Bio

My dual purposes in life are to practice for my own awakening, and to be a bridge between Tibetan Buddhism and the English-speaking world. In 2017, I was formally authorized to teach by Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche and given the title Loppon, a respectful word for teacher.

I have been practicing for about thirty years, including a formal three-year retreat and roughly three more years of shorter retreats. Before I taught the Dharma, I worked as a registered nurse and holistic family nurse practitioner, retiring in 2008. I studied at the University of Chicago and earned my nursing degrees in Minneapolis.

I lead the Mayum Mountain Foundation, a Buddhist religious non-profit. As part of that, I conduct group practices at my home/center in Calaveras County, California, and travel to give public talks around the U.S. when invited. I teach an international online sangha, with students across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Europe, Australia and New Zealand, for people interested in committed practice in my home lineage, the Dudjom Tersar tradition of the Nyingma School.

I write the Awakening Library, modern, reader-friendly books about Vajrayana Buddhist practice today, beginning with Clearing the Way to Awakening, which was featured in Tricycle's "What We're Reading," and Embodied Awakening. Each week I write about practice on my Substack, Present Clear Wakefulness, and I post walk-and-talk videos on YouTube. I also write the Cycle of the Sky novels for young adults; The Buddha of Lightning Peak won a Nautilus Book Award.

I live on the outskirts of a small town with three orange cats. I like to swim in the nearby lakes, visit with friends, and explore.