and should be treated with respect and care, it’s absolutely true for yourself as well. I’ve experienced personal healing in ways that I absolutely did not anticipate.