Giving and the Practice of Generosity by Rev. Sosan Theresa Flynn

Ancestral Herbalism and Gathas of Nature by Joanna Hill and Rev. Rin LaJoy

Date: 2026/05/24. Speakers: Joanna Hill and Rev. Dr. Rin LaJoy. At Clouds in Water Zen Center. Joanna Hill is from the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe in Minnesota. My clan is the Bullhead (Wawaazisii) which is one of the five original clans of the Anishinaabe People. The Wawaazisii clan people are mediators, teachers, scholars and healers. My Ojibwe name is Kiizhibaayaanimadookwe, which means Whirlwind Woman. I am an Indigenous Herbalist. I use and practice my ancestral wisdom when working with the plants. I've had lifelong relationships with plants but when I started to learn more deeply about my cultural teachings and ceremonies this opened a door for me and deepened my relationships with the plants. I am deeply grateful for my elders and spiritual teachers. Rin LaJoy (he/him), PhD is a plant evolutionary biologist by training and received his doctorate degree from the University of Minnesota in 2014. His dissertation research focused on how long-lived trees respond to changes in their environment to predict how they will respond in the short-term and evolutionarily to climate change. His research primarily focused on tropical ecology, and he had the privilege to spend half of his graduate career living and working in Costa Rica and Honduras. His academic interest now revolves around how to effectively teach biology in a way that is meaningful, accessible, and relevant in multicultural college classrooms. Rin is a priest-in-training at Clouds in Water and is most interested in how Buddhist teachings can be used to unravel systems of harm and oppression. Rev. LaJoy referred to the following readings in his talk: The Way of the Bodhisattva [https://www.shambhala.com/the-way-of-the-bodhisattva-1660.html?srsltid=AfmBOorMy5BxKdr1H8rXIH3mgzPRqzsxIkbaHaGtN0l940fBhZ_0z2sX] and Dhammapada [https://www.shambhala.com/dhammapada-480.html?srsltid=AfmBOoqnAiXadhQEZHjcTljrklMiojAuIMnkSc6ToZoZce5XxLGyU7L0] .

Practicing In The Moment With The Ingredients Of Our Lives: Talk For Buddha's Birthday by Rev. Sosan Flynn

Date: 2026/05/17. Speaker: Guiding Teacher Sosan Theresa Flynn. Clouds in Water Zen Center. Sōsan has studied and practiced Sōto Zen Buddhism since 1992, receiving Dharma transmission (full teaching authority) from Joen Snyder O’Neal in 2012. Sōsan's areas of teaching include body awareness in Zen, loving-kindness practices, and the intersection of Buddhist practice and racial justice. She has a master’s degree in Counseling Psychology and has worked in both community mental health and staff training.

The Five Aggregates and a Wasp by Rev. Fukutoku Ann Morishita

Date: 2026/05/10. Speaker: Rev. Fukutoku Ann Morishita. At Clouds in Water Zen Center. Fukutoku is a Sōto Zen priest in training at Clouds in Water Zen Center. She has practiced Soto Zen Buddhism for the past 15 years. In May of 2021, Fukutoku took home leaving vows with Rev. Sojun, Diane Martin of Udumbara Sangha in IL. Sojun was transmitted by Rev. Sekijun Karen Sunna. In 2022, Fukutoku began Zen training with Rev. MyoOn, Susan Hagler. Fukutoku served the general community as a hospice nurse for the past 11 years. Prior to studying Buddhism, Fukutoku was a member of the Evanston, IL, Quaker Friends' Meeting for ten years.

Buddhist Teachings : A Prescription for Healing by Rev. MyoOn Susan Hagler

Date: 2026/05/03. Speaker: Rev. MyoOn Susan Hagler. At Clouds in Water Zen Center. MyoOn began her Zen practice in 1980 at Minnesota Zen Meditation Center (MZMC). She was ordained in 2003 by Tim Burkett and received Dharma transmission from Dokai Georgesen in 2018. She has had the opportunity to practice at all the MN Zen centers as well as Green Gulch in CA, with Hokyoji Zen Practice Community being her primary place of practice from 2010-2019. MyoOn joined the teacher-ryo at Clouds in early 2019 as a transmitted teacher. For MyoOn, life’s experiences and the people she has crossed paths with have been her greatest teachers.

Giving and the Practice of Generosity by Rev. Sosan Theresa Flynn

Date: 2026/04/26. Speaker: Guiding Teacher Sosan Theresa Flynn. At Clouds in Water Zen Center. Sōsan has studied and practiced Sōtō Zen Buddhism since 1992, receiving Dharma transmission (full teaching authority) from Joen Snyder O’Neal in 2012. Sōsan's areas of teaching include body awareness in Zen, loving-kindness practices, and the intersection of Buddhist practice and racial justice. Sōsan was raised Catholic and practiced Catholicism for many years before embracing Buddhism as her primary religion. She has a master’s degree in Counseling Psychology and has worked in both community mental health and staff training.