BRINGING PEACE TO
THE WORKPLACE
Dr. Mylinh is a regular member of Peace Point Meditation and has held a total of three outreach programs in an interesting location: her personal optometry office. Here we ask Dr. Mylinh about what inspired her to hold an outreach program and about the unique pull of meditation as a practice that can be shared with others.
PPM: So we know you’re a bit new to meditation, yet you’ve been on fire with this outreach program, sort of like “meditation parties,” and you were able to set three already within almost three months. What is it about meditation that got you interested in the first place?
Dr. Mylinh: Yes I think I’ve been here about...actually around this time last year. Actually it’s a funny story, because this time last year, since my birthday is this month, I invited my daughter to come to this meditation class with me as a birthday present. I’ve been meaning to come for a while and wanted to introduce her to meditation since she has been stressed about school and all, but I was able to use my birthday as an opportunity to go here. During that time, I was going through some personal stress and I needed a way to manage that stress and negative energy, I found that I was easily irritable and sometimes would act in a way that I didn’t think someone like me should act! By practicing meditation, I’ve found that being in the moment helps me catch myself when I’m about to act in that way, so those instances have lessened. I found out about this place through one of my friends, and I’ve been going here ever since…
PPM: We think having a meditation session in an optometry office is beautiful and unheard of and yet somehow you still feel at home in such a setting. So how did this idea of having these kalayanamitra houses come to you? Who supported you in your endeavors? (Kalayanamitra is a pali word for “good friend,” that is a meditation session in company of good friends, where the person who’s hosting the session invites friends, family, and relatives.)
Dr: Mylinh: Kathy, Diem, and Lisa (Peace Point Meditation members) were actually the ones who supported me when I had this thought. I was just thinking, “well because I could host one in my house,” but because it was getting colder and I didn’t think my house was ready for guests yet, I had to find another potential place to host a meditation session. Actually, I used my office space a lot just for friends and family who needed a space. My nephew needed a place to hold a conference and asked if he could use my office. It was very easy, all I had to do was clear the space and suddenly it works.
PPM: Yes, your office is refreshing and feels like, yes, we could come here and meditate.
Dr. Mylinh: Yes, people come in and tell me that they just feel, “ahhh” in my office. My family member goes, “Mylinh, I just feel ‘ahh’ when I come here!” Actually, I used this place to host a women’s meeting session and offered my office space, so it’s been used as more than just an optometry office.
PPM: So, we see there’s a few people that are recurring members at your meditation session, yet there’s also so many more who come who are totally new to meditation, about 20 people each session. How are you able to pull such an interesting mix of people to enjoy meditation?
Dr. Mylinh: I grew up in a big family, I mean 10 brothers and sisters. If we wanted to get together, we could pull a party in a snap, and just like that, 20 people would show up for something as simple as having a meal together. And for us, 20 isn’t that much! So I’m always just inviting people. There are people who I didn’t expect to show up, such as my friend who drove four hours from Las Vegas and had to sleep in a desert on the way home. He’s a practitioner of meditation, so I invited him just to open the opportunity for him, and he came! Most of them are my patients, but my wholesaler attended a session and afterwards told me to set a date for my event for the rest of the year so he can make room for this in his calendar.
PPM: So, what can you tell people who are thinking about hosting an outreach session but are hesitant and need some encouragement?
Dr. Mylinh: Hmm….just do it! Send an invite to anyone and everyone and see who comes. It’s well worth it and very fun.