A LETTER TO THE TEA AND ZEN COMMUNITY.

Beloved friends,

As many of you know, my life and work have been rooted in presence for many decades — in sitting with those who feel alone, in offering quiet companionship, in listening with the whole heart.

Much of this has unfolded through my volunteer work with the dying in local hospitals here in Seattle. It has been one of the deepest honors of my life, and it continues to shape everything shared through Tea & Zen and Meditation Sans Frontières.

Over the past months, I’ve been returning steadily to a much deeper level of my own healing — rebuilding strength, tending the body, and deepening my contemplative practice. As this foundation grows, I feel a gentle but unmistakable call to widen the circle of service once more.

And so I’m reaching out to you — this community of kindred spirits scattered across the world.

I am seeking new opportunities to offer quiet, compassionate presence in ways that align with my health, my training, and the work we hold here together. This might include:

Sitting with those in hospice or end-of-life care, offering companionship to individuals with no family support, being present with those experiencing loneliness, grief, or transition, providing contemplative presence in community, spiritual, or healing spaces.

The form is flexible. What matters is the heart behind it — the simple devotion to making sure no one walks alone.

If you know of organizations, hospices, hospitals, care homes, spiritual centers, or community programs that welcome volunteers in roles of gentle presence, I would be grateful to hear from you. Your suggestions, introductions, or connections could help guide the next chapter of this work.

You may reply directly, send a message, or share any contact information you feel might be helpful. I’ll follow each thread with care.

As always, thank you for being here — for listening, for sharing this path, and for holding the field of loving awareness with me. None of this work happens alone. It happens because we walk together, remembering ourselves into compassion.

I serve through Meditation Sans Frontières, a registered nonprofit charity, a sanctuary, and I offer my time and presence freely, without charge, as part of my devotion to alleviating suffering wherever I am able, donations are welcome.

With gratitude and a steady heart,

Nigel.... tel: +1 (206) 769-6725.....email: nigel@teaandzen.org

Meditation Sans Frontieres 501 (C) 3 Non Profit Registered Charity TAX EIN 81-3411835

P.S. These are some of the ways I serve both in person and online. I can offer quiet companionship to anyone who simply needs another presence in the room — someone to sit with them in stillness, to ease loneliness, to be with them in grief, or to offer calm presence during difficult transitions. This kind of companionship requires no agenda; it is the simple act of being with another human being in love and dignity.

I am available for deep listening sessions, where someone can speak freely and be fully heard without judgment or expectation. Many people carry stories or feelings that are too heavy to hold alone. I offer a safe, compassionate space for those emotions to soften and unfold.

I can provide gentle spiritual guidance rooted in contemplative wisdom, lived experience, and the devotion to presence. These sessions support individuals who seek clarity, grounding, meaning, or a deeper connection to the sacred — without dogma, pressure, or fixed ideas.

Through online meetings, I can guide individuals or small groups in meditation practices — breath awareness, loving-kindness, silence, and grounding. This can also include the Threefold Meditation I teach, offering a way for people to return to their center and settle into the quiet beneath the noise of the world.

For those nearing the end of life, or their families, I can offer end-of-life presence and support. Even through a screen, love travels. The steady companionship of another soul can bring peace, reassurance, and a sense of being held as someone approaches the threshold.

I am available for healing conversations around trauma, emotional overwhelm, nervous system regulation, spiritual awakening, and life transitions. These are not clinical or therapeutic sessions — they are spaces of compassion, remembrance, and shared humanity.

I can hold sessions of shared stillness, where two or more people sit in silence together. In these moments, the sacred often reveals itself — not through words, but through presence. This is one of the quietest and most profound offerings of all.

I can host small compassion circles or contemplative groups on Zoom, creating gentle spaces for meditation, sharing, and connection. These gatherings can offer community to those who feel isolated or spiritually hungry.

For those moving through sorrow, I can offer gentle grief support, helping them feel less alone as they navigate heartbreak, loss, or the weight of memory. We simply walk together in kindness.

And finally, I can hold sanctuary conversations — encounters that help someone return to their inner peace, to the wisdom that already lives within them, to the love that has never left. These are conversations that restore. They remind us of who we truly are.