There is something big about Tahoe. It’s deep and powerful. We feel it, the sense of wonder, peace and hope inspired by a clear, blue sky reflected in the lake. It’s good and pure. It’s greater than we are. It’s about how trees breathe and sunlight streams through snow-laden clouds. We feel something more, deeper, real and lasting. It’s, dare I say, spiritual?
This isn’t about religion; it’s about our spiritual nature.
It’s about something that connects us to each other. I just got off the phone with Nancy, a woman who told me that she and her husband, Mike, had had marital problems. ‘We did not have a common ground on spirituality,’ she said. In fact, she went on to tell me that he was against church, God and organized religion. She on the other hand had ‘always been connected to God – very certain that the concept of God was real.’ Her spirituality was an important part of her life and she couldn’t talk about it with him.
When For Goodness Sake (FGS), the non-profit, non-denominational, spirituality center opened their doors in Truckee last fall, Mike became willing to test the waters of spirituality. In the comfortable, non-judgmental environment, he felt safe to do so. His opening began when he attended a lecture called ‘God at the Speed of Light,’ given by Dr. T. Lee Baumann. The medical doctor and physicist was ‘once a religious skeptic…he now writes books defending spirituality based upon the link between worldwide descriptions of God and the proven scientific nature of physical light.’ (Quote taken from www.writers.net/writers/16971). Mike was excited by what he heard and continued his intellectual exploration of spirituality.
The couple returned to FGS for more of what Nancy describes as, ‘very high caliber lectures.’ They began taking a meditation class together on Monday evenings, and have found ways to integrate spirituality into their home life in a way that works for each of them and for their family. They do so in the name of love. Nancy and Mike have credited For Goodness Sake with saving their marriage.
Joe, a retired businessman who has lived in many different places said it is ‘extraordinarily unique for a community to have a facility like this available with such a high quality of programs, for free.’ He added his appreciation that ‘For Goodness Sake is about bringing the community together.’ He is also impressed with ‘the quality of the Truckee Community – that there are so many people committed to the evolution of their own spirit of consciousness.’
His wife, Bonnie, said ‘It is refreshing to have an embracing, warm and welcoming center with no agenda. You will never hear any of the staff proselytizing. They are such open, generous and wonderful people who encourage you to explore your own personal guidance.’
For Goodness Sake is a gift to this community. Its founders became aware of more and more people ‘who are searching for something,’ said Andy Hill, Director of FGS. ‘One in six people in the U.S. are looking for something more, but don’t know what it is. And, they think they’re the only ones.’ Many people are uncomfortable in churches and with organized religion, so they are looking for whatever it may be in bookstores and online. They don’t know where to go to be with others who are also looking for their spiritual paths. There are many of us who want to believe but we don’t want to be told how to do it. ‘The founders of For Goodness sake recognize the benefits of living a spiritual life so they decided to provide a comfortable environment and diverse resources for all who seek a deeper understanding of spirituality in an open welcoming atmosphere,’ Andy said.
In a time of such unrest and uncertainty it is a blessing to have a place to go to search for a sense of peace, hope, and goodness. So many of us are trying to control or to fix it with stuff; better jobs, pints of ice cream, tattoos, adrenaline or new cars. We put the cart before the horse thinking when I get this thing, I’ll feel (be) better. There is nothing wrong with wanting or having things, it’s just that we will be more satisfied with what we have when we fill that spiritual void inside of us first. Or, we turn to drugs and alcohol to escape when what we really want, what we are really searching for, is to connect – to ourselves, to our spiritual natures and to others who are also searching for that something more.
For Goodness Sake is also sharing Good News through their website, goodnesssake.org. They promote a positive point of view in line with the focus of the hit movie, ‘The Secret’ – that our thinking is creating our world and that we need to take the time and effort to change our thinking to transform what we experience. If you haven’t seen or heard about ‘The Secret,’ I whole-heartedly suggest that you borrow or buy a copy of the DVD from FGS or join them on a Thursday Evening for The Secret Activity Support Group. Also, they show movies on Friday nights a couple of times a month, with frequent screenings of The Secret. The movie nights are completed with complementary popcorn and a discussion of the film afterwards.
FGS has a great variety of world-class guest speakers, from Tibetan Buddhist monks to lecturers from the Institute of Noetic (rational thought) Sciences. They offer many different programs: A Course in Miracles, Attitudinal Healing, and Wisdom Circles that focus on various readings. They have a cheerful children’s center with books and videos and story time. For Goodness Sake is a lending library and book store with books and videos in Spanish and English on many different beliefs and concepts you may be interested in exploring. The newly re-modeled Victorian building in old town Truckee is decorated with the warm colors of saffron and paprika and a mix of contemporary and rustic furnishings. Plush leather sofas invite one to get comfortable and curl up with a good book. They have several tables for study groups and gatherings and are open to the community for ‘activities that illuminate our spiritual nature.’
On June 15, Immaculee Ilibagiza will be coming to speak about how she found God. Her autobiography ‘Left to Tell; Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust’ is available at FGS. You can also learn about this incredibly courageous woman’s struggle on her website lefttotell.com.
I could go on and on about For Goodness Sake and all they have to offer, but I hope that you’ll venture out on your own and learn for yourself.
For Goodness Sake is located at 10157 Donner Pass Road in Historic Truckee. Visit their website for a list of upcoming and ongoing events at goodnesssake.org. Phone is 530-550-8981.
