Open Road Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue Archive

In September of 2020, Open Road board members–Bill Faricy, Deborah Buchanan and Katie Radditz–along with Howard Thoresen and I, inaugurated the Open Road Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue, for people who live in prison and for those who don’t. The idea was to provide support and encouragement for people’s spiritual practice–whatever helps to give life meaning.

We were not promoting any religious tradition–just be sharing our thoughts, experiences, questions and friendship in order to support and encourage each other in living more peacefully and mindfully. To begin, we used Your True Home by Thich Nhat Hanh as a jumping off point for dialogue.

The Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue ceased publication in June of 2024.

[I have edited this archive to remove pictures and texts that may possibly infringe on copyrights. So, some of these issues are shorter than they once were. Some now have new images or no images.]

Here is the first Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue, published on September 15, 2020.

Here’s the second Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue, published on October 15, 2020.

Here’s the third Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue, published on November 15, 2020.

Here’s the fourth Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue, published on December 15, 2020.

Here’s the fifth Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue, published on January 15, 2021.

Here’s the sixth Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue, published on February 15, 2021.

Here’s the seventh Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue, published on March 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for April 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for May 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for June 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for July 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for August 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for September 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for October 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for November 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for December 15, 2021.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for January 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for February 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for March 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for April 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for May 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for June 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for July 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for August 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for September 15, 2022.

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for October 15, 2022

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for November 15, 2022

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for December 15, 2022

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for January 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for February 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for March 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for April 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for May 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for June 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for July 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for August 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for September 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for October 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for November 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for December 15, 2023

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for January 15, 2024

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for February 15, 2024

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for March 15, 2024

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for April 15, 2024  

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for May 15, 2024 

Meditation & Mindfulness Dialogue for June 15, 2024

Here are two meditation texts:

a talk on Beginner’s Mind by Shunryū Suzuki (1904-1971)

the earliest Zen text, Hsin Hsin Ming, by Seng Ts’an, the Third Zen Patriarch (529-606 A.D.)

If you’d like to join our merry band, email me and let me know.

Jake was in segregation (solitary confinement) at Two Rivers prison when he wrote this:

Is one of my favorites! In segregation we have paintings that are of different scenes. At first it was cool, then I and others got over it. But since putting this wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh in perspective you see more than a painting. For it opens my eyes to the time, the painter, the painter’s years of art skills, everything down to what makes paint…paint. There are so many miracles that came together to make these paintings! It’s amazing. Now I try to be mindful of what miracles come into place to make people I meet, foods I eat. Being conscious of what had to come together to create your best friend or your favorite food gives you much more appreciation for how they come to be in your life .