Q. Can you tell us a bit about who you are and what you do?
A. I am a native Angeleno and a true California girl at heart. I have lived in various places all over the world and have traveled to over 70 countries, and California will eternally provide me with a sense of home. In California, I split my time between 3 places; Ojai, Mendocino and the Central Valley with my wife and our 2 dogs. Amongst these 3 very different places, and beyond, the majority of my time is spent sharing tea ceremonially with others through the practice of Cha Dao.
Q. What is Cha Dao, and how did you find your way into it?
A. Cha dao means The Way of Tea. Perhaps a simpler way to translate the deeper meaning of this is living a life of tea or self cultivation through tea. When approaching tea in this way, we have the opportunity to remember that tea is a medicine that can heal the ailment of disconnection. In drinking tea, we remember our inherent bond to Nature, dissolving the illusion that we are separate from it. I continue to humbly learn that a life of tea assists in growing an inner well of wisdom that creates space and allowance to share the merits of cultivated peace with others which reflects the natural spirit of tea itself. Being of service in this way, reminds us of the harmony of Being while experiencing the medicinal mastery of intimacy with Nature, ourselves and each other.
I’m not sure if tea found me or if I found it, but the meeting was a form of remembrance, as it is often said. When I attended my first tea ceremony many years ago, my life had been heavily steeped in the traditions of Zen and Vipassana, making meditation my preferred expression of service, discipline and devotion. I was completely taken by the experience as it merged my affinity for tea with my deep reverence for stillness and the present moment. In awe of the beauty before me, it translated as a celebration of the miracles in the mundane. From that moment on, I followed tea in every way possible by developing a personal practice, continuing to learn from and sit with others further along on the path and of course being of service whenever possible. That path allowed me to find my teacher and live, study and practice in community at our then, free Tea and Zen center in Miaoli, Taiwan. And having had and continuing to have such powerful and transformative experiences with tea, I continue to share and meet tea as if it were the first time, every time.
