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Greetings from the Board!!
For those I haven’t yet met, my name is Myōshin Mari Ritalahti, and I currently serve as Board President. I’m joined by Ariel Paulenich, our Secretary, and Kristina Blake, our Treasurer. We work in collaboration with our Guiding Teacher Nomon Tim Burnett.
Although the Board has been quiet publicly, we’ve been working diligently behind the scenes, and we want to share several important updates with the community.
We recently consulted with an attorney and updated our bylaws to ensure that Red Cedar Zen Community is in full legal compliance as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. This work strengthens our foundation and supports the long‑term health of the sangha.
We have created a new section on our website outlining our ethics guidelines and our complaint and concern procedures. Our intention is simple: everyone who comes to Red Cedar should feel safe practicing here. And if concerns arise, we now have clear, accessible pathways for addressing them.
We'll be consulting with Thomas Bruner, the consultant we worked with when we raised the funds for our temple, to help us understand and address our current financial deficit and to create a sustainable financial plan for the future. Our goal is to move Red Cedar out of the red and back into the black with clarity and care.
We are in the process of developing a proposal for a revised organizational structure for Red Cedar. This work is important because our sangha has grown and evolved, and our current structure no longer fully supports the needs of our community. A clearer, more stable structure will help ensure healthy boundaries, shared leadership, and long‑term sustainability. And make it easier to plug in and volunteer.
Our draft proposal is now heading towards the Practice Leaders and others for additional input and refinement.
This process has included extensive research into how other sanghas operate and will continue to involve conversations with our Committees.
Our proposal will be shared with the wider sangha for input at our Annual Meeting on November 22 at 1:00 pm.
We are shaping this year’s Annual Meeting scheduled for Sunday November 22nd at 1pm to be a place of celebration, connection, and inclusivity. We will also share a list of volunteer opportunities, ranging from pulling weeds or doing a load of laundry to serving on committees or helping lead Workgroups. There is truly a place for everyone to contribute, in whatever way feels right.
Thank you for being a part of our sangha!
Even though the Board has been quiet, we have been working to reorganize ourselves so that we can best support our sangha. We are committed to transparency and open communication. Please feel free to reach out to me anytime at mtritalahti@gmail.com.
With deep bows and gratitude, Myōshin Mari Ritalahti Board President, Red Cedar Zen Community
Our annual 8-week Practice Period is online and ready for sign ups.
Fall Practice Period runs from September 2nd through November 8th. The Opening 3-day Sesshin at Sansui-ji is over Labor Day Weekend and the Closing 3-day Sesshin in at Samish Island in November.
This year we will be led by Shuso (head student) Juriki Samuel Senerchia.
Learn more about Practice Period and Juriki and sign up at Practice Period 2026 - Overview + Application. (And note that you can now sign up for all PP events except Samish Sesshin in a single registration).
Juriki Samuel Senerchia - this years Shuso (head student for Practice Period)
SUNDAY MORNING PROGRAM PAUSES FOR SUMMER
Our weekly Sunday morning program is taking a summer vacation to enjoy hiking and quiet time at home. The last meeting will be on Sunday June 7th (followed by a sangha potluck!). Weekly Sunday morning practice returns in August with the Fall Practice Period.
NEW SUMMER EVENTS
Half day "Simple Sits" on Sunday mornings July 12th and August 9th.
New annual celebration of the temple and the coommunity at Sansui-ji's First Birthday Party on Saturday August 29th.
WEDNESDAY EVENING DHARMA SEMINAR PROGRAM CONTINUES (with one week off)
Wednesday evening practice continues through the year. The has starts at 6:20pm. Zazen, kinhin, service, and Dharma talk.
But there will be no meeting on Wednesday June 17th during the Samish Summer Sesshin.
While Nomon Tim is on his July sabbatical, Kanho Chris and Seiu Hannah will be offering a series of talks on the seminal Platform Sutra. Check them out June 24th - July 22nd.
Creations from our Gandavyuha cohort--Workshop #1
We spent a very fun afternoon exploring the vast realm of Gandavyuha (the last chapter of the immense Avatamsaka Sutra), accompanying the youth Sudhana on his travels, followed by our own explorations as we "entered into the Realm of Reality".
Below, enjoy the students' Dharma art! ~Desiree
I was delighted to attend the annual 2026 meeting of the Lay Zen Teacher's Association in Seattle a few weeks ago.
So!...What are those green rakusus about and, what is "Lay Entrustment?"
Lay entrustment is a role offered to a long-practicing student by their teacher. The person inhabiting the lay entrusted position has been authorized to teach, to give practice discussion, and act on the behalf of the teacher in some circumstances. We are teachers but not priests; and, our lay entrustment is designated by the green color of the Rakusu we sew for our lay entrustment.
(Editor's note: our lay entrusted teachers at Red Cedar are Seiu Hannah Sullivan, Heigaku Talus Latona, and Seishin John Wiley)
I spent five days in April with the Lay Zen Teacher’s Association (LZTA) annual gathering south of Seattle near a little point of park land called Dash Point. It’s a catholic retreat center on a bluff above the salt water; very contemplative and conducive to spending days together. The group is inclusive of all zen traditions so in addition to the Suzuki Roshi lineage, White Plum groups including Portland (Dharma Rain) Maryland, Philadelphia, New York City, Los Angeles (ZCLA), and Florida were represented, as was the Korean zen group from Seattle.
Presentations included Zed Talks(!): on a passionate interest of any kind. Our dharma friend Lee Nelson from Seattle talked from her research linking cellular science to spirituality. Another table host event featured art as a gate to koans (blank paper, colored pens and choice of koan included!).
It’s refreshing to be in community with a group of fellow practitioners, especially from different schools and geography. For many of us, sustained time together is largely silent. On this occasion, sharing our ideas and experiences with one another was time well spent; continuous practice.
(Did I mention the eagles and osprey?)
We had a joyous weekend celebration of peace and the Buddha April 18th & 19th.
Our 26-mile long walk for peace went very well on Saturday and on Sunday we celebrated Buddha's Birthday with an abundance of fresh flowers! Including fresh ROSE petals for our circumambulation around the zendo.
Thank you so much from our Sikh friends up north who brought flowers down for the the peace-walk.
We felt into the grace of taking thousands of steps in quiet peaceful contemplation as we scattered our petals and each of us had a chance to bathe the baby Buddha with sweet tea. Lovely.
The Long Peace Walk began with a water ritual at Boundary Bay within sight of the Peace Arch. Here Seishin serves as doshi with Wilderness Program Coordinator Reizan Bob as jisha and doan.
Then the walkers, led by Seishin and Reizan Bob, journeyed 26 miles south to Cornwall Park in Bellingham. Walking in quiet peace with pauses for rituals. We were supported along the way by generous volunteers in support vehicles and enjoyed a small gathering at a park in Ferndale and a group of supporters in a closing loop through Cornwall Park.
Our Zen-led interfaith peace group was delighted to be joined by members of HKL - Humility, Kindness and Love from British Columbia - a Sikh-led linterfaith movement launched in India in 2024!
Join us as Myoki Raizelah Bayen describes her journeys to Green Gulch Farm and Monastery over the years--and her journey of the heart into the realm of Priesthood in the Soto Zen tradition...
"I first went to Green Gulch Farm and Monastery when I was 23 years old--early in my spiritual journey--but I could already feel the seeker in me. I went there both out of an interest to learn more about zen meditation and to learn more about organic gardening. I was there for 5 1/2 months--and I did do my first practice period when I was there--a 6 week practice period lead by teacher and master gardener Wendy Johnson. It was a bit atypical with less practice in the Zendo--and more practice in the garden. I loved that and interestingly, many seeds were planted there, including meeting Nomon Tim.
I feel that the seeds were planted then for my recent ordination. I don't think that I was really conscious of the feeling in my bones that one day I would become a priest, but that became clearer in later years. I fell in love then with the forms--they are so beautifully done in the monastic setting--there is really that feeling in the Zendo of moving as one body because everyone is so synchronized and aware of one another. I still feel a deep connection there because it was the cradle of my spiritual baby.
I went back to Green Gulch in 2018 and 2019 for one month January intensives (and, of course recently in fall of 2025.) I also went back once or twice for one-week stints in my 40s as my kids were older and could be left with their dad. What I love about being there is the opportunity for intensive practice. When you do it at a monastic setting, practice comes under the microscope and there is so much support for that there.
Hoka Chris Fortin was already my teacher even before receiving Jukai around 2016. I met her at Norman Fischer's Everyday Zen Community but got to know her better because she was just starting her local sangha there in Sonoma County where I lived also.
So, my path to priesthood was not sudden, in fact, I saw myself for years in my mind's eye, folding up a zagu (priest's bowing cloth). As I sat with that, there was just this feeling in my bones. As I started to talk to Hoka Chris and Zoketsu Norman about it, around 2017, they encouraged me to do a more intensive focus on practice, which led to the intensives in the following two Januarys.
Actually, I came back from the intensive in 2019 and said to Chris, I don't think I can do this. I actually turned away from the priest path for a few years. I had an internal reckoning I needed to make with stepping into what Norman calls a fairly conservative role; in a tradition that has strong, strong patriarchal and hierarchical roots. I didn't know if I could say yes to that.
Also, soon after that I got my divorce, I left my job, a started a new career path...Norman said that time's when going through big changes are not times to decide to become ordained. So, there were 3 things going on that were really influencing me at the time.
One, could I really play that conservative role, Norman described? Two, going through huge changes in my personal life, and three, I wasn't in a place where I could just say yes.
In talking with Chris about wanting to become a priest, she had said that she wanted to give me more responsibility. She wanted me to do a way-seeking mind talk...she wanted me to write an article for the newsletter...etc. I was saying "no--I can't do that right now..." So, I saw that I was saying no instead of yes to sangha responsibilities and if I couldn't say yes to those responsibilities, it just didn't feel right.
So, I decided not to ordain then. I just put it down--I put it down until I became Shuso--and, oh my goodness! There was so much joy for me in supporting people on their spiritual path and making an offering to the sangha! When I had that experience, I went back to Chris and said, "maybe I'm ready!" There is also so much permission from my teacher Chris to be me and be a non-conventional teacher.
I love being able to offer teachings and dialogue play with perhaps different techniques for sangha, not to show them the way but to allow them to find it on their own. I also love some less traditional aspects, that perhaps bring a feminine perspective, for instance, Chris' sangha sitting in a circle!
I am so grateful for Nomon Tim's openness towards making room for all of us and our individual styles in interacting and teaching, within the framework of our Soto Zen community." I have so much joy in my path of practice right now!
~Thank you, Raizelah for sharing this picture of your journey--warm bows!
Now, let's join Myoshin Mari Ritalahti as she talks about her travels to her homeland of Finland, her recent monastic experience at Green Gulch Farm and her aspiration as she prepares for her path of priesthood.
"I went down to Green Gulch with a question 'do I want to ordain as a priest? or do I want to do a lay practice path?' Going down to Green Gulch was part of my discernment practice. In fact, taking the 5 weeks off and not only going to Green Gulch, a spiritual place of practice--but also going back to my Finnish family--my physical ancestral home, gave me the time and space to contemplate my path. I basically found no preference in being able to go to both, one following the other.
And, being at both my family home and Green Gulch really helped me let go. You tell me where to sleep--that's where I sleep...you tell me this is what's for dinner--that's what is for dinner! Overall, the 5 weeks were a 'settling' for me without the need for planning or making decisions.
When I went to Green Gulch, I was disoriented for the first five days--having done a whole other trip to my homeland first. Time zones, environment, etc. were affecting me. The one thing I could count on, however, was the schedule. I knew what I needed to do when and it created a very safe container for me.
It was really beautiful in that regard and I realized how important having that container is, especially in today's world--especially here in the US--with all of this chaos--a place of refuge. To have these centers there for grounding--a core sense of belonging. I realized strongly that I've been on this path for a lot longer than I thought--I just wasn't able to see it yet.
I had a moment when I realized that Nomon Tim already knew where I was going--just look at my name that he gave me (Exquisite faith--Subtle sound). I felt that there is this core of Buddhism that creates this container and this space.
And it's that container and that space that we need to take care of as well. We need to call in those ancestors; we need to keep this ritual alive because it creates that container. You can feel it when you walk into these places; I can feel how our new Zendo is starting to have that energy. So, I went there because I just knew I needed to go there. I knew in my bones that it was exactly where I needed to be. There's a part of me where this has always been there. And, it's been somewhat hard to accept because I was raised with 'science as God' on one hand--and then, my mother on the other!' I was always in the middle!
My experience at Green Gulch was just to be in a community where you could see the power of creating these temples, these spaces, how healing they are and how much people need these spaces. Also, realizing that my wellbeing is tied to taking care of everybody else. If I'm taking care of others, I'm taking care of myself. There is no self or other. Being there, I had no doubt that I'd be held. I realized that everything is important; doing the dishes, mopping, etc. is all equally important and needs to be done.
Intention to look towards this priest path that I'm preparing for, is for me, about continuing the lineage. When we call in the ancestors, that really calls to me. I call it the faith practice--that deep spiritual place that you can't really put your finger on--and that is what really calls me to the priest path. Also, we need a diversity of priests, of ways of thought...There are many ways to be and to teach the Dharma. They don't always have to be stern and can be soft and gentle and light-hearted too. I want to be able to create a space in which everyone feels welcome.
We can hold on to the practice--and also let go. We don't need to hold too tight or too loose on these ideals. And that is what calls to me too!"
~Thank you Mari for your insights and your enthusiastic energy! Note: Mari is intending to sew every piece of her priest robes as she progresses on her journey--for herself--and also, to guide others as they enter their journeys; she is also our new sewing teacher! Congrats! And deep bows!
Interested in helping with the bells, clacks, and signals to keep us organized during our services? Learn how with Kanho Chris in a new series of trainings: Doanryo Training: Ringing the Bells and Leading the Chants Sundays at 12:30pm on March 29, April 5, 12, and 19th. RSVP so we know whom to expect.
Luba's Last Wish - an appeal
As you may have seen in the March newsletter, our dear sangha member and avid hiker Luba Pekisheva passed away last week after a struggle with cancer.
Luba's wish was that her body be naturally buried or composted.
Unfortunately neither she, nor her remaining family, left her friends and supporters at Red Cedar Zen and Shir HaShalom Jewish Renewal Community with the resources to pay for such a burial.
If you feel so moved to help, the remaining funds in the GoFundMe created around Luba's end of life care will all go to the burial:
GoFundMe - Helping with Luba's Funeral Expenses
Luba was, for many years, an avid participant in Red Cedar's Wilderness Dharma Program, often flagging us down from her bicycle beside the highway for a ride as we headed toward the mountains. A Russian immigrant to the Northwest as a child, Luba came to love this part of the planet deeply. Although her poor eyesight prevented her from reading the sutras in our chant book, we will long remember her rapt and joyful face, looking upward, as she enjoyed the chanting towards the mountains and rivers of our home, and then her melodious voice joining us for our closing Gratitude to Nature dedication.
In her final weeks Luba was attended to at her home by Red Cedar members, and by members of the Shir HaShalom ("Song of Peace") Jewish Renewal Community of Bellingham group, of which she was also a member, as well as by her devoted mother Galena. Through these efforts Luba was able to spend her last days at home, with her beloved cats, which have now been adopted by a Red Cedar member. Luba's forthright insistence on natural treatments led to her, seemingly, to suffer much less in her final process than is commonly reported for her rare form of cancer.
She was an intelligent, compassionate, and politically aware person, who made her way in the world by helping others through Russian language medical interpretation. In her sickness she remained without self pity and brave, as only Luba could be.
Few funds exist to give Luba the green burial she wished for. The Beth Israel congregation of Bellingham has donated a burial plot, and a Red Cedar member is offering to build a casket to defray costs. It is still uncertain if funds will be enough to do the burial, or if a lower cost cremation will be all that can be afforded. Donations to help with these expenses can be made to Luba's GoFundMe.
With full hearts we regret to inform you of the recent passing of beloved sangha member Luba Pekisheva, after a struggle with cancer. Luba was, for many years, an avid participant in Red Cedar's Wilderness Dharma Program, often flagging us down from her bicycle beside the highway for a ride as we headed toward the mountains. A Russian immigrant to the Northwest as a child, Luba came to love this part of the planet deeply. Although her poor eyesight prevented her from reading the sutras in our chant book, we will long remember her rapt and joyful face, looking upward, as she enjoyed the chanting towards the mountains and rivers of our home, and then her melodious voice joining us for our closing Gratitude to Nature dedication.
In her final weeks Luba was attended to at her home by Red Cedar members, and by members of the Shir HaShalom ("Song of Peace") Jewish Renewal Community of Bellingham group, of which she was also a member, as well as by her devoted mother Galena. Through these efforts Luba was able to spend her last days at home, with her beloved cats, which have now been adopted by a Red Cedar member. Luba's forthright insistence on natural treatments led to her, seemingly, to suffer much less in her final process than is commonly reported for her rare form of cancer. She was an intelligent, compassionate, and politically aware person, who made her way in the world by helping others through Russian language medical interpretation. In her sickness she remained without self pity and brave, as only Luba could be.
Red Cedar Zen Community is a 501(c) non-profit organization.
