A Non-Religious Spiritual Practice and Volunteer Community Service Organization supporting Boston’s South Shore

Friday Reflection — March 6, 2026

Friday Reflection meets tomorrow (March 6th), the usual time of 9:30-11:00.  We’ll meet at a new and novel location, the McNamara Sparrell Funeral Home in Norwell.  There’s ample parking in the large lot, please enter through the main door.  The space is warm and inviting, not at all funereal.  Thank you for being willing to move about and try new spaces….regular meeting space coming soon!

This week we move on to Chapter Nine (The Two Truths) in Pema Chodron’s How We Live is How We Die.  Pema considers what most of us have likely heard as an either/or proposition – is truth absolute or relative? – and invites us to see through the lens of both/and.  Mindfulness practice affords us glimpses of both kinds of truth.  When we sit quietly, we’re flooded by relative truths, as all that we’ve ever seen, heard, or thought threatens to overwhelm and distract.  (This is the moment to be so very kind and gentle with ourselves!)  “Relative truths” might also be our acute experiences of grief and loss, our anger and despair with the violent state of the world.  Relative truths propel us toward practice and community, as we seek respite from noise and claustrophobia.

Sometimes in practice we get glimpses of absolute truth,  moments when big-sky opens up and we experience ourselves and the world without judgment, without concepts, without words.  These experiences have been equally propulsive, for me, as I return to mindful practice knowing that  such freedom is possible right here and now.

M+'s own three-part practice invites a unique way to hold relative and absolute truth in openhearted tension.  We share one practice yet we each have individual experiences; we share our individual experiences without trying to reconcile them into one whole; and then we talk about it all and notice what shakes out in mindful conversation.  Our practice tomorrow will give this three-part treatment to a concept that will conjure up particular and individual images and experiences; dreams and fantasies; relative “truths” we were raised with and perhaps have since discarded.  I won’t say more, that you might helpfully practice in unplanned directions.  There’s plenty of time to think about this concept that is at the heart of Pema’s book and our present exploration. 

Come sit gently with yourself and others.  Hold your questions with openhearted curiosity.  You do not have to be reading along to join in, though reading along might enhance your experience.

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practice groups, volunteer opportunities, educational workshops & retreats, and social events in support of our South Shore communities.

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  • “I have already written some facts of my life, journal-style. But this new Recollections experience allows me to share with my grandchildren, and hopefully their children, some life memories in my own words, my voice for posterity.”

    – Karen from Cohasset

  • "I have been a care giver my whole life. I helped both elderly parents live in their home as long as possible. Been a bedside nurse for over 40 years and raised 2 children . After my mom who was my best friend died Covid hit. I worked in a Boston Hospital ICU T throughout it. When it was over I realized i had lost my compassion. After another year I retired. I started to volunteer to have a sense of purpose. One day I walked into Mindfulness Plus and it changed me I was encouraged to cry and talk and most of all heal. The wisdom of the group was invaluable. Every meeting gave me fresh insight. And soon my words helped others. I will be forever grateful to this group that has transformed me (with alot of hardwork on my part) I encourage everyone to try it. You have nothing to loose and everything to gain."

    - Pat from Hanover

  • “I find the Living with Loss Community Support Group to be very warm and supportive. This experience has allowed me to expose vulnerabitlies without judgment, and the compassionate energy shared is personally healing. I am grateful to the Mindfulness Plus organization and their offerings to the South Shore community.”

    – Claire from Quincy

  • “I have found some comfort attending the Living with Loss group. It is nice being surrounded by others that are also suffering loss and sharing our thoughts and emotions. It is a gentle, non-pressured atmosphere and I have always left feeling just a little bit better after attending. I hope in time to not need the group support but right now I do and it’s a safe, easy, supportive, comfortable place to share some of the tough emotions around significant loss.”

    – Rebecca from Hull

  • “Friday Reflection offers the opportunity to sit with a group of friends, silently review my past week, and if I choose, speak in confidence and without judgemental feedback about what it is like to live in my body, mind and soul. And more than that, I'm offered the enlightening and fascinating opportunity to listen to other members of the group do the same. I find it centering, peaceful and harmonious.”

    - Bill from Weymouth

  • “It is an honor to be a volunteer interviewer in the M+ Recollections program. It is a privilege to enable community members to tell stories of their lives that hold special meaning for them that they can choose to share with others. Through being part of this process, I also learn about, and gain new perspectives about the diversity of our community members, as well as deepening my connections to our community.”

    - Paula from Hull

  • "Loss and grief equals pain. The healing process from this pain is hard work and is exhausting. Whether your loss is deeply personal or on a bigger societal level, the Tuesday Living with Loss group provides a safe space to share your loss with others in a non-judgmental, pressure-free environment. You can share many words or sit quietly the entire time. Knowing that there are others who support you and collectively embrace your soul has helped my own healing process continue after the sudden death of my husband last year."

    Gail from Scituate

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“Good works need financial support and few of them check as many boxes as M+. I know my monthly check is promoting the spiritual and community values that are important to me. The warmth and kindness of its members are like nothing else I know.”

— Jim from Cohasset

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