South Bay InsightLA
Calendar
January Contemplation
"Aspiration connects us with a sense of what is possible. It is a key that opens the door to healing, spiritual cultivation, and social transformation. Without aspiration - without the sense that things can be different - we don't bring forth the energy required for change... Aspiration also can be more of a feeling than a specific goal - an uplifting glimmer that emerges when we feel moved, touched, or inspired...Other times, aspiration is forged in the crucible of pain... Rather than compounding pain into suffering, you can aspire to heal and grow. Aspiration is the seed of the lotus that grows in the muck of our suffering.
Ordinary hope places our fulfillment and well-being in an imagined future, beyond our control. Aspiration is a kind of practical hope that opens the heart to possibility…The author and educator Patrick Overton expresses this receptive aspect of aspiration beautifully in his poem:
Faith
When you walk to the edge of all the light you have
and take that first step into the darkness of the unknown,
you must believe that one of two things will happen -
There will be something solid for you to stand upon,
Or, you will be taught how to fly.
Sometimes connecting with our aspiration just means taking the next step and trusting that the ground will appear beneath us or that we will discover new resources we didn't know we had... As Paulo Freire famously wrote, 'We make the road by walking.' In the face of despair and hopelessness, if we take one step at a time and remain open to life, we will hear the call of our aspiration."
Oren Jay Sofer in Your Heart Was Made for This: Contemplative Practices for Meeting a World in Crisis with Courage, Integrity, and Love
Meditation Schedule
Our online and on location meeting information can be found below.
Please subscribe to our email list to receive important updates about our meditation schedule.
January 2026
Tuesday Evening Meditation Practice Group - InsightLA Sitting Group
January 6, 7:30 - 9:00 pm
Teacher: Maureen Shannon-Chapple
Topic: Celebrate the New Year with our Annual Poetry Reading
Register: https://insightla.org/event/lmu-practice-group-3/2026-01-13-19-30/registration/
Thursday Morning Meditation Practice Group
January 8, 9:00 - 9:45 am
Teacher: Annette Lombardi
Topic: Mindfulness Meditation
Zoom Link: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/926255490?pwd=NVBEUUdVYVhvM0ozQmlrckRqU29oUT09
​Dial in: (669) 900-6833 & Meeting ID: 926 255 490, Password: 628733
Tuesday Evening Meditation Practice Group - InsightLA Sitting Group
January 13, 7:30 - 9:00 pm
Teacher: Maureen Shannon-Chapple
Topic: TBA
Register: https://insightla.org/event/lmu-practice-group-3/2026-01-13-19-30/registration/
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Thursday Morning Meditation Practice Group
January 15, 9:00 - 9:45 am
Teacher: Annette Lombardi
Topic: "Mindfulness Meditation"
Zoom Link: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/926255490?pwd=NVBEUUdVYVhvM0ozQmlrckRqU29oUT09
​Dial in: (669) 900-6833 & Meeting ID: 926 255 490, Password: 628733
Sunday Morning Practice Group
January 18, 10:00 - 11:30 am
The Magic and Mystery of the Dharma with Peggy Kersulis and Annette Lombardi
Guest Speaker - Mary Cosimano on Psychedelics & Spirituality: A Clinical Perspective
Zoom Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85621938629
Dial In: (669) 900-6833 Meeting ID 856 2193 8629
Tuesday Evening Meditation Practice Group - InsightLA Sitting Group
January 20, 7:30 - 9:00 pm
Teacher: Maureen Shannon-Chapple
Topic: TBA
Register: https://insightla.org/event/lmu-practice-group-3/2026-01-13-19-30/registration/
Thursday Morning Meditation Practice Group
January 22, 9:00 - 9:45 am
Teacher: Annette Lombardi
Topic: "Mindfulness Meditation"
Zoom Link: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/926255490?pwd=NVBEUUdVYVhvM0ozQmlrckRqU29oUT09
​Dial in: (669) 900-6833 & Meeting ID: 926 255 490, Password: 628733
Tuesday Evening Meditation Practice Group - InsightLA Sitting Group
January 27, 7:30 - 9:00
Teacher: Maureen Shannon-Chapple
Topic: TBA
Register: https://insightla.org/event/lmu-practice-group-3/2026-01-13-19-30/registration/
Thursday Morning Meditation Practice Group
January 29, 9:00 - 9:45
Teacher: Annette Lombardi
Topic: Mindfulness Meditation
Zoom Link: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/926255490?pwd=NVBEUUdVYVhvM0ozQmlrckRqU29oUT09
​Dial in: (669) 900-6833 & Meeting ID: 926 255 490, Password: 628733