Hearing the Bell
Listen, listen,
this wonderful sound
brings me back
to my true self.

Reading: A Harvest of Gratitude
Leader: Once more the fields have ripened to harvest, and the fruitful earth has fulfilled the promise of Spring.

All: The work of those who labor has been rewarded. They have sown and reaped, planted and gathered.

Leader: How rich and beautiful is the bounty gathered: The golden grain and clustered corn, the grapes of purple and green,

All: The crimson apples and yellow pears, and all the colors of orchard and garden and field.

Leader: Season follows after season, after winter the spring, after summer the harvest-laden autumn.

All: From bud to blossom, from flower to fruit, from seed to bud again, the beauty of earth unfolds.

Leader: From the harvest of the soil we are given occasion to garner a harvest of the heart and mind:

All: A harvest of resolve to be careful stewards of all life’s gifts and opportunities.

Leader: A harvest of reverence for the wondrous power and life at work in things that grow, and in our spirit within.

All: A harvest of gratitude for every good which we enjoy, and of fellowship for all who are sustained by earth’s beauty.
—Percival Chubb (adapted)

Dharma talk by Rev. Koyo Kubose
Right Effort: The Fruits of Our Labor

Reading

Community of sangha,
in which we share and find strength
and common purpose,
we turn our minds and hearts toward one another
seeking to bring into our circle of concern
all who need our love and support:
those who are ill,
those who are in pain, either in body or in spirit,
those who are lonely, those who have been wronged.
We are part of a web of life that makes us one with all humanity,
one with the universe.
We are grateful for the miracle of consciousness that we share,
the consciousness that gives us the power
to remember, to love, to care.
—Frederick E. Gillis (adapted)

Bell Presentation of the Heartland Sangha’s Nourishment Offering

At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.
—Albert Schweitzer

Metta Sutta Boundless Goodwill

All: Let us cultivate boundless goodwill.

Let none deceive another, or despise any being in any state.

Let none in anger or ill-will wish another harm.

Even as a mother watches over her child, so with boundless mind should one cherish all living beings,

Radiating friendliness over the whole world,

Above, below, and all around, without limit.

Closing
Go in peace. Live simply, gently, and
at home in yourselves.
Act justly. Speak justly.
Remember the depth of your own compassion.
Be present, be in the moment and aware of your inner peace.

Do not desire to be wealthier than your peers
and stint not your hand of charity.
Understand the reality of life is Oneness.
Speak the truth, or speak not.
Take care of yourselves,
for you are a good gift.

Nurture peace for all people in the world,
beginning with yourselves, and go with the dream of that peace alive in your heart.
—Mark L. Belletini (adapted)

Awakening Bell (THREE TIMES)