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Daily Reflection Sit Join us daily at 12:00 PM (Eastern) The Holding Environment: Overview Daily Sit Categories THE HOLDING ENVIRONMENT: OVERVIEW Play Video Play Video 36:28 2025 December 31: A Feeling of Home We create the Holding Environment, the foundation of practice. We create a feeling of home. This is how we set up the practice. Play Video Play Video 36:55 2025 December 29: The Holding Environment as Intimate Cultivation It is far more than a technique; it is a home base and a portal. Play Video Play Video 38:29 2025 December 17: Holding Our Vulnerability When we are caught in reactive states it is often because we don’t yet know how to be with something that is difficult. Play Video Play Video 38:17 2025 December 15: Being Realistic and Kind with our Intentions and Expectations of the Practice Working with phrases to help notice and slow down patterns of striving in our meditation practice. Play Video Play Video 38:39 2025 December 10: Taking Refuge in the 4 Brahmaviharas During Winter and the Holiday Season This time of the year offers us plenty of opportunities to practice the Brahmaviharas towards others and ourselves as we navigate the winter blues and the season when we may feel pressured to perform or be jolly. Let’s light the fire of our heart minds with wisdom and empathetic love. Play Video Play Video 38:01 2025 December 03: What We are Learning about Equanimity Here are some images and metaphors that help us to explore and experience what is perhaps the most challenging of the Brahma Viharas Play Video Play Video 37:46 2025 December 01: Equanimity Enriches and Deepens the Other Brahmaviharas It brings patience to metta, steadiness and acceptance to karuna and lessening of our selves to Mudita. Play Video Play Video 39:25 2025 June 25: Working with Fear Importance of relating to fear with wisdom and compassion. Play Video Play Video 38:39 2025 June 23: The Precepts Are An Important Part of the Holding Environment Explore how the cultivation of each precept supports us on and off of the cushion. Play Video Play Video 39:54 2025 June 18: Bringing the Elements of Nature Into the Holding Environment Exploring how the elements of earth, air, fire and water can nourish and support our practice Play Video Play Video 39:58 2025 June 16: Being Refuge To take refuge is to orient our heart/minds toward what supports us in the direction of well-being. What does it mean to embody refuge? Play Video Play Video 39:38 2025 June 11: Making Space for Mindfulness Practice at Home and while Traveling Oftentimes our formal meditation practice slows down during holidays and summer vacation for most of us lay people. However, we can create temporary holding environments wherever we are. And we can always remind ourselves to breathe, ground, settle and soothe while on the go. Extending boundless love to all (ourselves included ) is the ultimate holding environment. Play Video Play Video 38:52 2025 June 09: Combining Strength and Gentleness in our Holding Environment How to wisely cultivate a strong and gentle holding space to keep our Heart/Minds open and caring, integrating new learning and awareness. Play Video Play Video 37:15 2025 June 04: Spring Cleaning and the Outer Holding Environment On the importance of creating an inviting, calming physical space to more easily and warmly engage with meditation and mindfulness practices. Play Video Play Video 38:10 2025 June 02: As We Create Our Holding Environment We Become More Intimate with Ourselves Instead of rejecting the uncomfortable parts of our experience we create a sense of home for all of ourselves. This is a foundation for our practice. Load More

Daily Reflection Sit Join us daily at 12:00 PM (Eastern) The Paramis: Dana (Generosity) The Daily Sit Categories THE PARAMIS: GENEROSITY (DANA) Play Video Play Video 12:53 2023 February 01: Generosity Towards the Self We give to ourselves all day long, but noticing and receiving these gestures of giving is a practice. Play Video Play Video 2023 January 25: Practicing being generous with the thoughts, feelings and stories we hold about ourselves and others. Noticing when our thoughts and stories of another person narrow and close off to their humanity. It is an act of generosity to find ways to widen our understanding of them and turn with kindness toward what makes this difficult in our own hearts and minds Play Video Play Video 2023 January 21: The Ankura Sutta Cultivating generosity and recognizing stinginess. Learning to hold both generosity and stinginess with compassion and equanimity Play Video Play Video 2023 January 18: The Generosity of Receiving Learning to receive well is a gift to us, and to the giver. Play Video Play Video 2023 January 11: Transforming Transactions into Connections Making small overtures which convey to others that they are being seen.

About the Founders We share a deep appreciation for the interweaving of meditation and psychotherapy in our personal journeys and in our work with others. For 15 years, we have been teaching and leading retreats for mental health professionals and more recently, for couples as well. We share a deep appreciation for the interweaving of meditation and psychotherapy in our personal journeys and in our work with others. We are board members and faculty for the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy, a non-profit organization which offers seminars, courses, retreats, and a certificate program for mental health professionals . We are also contributing authors to Mindfulness and Psychotherapy - Second Edition, a book that gives clinicians and students an introduction to mindfulness and it's clinical applications. Susan T. Morgan, MSN, RN, CS At 4 years old I saw starving children from Ethiopia on TV and cried. As a teen, I wanted to work with Mother Teresa. When I was 21, my mother died propelling me further into existential questioning. From these early experiences, the heart and mind found expression as a Psychiatric Clinical Nurse Specialist. Curiosity led to practicing in a diversity of settings and populations—homeless shelters, community clinics, psychiatric hospitals, research clinics, college mental health, Pervasive Developmental Disorders, artists and writers, undergraduate and graduate students, ordinary folk, and couples. These days, I am drawn to work with therapists and caregivers seeking to deepen their own meditation practice and therapeutic presence. It is a joy and a privilege to work with those interested in growing at the edges of their comfort zone. In 1992, the heart and mind found a new avenue of expression. I began practicing in Zen and Vipassana traditions, and more recently, Tibetan practices. In December 2013, I completed a four-year silent meditation retreat at the Forest Refuge in Barre, MA. It is my deepest joy to practice the dharma and to share that practice with those who are interested. Loving-kindness and mindfulness of the body are two themes that have emerged as pivotal in both my personal practice and my teaching. William D. Morgan, PsyD The first wave of Buddhist meditation came to our shores while I was an undergraduate at Tufts University in the early ’70s. I majored in Eastern religion at Tufts and was drawn to meditation immediately. When I was 19, my father died propelling me toward a deeper search for meaning. I took a year sabbatical after my sophomore year and spent six months in a Trappist monastery. I spent the following summer at Mt. Baldy Zen Center in California and lived at Chogyam Trungpa’s Tibetan center in Boston upon graduating in 1975. I then gravitated toward vipassana practice and did three 3-month courses at the Insight Meditation Society with Joseph Goldstein. Following this , I earned my Psy.D. and began a private practice in Cambridge and Quincy. I have led retreats and taught meditation since 1984, and particularly enjoy working with people to incorporate meditation into their lives in a personally meaningful and enlivening way. With Susan, I completed a 4-year retreat at the Forest Refuge in December, 2013. In November 2009, Bill and Susan Morgan began what would become a four-year silent meditation retreat at the Forest Refuge, the Insight Meditation Society's center for experienced meditators seeking longer-term retreat practice. Bill and Susan were interviewed about their experience by John Spaulding of the Insight Meditation Society . Watch the first episode below. You can also watch the entire series on videopart1 A 4-Year Silent Meditation Retreat, Pt. 1: How It Began Play Video

Daily Reflection Sit Join us daily at 12:00 PM (Eastern) Anicca, Dukkha/Sukha, Anatta The Daily Sit Categories THE THREE CHARACTERS OF EXISTENCE: ANICC... Play Video Play Video 38:13 2021 August 05: Anicca, Dukkha, Anatta, the Three Characteristics of Existence Anicca dukkha and anatta, is another way of understanding the world we live in. “Nothing personal but everything changes!” Let’s savor the ease and let go of the stress. Play Video Play Video 38:21 2021 August 03: The Problem with Over Orchestrating our Experience Settling back into the mind-body-heart eco-system. Play Video Play Video 38:23 2021 August 02: Not Being Encumbered by Thought It is our relationship to thinking that creates mental distress. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 29: The Dance of, Self & Not Self, of Self & Other, of In Here & Out There We are “complex cats” as Bill likes to say. There is a whole cast of characters that live inside that vie for center stage. In mindfulness, through its friendly posture of caring attention, we can get acquainted with them, as they appear, and learn how to “love them into the fold of mindfulness”, as I am wont to say. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 27: The Kintsugi Craftsperson Like a kintsugi craftsperson, we can love all of the broken parts back into wholeness. All parts are welcomed. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 26: Care for the Self WHILE Caring for Others No compassion fatigue here! From a mindful perspective we can learn to care for ourselves in real time!, for those parts that are hurting, are in pain physically or emotionally, AND/WHILE caring for others’ pain and suffering. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 22: The Dance of Both / And, Rather than Either / Or Mindfulness moves us out of our dualistic perspective into a wider, more inclusive position. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 20: The Problem with Perfectionism How we create more suffering by creating unrealistic expectations. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 19: Selfing is not the Enemy Identifying with self-defeating narratives is what creates Dukkha. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 15: Anatta...Stepping into a Wider Perspective We start to move in the direction of “Anatta” when we step out of our own personal view and into a wider view that includes our own AND others' needs and feelings. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 13: Selfing The Experience of Selfing - on and off the cushion. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 12: Overview of Non-Self: Anatta Correcting common misunderstandings of this core concept. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 08: Why aren't we Content More of the Time? Exploring the creative meditative move toward ease of well being. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 06: "Why?" is a Meditator's Question Things happen, plans change, life is unpredictable. What is uncomfortable? Attend kindly!!! What is comfortable? Notice & appreciate. FEEL for the ease amidst the dis-ease that is present!...the Sukha amidst the Dukkha. Play Video Play Video 2021 July 01: Turning Toward the Difficult with Open Arms Transmuting Dukkha into Sukha. Load More

Daily Reflection Sit Join us daily at 12:00 PM (Eastern) The Holding Environment: Overview The Holding Environment THE HOLDING ENVIRONMENT: OVERVIEW Play Video Play Video 36:28 2025 December 31: A Feeling of Home We create the Holding Environment, the foundation of practice. We create a feeling of home. This is how we set up the practice. Play Video Play Video 36:55 2025 December 29: The Holding Environment as Intimate Cultivation It is far more than a technique; it is a home base and a portal. Play Video Play Video 38:29 2025 December 17: Holding Our Vulnerability When we are caught in reactive states it is often because we don’t yet know how to be with something that is difficult. Play Video Play Video 38:17 2025 December 15: Being Realistic and Kind with our Intentions and Expectations of the Practice Working with phrases to help notice and slow down patterns of striving in our meditation practice. Play Video Play Video 38:39 2025 December 10: Taking Refuge in the 4 Brahmaviharas During Winter and the Holiday Season This time of the year offers us plenty of opportunities to practice the Brahmaviharas towards others and ourselves as we navigate the winter blues and the season when we may feel pressured to perform or be jolly. Let’s light the fire of our heart minds with wisdom and empathetic love. Play Video Play Video 38:01 2025 December 03: What We are Learning about Equanimity Here are some images and metaphors that help us to explore and experience what is perhaps the most challenging of the Brahma Viharas Play Video Play Video 37:46 2025 December 01: Equanimity Enriches and Deepens the Other Brahmaviharas It brings patience to metta, steadiness and acceptance to karuna and lessening of our selves to Mudita. Play Video Play Video 39:25 2025 June 25: Working with Fear Importance of relating to fear with wisdom and compassion. Play Video Play Video 38:39 2025 June 23: The Precepts Are An Important Part of the Holding Environment Explore how the cultivation of each precept supports us on and off of the cushion. Play Video Play Video 39:54 2025 June 18: Bringing the Elements of Nature Into the Holding Environment Exploring how the elements of earth, air, fire and water can nourish and support our practice Play Video Play Video 39:58 2025 June 16: Being Refuge To take refuge is to orient our heart/minds toward what supports us in the direction of well-being. What does it mean to embody refuge? Play Video Play Video 39:38 2025 June 11: Making Space for Mindfulness Practice at Home and while Traveling Oftentimes our formal meditation practice slows down during holidays and summer vacation for most of us lay people. However, we can create temporary holding environments wherever we are. And we can always remind ourselves to breathe, ground, settle and soothe while on the go. Extending boundless love to all (ourselves included ) is the ultimate holding environment. Play Video Play Video 38:52 2025 June 09: Combining Strength and Gentleness in our Holding Environment How to wisely cultivate a strong and gentle holding space to keep our Heart/Minds open and caring, integrating new learning and awareness. Play Video Play Video 37:15 2025 June 04: Spring Cleaning and the Outer Holding Environment On the importance of creating an inviting, calming physical space to more easily and warmly engage with meditation and mindfulness practices. Play Video Play Video 38:10 2025 June 02: As We Create Our Holding Environment We Become More Intimate with Ourselves Instead of rejecting the uncomfortable parts of our experience we create a sense of home for all of ourselves. This is a foundation for our practice. Load More

Continuing Education Bill and Susan Morgan are able to offer continuing education credits through the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy Psychologists Licensed Mental Health Counselors The Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Institute of Meditation and Psychotherapy maintains responsibility for the program and its content. This course offers 20 hours of credit. This program is Approved by the National Association of Social Workers (Approval # 886513225-2689) for 20 continuing education contact hours. The Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 6048. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. The Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs. This program is approved for 20 clock hours. It is also applicable for MaMHCA/MMCEP hours for re-licensure, in accordance with 262 CMR. This program carries 20 Contact Hours and meets the specifications of the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Nursing (244 CMR). Nurses of other states are welcome to contact their state boards for individual consideration. Learning Objectives At the end of this retreat, participants will be able to: Explain the importance of setting up the posture of one’s mindfulness meditation practice. Identify the essential elements of the holding environment. Demonstrate how to set up mindfulness practice in all four postures (sitting, standing, lying down, and walking). Utilize compassion practices to enhance empathic attunement. Utilize meditation techniques for working with unwholesome mind states. Utilize mindfulness and concentration practices in the service of deepening therapeutic presence. Social Workers Nurses