Retreats and Study

My first meditation course was a Vipassana retreat in 2003 in the tradition of Sayagi Ubahkin led by Goenkaji and his assistants. I have sat over seven 10 day courses and one 14 day course with Goenka in India. I have meditated with other teachers such as Bhante Gunaratana, Ajahn Punnadhammo, Ajahn Chandako, and Santikaro. And I’ve also done several retreats at: Ryumonji Zen Center, Kevala Retreat Center, and Gethsemane Monastery (former home of Thomas Merton).

I’ve also done multiple retreats and trainings with

Helen Palmer, one of the most influential leaders in bringing the Enneagram into our culture.   As part of the Enneagram Learning Community I have enjoyed the Enneagram Teacher Training.

The Long Version.  My saga.

I was born and raised in 1978 in Corpus Christi, Texas on the Gulf of Mexico. My early years were spent barefoot, swimming, fishing and watching my dad work on multiple VWs listening to Led Zeppelin while my mom was tending the pinto beans and cornbread. My parents were real DIY before that was a term. My dad fixed everything and made my wooden toys. My mom added her beautifying touch of painting & wood burning to his custom creations. I hung out with my grandparents in their gardens, embroidered with my granny, and went to Mexican flea markets with my grandpa to haggle with vendors. 

Looking back, I have had a questioning nature and spiritual thirst but did not know what it was.  My parents splitting apart when I was ten years old brought it to the shores of my inner reality. My mom struggled being single and ended up going to AA meetings for fellowship and trying to reorganize her priorities. We fell into poverty, homelessness, and bad living conditions. 

I was twelve and I went to AA meetings with my mom.  I  enjoyed listening to the stories of people who lived on the edge and somehow by the grace of God were brought back to sanity. I liked the principles to follow and a reconciliation of resentment, anger, & fear.

She took me to a young people’s AA group. I reluctantly went, but magically felt like I belonged, and helped me make sense of my existential dilemma. Most of the counselors took interest in me, took me surfing, talked about the meaning of life, taught me how to play guitar, journal, led outdoor wilderness groups, always with an emphasis on inner work. I was involved till I was 19, and many of the counselors are still good friends. Many times I reflect on the wisdom gained from the experiences.

In high school music became my focus.  I was in several bands and even had a booking and promoting business. After graduating, I wanted to explore making music for a living, so my drummer and I moved to Colorado. I lived there for 2 years, worked in a french restaurant and met my future wife in 1999, Hallie, who was visiting from Wisconsin. I moved back to Texas for a few years, surfed, played music, booked shows, and cooked in restaurants. 

I was presented with the opportunity to check out Wisconsin to see Hallie, so I moved. We fell in love, and got an apartment together. She worked at a Montessori school and I worked with people with disabilities. 

Hallie and I knew we wanted children from a very young age. In fact, we discussed it the first couple of days we met. We had our first son born at home in 2002. Alden was a real joy and a mellow baby.  However, I was struggling to find peace in my life.  I read philosophy and self help books to understand, then finally,  I came across a Vipassana meditation retreat in Rockford, IL. I signed up. In 10 days I found what I was looking to learn in school as a child. I read everything I could about meditation. I dedicated myself.  I practiced 2-3 hours daily, spent weekends volunteering, and served on the board. I have meditated daily ever since. 

In 2005 I moved my family to a small town to help start a coffee roastery with the goal to work less and meditate more. We lived in an area of organic, small family farms, and spent lots of time preparing healthy food. I built a big garden, a chicken coop, and made all kinds of wholesome beverages and fermented vegetables for my family. I took a trip to India for a month, and sat a 14 day course with Goenkaji. 

The next few years were spent trying different teachers' meditation methods, Thai Budisim, Zen and a year long self reflection course with Prudence Tippins. I learned about Enneagram in 2006 from my friend Santikaro and that began a whole new obsession.

In 2012 we welcomed the birth of our daughter Fern, and I started my beverage company, Wisco Pop! I squeezed one lime at a time to make the organic, wholesome soda. In 2013, we launched our successful Kickstarter, and were awarded grants to fund our bottling project. In 2014 I grew the business from 20 establishments to over 80, and began distributing the products throughout the Midwest and my youngest son, Otis, was born. My wife and I ran the company till 2021 and we grew sales each year.  It was a fun challenge. 

In 2016-2018 I went to explore the Enneagram further with Helen Palmer. Helen is an influential teacher of Enneagram & intuition studies and often credited as one of the true pioneers in bringing the Enneagram to the west.  She is author of such foundational and best-selling books as The Enneagram: Understanding Yourself and Others and The Enneagram in Love and Work and founder of the Enneagram Professional Training Program. She draws on cultivating awareness of the inner observer to bridge the psychology of the Enneagram and the spiritual path. 

I was drawn to learn from her wisdom, especially about intuition, as she was such a recognized and celebrated intuitive. 

I am fortunate to have spent time with Helen. Over the years she made the practice of intuition approachable and guided me towards building my confidence around a subtle skill that can be difficult to cultivate.

I  have also facilitated and marketed enneagram groups with Santikaro in 2018 to learn more from him and the enneagram teaching from his perspective which has a buddhist view to it. We did panel interviews and group discussions.

In 2019 my father became ill.  I went to be with him for his exit. We enjoyed each other's company and I witnessed him crossing the threshold. This prompted me to question if I was living the life I wanted most to live. I shared with my wife how much I missed the salty air, the sound of seagulls, the surf, and how important my meditation practice is to me. We decided to sell our business in 2021 and look for a place to live on the coast of Mexico with our two youngest children. We took 6 months in a truck camper exploring Baja’s Peninsula. We landed on the Pacific coast in a fishing village with great surf.