Everything Old is New Again: Cycles of Change and Renewal at IOBT by Rev. Kathy Chatterton

The temple is definitely a place to see impermanence in action. I’ve attended services since I was a child—close to 75 years! I don’t remember too much about those early services at the community hall. Some of my memories include sitting on hard wooden folding chairs that creaked and clattered when we moved, hearing the sound of nenju beads hitting the wooden floor when one broke, chanting the Junirai and hearing “Ko ga cho rai mi da son” loudly chanted by the youngsters. (It was the only line that we recognized.) Of course, Dharma talks were given in Japanese so that made the squirming in the chairs even louder as we children tried to sit still and failed.

Photo: Don't those chair look comfortable....

 

The Sunday School (now Dharma School) children celebrated birthdays by bringing pennies equal to their age on the last Sunday of their birthday month to drop into the “birthday box”. The Sangha would sing “Happy birthday” in celebration.



Back in 1974, Rev. Marvin Harada and I put our heads together to brainstorm ways to get the Sangha more involved in the services. We came up with several ideas with two of them proving to be long-lasting. One idea was to have adult study class before service. Our rationale was the lack of materials available in English during the time that the Nisei/second-generation Japanese-Americans were attending the temple. We thought it would be meaningful to them to have classes in English, allowing them to learn more about the Buddhist teachings. In 1976, Rev. Kathy started the adult study classes which continued until her retirement from teaching in 2006. After 2006 we continued the classes when Rev. Kathy was home in Boise. Jeanne Ozawa provided delicious treats, and the choir had a time to practice. When Covid closed the temple down, it signaled the ending of the adult study classes.


Another long-lasting part of service that came out of our brainstorm was “Time to Share”. This was a time that a Sangha member could share a story, a poem, an experience at a Buddhist conference or workshop. Connie Shimojima kept this element going by recruiting “volunteers” for “Time to Share”. Sometimes someone would come forward, and other times Connie would have to track down a volunteer. (There were many times, when a Sangha member saw Connie coming their way, the individual in Connie’s crosshairs would find another direction to go.) “Time to Share” was something we looked forward to. Even Rev. Charles Hasegawa wanted the “Time to Share” portion to go on longer so he wouldn’t have to give a long Dharma Talk. We heard many inspiring and entertaining stories.

That’s the “old” so now we move to the “new”. If you’ve been attending service lately, you know that we’ve brought back some of our “old” service elements. (I think of it as upcycling the old to create the new.)  First of all, we’re returning to birthday Sunday on the last Sunday of the month. Young and old are invited to bring change equal to their age in years to put in the “birthday box”. Pennies may be getting harder to come by, but you may have a stash that you can dip into. You can also offer nickels, dimes, and even quarters!

The other “old” element we’re reviving is “Time to Share”. We have newcomers that may want to share their journey to Shin Buddhism and Idaho-Oregon Buddhist Temple. Sangha members have stories to share about family trips, reunions, or new adventures. You may have read an interesting article that you’d like to share. It doesn’t have to directly relate to Buddhism, but we all realize that Buddhism is part of our everyday life.

We haven’t completely brought back the adult study class, but we’re taking the last Sunday of the month to have a short service with chanting and Dharma sharing. Then we move to the basement for snacks and discussion. This gives Sangha members a chance to ask questions or share a perspective on services or the temple in general.

Rev. Anne and I are also working with some prospective Minister’s Assistants to help out with services. You may have heard them doing the Kansho to start service. Having these individuals help out enables Rev. Anne and me to take care of other tasks.

Everything changes, and nothing stays the same, but there are also cycles of change. We had some valuable service elements before Covid and the fire that were lost as we recovered and returned to normal. If you have memories of temple experiences that you’d like to share, feel free to talk to Rev. Anne, Rev. Kathy, or Mike Iseri. We’d like to hear your thoughts.


NAMO AMIDA BUTSU

Rev. Kathy


Location: Ontario, OR 97914, USA

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