Our Practice Groups
A Supportive, Mindfulness Practice for Aging Gay Men of the South Shore who are Living with Loss
This new group will meet for 8 sessions on Wednesday evenings from 7:00-8:30 pm – November 5th and 19th; December 3rd and 17th; January 7th and 21st; and February 4th and 18th – at United Congregational Church’s East Milton Campus. Free parking is available behind the church or on street (by Crane Field). Use either left side entrance to the 1st floor library. The elevator is at the far left rear.
Who participates?
Aging gay men with an interest in mindfulness practice as a supportive tool to cope with loss in its many forms: death of a loved one, difficulties of aging parents or partners who need support, managing our own frailties, or the struggle of staying present amidst the challenges of everyday life.
Gay men working in health care and helping professions looking for a community of practice.
Those with a curiosity to explore mindfulness practice with other gay men who are grieving
What are the benefits?
Our three-part contemplative practice invites us to 1) sit quietly, mindfully, to listen deeply; 2) share briefly what emerges in today’s practice; and 3) have safe and open conversation about how the practice informs our living and coping with loss as aging gay men.
We enjoy confidential connection with other gay men living in our South Shore communities.
The focus is on listening, not fixing. What is shared in the room stays in the room.
This group is not responsible for what is shared with others outside our practice circles.
This group operates in association with United Congregational Church Milton. For more information, contact community and meeting facilitator Michael Banville at (781) 848-3910, ext. 323 or email at mbanville@sselder.org
Friday Reflection
Friday Reflection is a weekly gathering for M+ members and friends (check here to learn about the benefits of membership). Our weekly practice unfolds in three parts. For thirty minutes, we engage in a guided mindfulness meditation, facilitated in approachable, non-religious language. For the next thirty minutes, we mindfully share whatever we might like to say about our experience in the meditation. We do not engage in cross-talk, agree or disagree, or try to fix each other. We generously listen to whatever is shared, speaking is always optional, and what is shared in practice stays in practice. For the final thirty minutes, we talk with each other about what’s going on in our own lives, in our communities, and in the world at large, exploring ideas about how to lean into our better selves and how to support our local community.
We are presently reading Thich Nhat Hanh’s No Death, No Fear: Comforting Wisdom for Life. Reading along isn’t necessary for participation, though doing so might enhance your experience.
Living with Loss
Community Support Group
This weekly group meets Tuesday evenings 7:00-8:30 at First Parish Scituate (1st/3rd Tuesdays) and at the Hingham Heritage Museum (2nd/4th Tuesdays) and is facilitated by Jonathan and by Megan Hansen, end-of-life doula and M+ member. The group follows a drop-in format. Participants can come once and never again, come as often as is helpful, or join every week as one’s schedule allows. There’s no need to register and no fee to join.
Loss comes in many shapes and sizes: the death of a loved one, the difficulties of aging parents who need support, the challenges of raising kids in a stressful world, the struggle to stay present amidst the squeeze of everyday life. This group welcomes anyone who is experiencing loss of any kind, anyone looking for supportive connection with others. This group is especially helpful for those who work in health care and helping professions. This is not a “clinical” support group, though Jonathan brings fifteen years of hospice chaplaincy and grief counseling experience. We follow a simple, three-part mindfulness practice that invites participants to listen to what’s really going on in our own lives; to safely and meaningfully share with others; and to talk together about the resources and self-care practices we’ve found helpful.
