The Table Winnipeg The Table Winnipeg

Note: this is a longer blurb so read past the bottom of the intitial screen if you want all the info. This week is a regular gathering at VA Cafe (171 McDermot Ave) at 10:45 a.m., with a livestream and a podcast.

My dad was a subtle teacher. I can’t remember a single formal “son, let me tell how things really work” speech from him. He wasn’t perfect, of course. That’s a burden no human should carry, even after they are gone. So sometimes he lost his patience and leapfrogged right over teaching to just do what needed to be done. He didn’t announce his wisdom, one effect of which is that some of his lessons are still emerging for me. In the Talky Bit this Sunday, I will reflect on some of those “still coming into view” insights.

It’s almost officially summer (in case you care, in astrological terms it starts at 3:50 p.m. on Thursday, June 20th with a day that has over 8 hours more sunshine than the December solstice!) and that means longer summer evenings, literally greener pastures, music festivals and a less predictable schedule for all things “Table”. With that in mind, here are some items to note and look forward to over the coming months. As has been our summer custom, we will not be gathering on the long weekends. Details as follows:

June 23 – Judi is taking the Talky Bit. There’s a note at the end of this email about what she will be exploring.

June 30 – long weekend (no gathering)

July 7 – business as usual.

July 14 – Misty is taking the Talky Bit; info to come.

July 21 -Tim Penner is taking the Talky Bit. He’s been travelling (calling it “work”, but come on…), so maybe some tales of international intrigue.

July 28 – Tim Plett will be back from some time away (not working) , which might mean “what I did with my summer vacation” stories. No promises…

August 4 – long weekend (no gathering)

August 11 / 18 / 25 – regular gatherings with possible irregular (in a good way) features because…summer!

Sept 1 – long weekend (no gathering)

Here’s more from Judi on what she will be digging into on June 23rd.

I’ll be looking at the ideas in the book “The Coddling of the American Mind” by Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff and thinking of how these ideas might relate to our spiritual endeavours. The book talks about the negative changes to mental health in younger generations, especially as the authors were seeing this on college campuses. They hypothesize what might be the influences on these generations and show how cognitive behavioural therapy can make sense of these mental health problems. I am taking these observations into the realm of our faith, exploring how the ideas and beliefs we form could affect our well-being. (Judi)

Peace, everyone. I’ll see you on Sunday.

Tim Plett

Hey folks – after our field trip to the Pride Parade and Festival last week (we were there for the nicest part of the day!), we’re back at VA Cafe (171 McDermot Avenue / lower level) this week. Kids Table is on. Music is on.  Community Time is on. In the Talky Bit we’ll be exploring an idea that might actually be somewhat novel – the possibility of a construct that could meaningfully be called “spiritual intelligence”. Bring your inner armchair-psychologist and your curiosity with you.

We’ll start at 10:45 a.m. We’ll livestream here and podcast the Talky Bit here later in the week.

Coffee and goodies available upstairs at the VA Cafe. Do them (and us) the courtesy of purchasing your hot beverages at the venue. It helps keep the doors open for everyone.



I’m looking forward to seeing you on Sunday.

Peace,

Tim Plett

This is the podcast of what we did at The Table for Mothers Day. It’s not typical of the occasion because although it’s about the impact of mothers, it’s also about the ripple effects of change including the reconsideration of what we beleive about all sorts of foundational matters, such as the shape of the universe. Enjoy!

Peace,

Tim Plett

Hey all – I ‘ve heard from a couple of folks this morning who got the second and third emails for the week, but not the first one. My mom would have said something like, “What a shmoz”.  (I don’t know what that is exactly but it’s something like this.) So – here’s the first email but modified so it’s up to date.

The previous subject line was “Seeing the Light of Love, An AGM Recap, and More!”. Turns out the “more” was truer than I knew. Here we go…

I couldn’t resist the “and more”.   If that feels too much like an advertisement to you, just know that I did it with at least a modicum of irony. And also, there is more!




We’re mixing things up a bit this week because of some folks’ schedules. The first Sunday of the month would most often be an occasion without Kids Table or live music, but this week we’ll have both of those things. We will also have Community Time and a Talky Bit. The previously promoted Kids Bike Clinic has had to be postponed at the last minute because Horst woke up this morning (Saturday) with a flu bug. Stay tuned.

A quick update for those not able to attend our AGM last week. You missed a most excellent potluck, and also a report complete with a “donut chart”. Kinda like a pie chart, but more hole-ey. (Ack…not my best work, but maybe still a wee bit funny??) The gist of the financial part of the AGM could be summed up as follows:


We met all our obligations in 2023. That’s no small matter for a numerically small community, and it points to a couple of things worth mentioning. The first is that we continue to operate a very lean and focused organization. We’re doing what we say we’re here to do – making room for explorers to gather to dig into what we believe, and we’re doing it without any padding and very little room for error.
The second is that we didn’t generate enough donation income from within the in-person community to pull that off. In particular, a couple of very kind donors that know us well came through with generous gifts. I am (and I would be quick to say, we should all be) grateful for each and every gift that helps us to carry on, both the regular and exceptional. My thanks also to the owners of VA Cafe, who continue to host us out of the goodness of their hearts. Extraordinary!
We usually see a slump in giving in the summer months. This year we appear to be hitting that slump earlier than usual. If you have the capacity to respond to that need financially, please do. You can find information about ways to do that here. Donations over $10 will receive a tax deductible receipt at year end.

If you support the life of this community in other ways, my thanks to you as well.

The community is what the community makes, and I’m grateful to each person who gives The Table the unique shape that it has.




In the Talky Bit this week we’ll be exploring the intersection of love in general and some of our ideas about divine love. If you want to ruminate in advance, you could muse on this:

“A culture that is dead to love can only be resurrected by a spiritual awakening.” (bell hooks)



 


We will livestream and podcast in the usual places.

Hey folks – it’s time to get your winter self out from under the covers to be with people! Or, if that’s not your story, it’s another opportunity to get together to explore what we believe. Either way, it would be lovely to see you at VA Cafe this Sunday at 10:45 a.m.  We will have a chance to share a slice of our lives with one another, to sit in silence for a bit, to vibrate together by making music, and to consider why it can sometimes be difficult to be compassionate with ourselves. Also, Kids Table is on this Sunday as well as the two following Sundays.

For those not able to join us in person, we will livestream here and podcast the Talky Bit here. Please don’t hesitate to reach out via our Facebook page if you have something for Community Time but can’t be there to share it. We will hold space for you and what is going on in your life, whether it’s good, bad or otherwise.

I’ll see you on Sunday.

Peace,

Tim Plett

Hey folks – this coming Sunday is, of course, Easter. Although ancient liturgical calendars don’t mention this fact, it’s also an alt.Sunday. So, because in the unique orbit of The Table an alt.Sunday means anything could happen, we’re going to have some breathing, some Community Time, a short Talky Bit and a long feast and hangout time. A very “Table Easter”, it seems to me. I won’t say more right now about the Talky Bit – see the title above for the general gist. It might include a picture of a tree, but not “that” tree, if you know what I mean. More details on the feast as follows:


First, and most, of all – come with or without a food item. Honestly, we’ve been doing this for over a decade and never once have we not had enough. That said, a couple of details about food items as follows:
There is no oven at this location, but there are lots of plugins, so if you have an item that needs to be kept hot bring it in something that can be plugged in.
The Table will provide the paper service, disposable cutlery (we do wash it and reuse it, fyi) and juice.

We will meet at our usual time and place (10:45 a.m., V.A. Cafe). We will stream the first part of the gathering but not the potluck (because that just feels unkind to people that can’t join the feast). We will podcast the Talky Bit the following week.

I’ll see you on Sunday!

Peace,

Tim Plett