Boston Flora

Tag: First Parish Church

  • Wednesday, May 16, 6:30 pm – Michael Pollan

    Harvard Book Store welcomes renowned writer Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food, for a discussion of his latest book, How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence. He will be joined in conversation by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ron Suskind. The event will take place at the First Parish Church, 1446 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge on Wednesday, May 16.

    When Michael Pollan set out to research how LSD and psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms) are being used to provide relief to people suffering from difficult-to-treat conditions such as depression, addiction, and anxiety, he did not intend to write what is undoubtedly his most personal book. But upon discovering how these remarkable substances are improving the lives not only of the mentally ill but also of healthy people coming to grips with the challenges of everyday life, he decided to explore the landscape of the mind in the first person as well as the third. Thus began a singular adventure into the experience of various altered states of consciousness, along with a dive deep into both the latest brain science and the thriving underground community of psychedelic therapists. Pollan sifts the historical record to separate the truth about these mysterious drugs from the myths that have surrounded them since the 1960s when a handful of psychedelic evangelists catalyzed a powerful backlash against what was then a promising field of research.

    A unique and elegant blend of science, memoir, travel writing, history, and medicine, How to Change Your Mind is a triumph of participatory journalism. By turns dazzling and edifying, it is the gripping account of a journey to an exciting and unexpected new frontier in our understanding of the mind, the self, and our place in the world. The true subject of Pollan’s “mental travelogue” is not just psychedelic drugs but also the eternal puzzle of human consciousness and how, in a world that offers us both struggle and beauty, we can do our best to be fully present and find meaning in our lives.

    Tickets, $28.75, includes a book, and will also be available at Harvard Book Store and over the phone at 617-661-1515. Unless the event is sold out, any remaining tickets will be on sale at the door of the venue when doors open. Tickets are non-refundable and non-returnable.

    Image result for How to Change Your Mind Michael Pollan

  • Saturday, November 14, 9:30 am – 2:30 pm – Ikenobo Ikebana

    The Ikenobo Ikebana Society of Boston invites you to learn the principles of Ikenobo on Saturday, November 14 from 9:30 am – 2:30 pm at the First Parish Church, 50 Church Street, Waltham, Massachusetts. Bring a shoka container (for example, see illustration), kenzan (pinholder), pebbles for the container if needed, scissors, small bucket, and a bag for trash. Bring your own lunch, refreshments will be served. Send check in the amount of $40 (fee includes floral material for two arrangements) by November 4, to Mimi Santini-Ritt (92 Grant Avenue, Newton MA 02459; moimoiritt@gmail.com), and please include your email and phone information.

  • Saturday, March 22, 9:30 am – 3:00 pm – Ikenobo Ikebana Workshop

    The Ikenobo Ikebana Chapter of Boston invites you to experience the Art of Japanese Flower Arranging in a one-day, hands-on workshop on Saturday, March 22, from 9:30 – 3 at Whitcomb Hall, First Parish Church, 50 Church Street, Waltham, Massachusetts.

    Learn about Ikenobo, an Ikebana school grounded in a finely developed aesthetic sensitivity born of the beauty of Japan’s natural environment. Ikenobo is unique to Japan, with its awareness that beauty lies not only in a flower in full bloom but in leaves, branches and grasses without flowers. This aesthetic began in 15th century Japan with the development of the Ikenobo school of flower arranging. Ikenobo arrangements extend from fixed form designs developed over centuries, to modern, contemporary styles that break with the original traditions but still retain an emphasis on good design: linear perfection, color harmony, space and form. This workshop will serve as an introduction to Ikenobo for beginner and advanced floral designers. You will make two arrangements that show the core rules of Ikenobo and how those rules have and can be adapted to contemporary designs.

    The morning lesson, Shoka Shofutai, will be taught by Mimi Santini-Ritt. Bring Shoka container, kenzan (pinholder), small pebbles or aquarium gravel to fill container, scissors, cloth for under scissors, bucket to hold flowers, and brown paper bag for trash. The Chapter will provide the floral materials. The afternoon session, Shoka Shimputai, will be led by Kathy Marble. Bring a Shoka container, another kenzan if possible, small pebbles or aquarium gravel to fill container, cloth for under scissors, and bucket. Best not to dismantle the first arrangement in order to create the second. Again, the Chapter will provide materials, but feel free to bring a special stem or two of your own. Arrangements will be corrected by the teachers. The cost is $40 for the day – coffee and tea will be provided, but please bring your own lunch.

    Reservations must be made no later than March 10 by sending a $40 check payable to IKENOBO IKEBANA SOCIETY OF BOSTON to Mimi Santini-Ritt, 92 Grant Avenue, Newton, MA 02459. Include your name and telephone number and reference the March 22 workshop. Flower material will be provided only for those who send their reservations and payment on time. Below is a picture of a Shoka container, for your reference. For more examples click HERE.

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  • Wednesday, March 10, 6:00 pm – The Weeping Goldsmith

    As part of the Globe Corner Bookstores Adventure Lecture Series, author W. John Kress will give an illustrated talk about and read from his latest book The Weeping Goldsmith: Discoveries in the Secret Land of Myanmar.

    The Weeping Goldsmith is a remarkable memoir of the over nine years that Dr. Kress spent exploring the wilderness of Myanmar in search of rare and beautiful plants, and how he came to appreciate Myanmar’s unique people and culture. The book contains past explorers’ archival photographs as well as 200 of the author’s color photographs of plants, people, landscapes, and temples. A 10-page portfolio includes photographs of 50 Myanmar plants, with botanical profiles and habitat detail.

    W. John Kress prefaces his book by explaining that it “is about the natural landscapes and people of Myanmar as interpreted through the eyes of a modern-day scientist and plant explorer…I surveyed the teak forests, bamboo thickets, timber plantations, rivers, and mangroves to document the plant diversity of this vast unknown land. Myanmar is one of the world’s great biodiversity hot spots in Asia, but because of its social isolation and reputation for political repression it has been off-limits and avoided by many biologists, conservationists, and environmentalists.”

    This event will take place Wednesday, March 10 at First Parish Church, 3 Church Street in Cambridge (Harvard Square), and is free and wheelchair accessible.  Reservations are recommended, and you may call 617-649-5700 x 21, or email events@gcb.com.

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  • Saturday, February 6, 5:00 – 9:00 pm – Earth Dinner

    The First Parish Church, 3 Church Street in Cambridge will host an Earth Dinner potluck on Saturday, February 6, from 5 – 9 pm, which will feature local foods, with a Slow Foods Boston representative, local farmers, and food producers discussing the local food movement.  For more information, log on to www.slowfoodboston.com, or call the church at 617-876-7772.

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  • Wednesday, November 11, 1:00 pm – Fun with Flowers

    The Old York Garden Club invites to public to attend its November meeting beginning at 1:00 pm on November 11 at the Fellowship Hall of the First Parish Church, 180 York Street in Old York, Maine.  Award winning master designer Mike Spanos will wow you with his unique approach to floral design.  His program is entitled “Fun with Flowers”.  He is a contributor and featured designer to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and is in the  midst of opening a fine arts gallery featuring works in various mediums by local artists.

    http://www.floral-art-arrangements.com/images/floral_laying_arrangement.jpg