Come to our presentations at LCS Gardens

Open Circle provides a supportive environment to gather for social interaction and to improve our understanding of ourselves, our community and our world.

Upcoming

October 20, presentation

Tales from the Tomb

Many people are not aware that more than 500 foreign residents have been laid to rest in Chapala’s Municipal Cemetery since 1955. Among them are many former leaders of the expatriate community, including 14 former LCS presidents, benefactor Ed Wilkes whose Ajijic home now houses the Wilkes Education Center, a number of outstanding artists, dozens of military veterans, and the first victim of Chapala’s notorious Black Widow.

Dale will share some of their stories and talk about the history of the foreign sections of the cemetery and a current effort spearheaded by American Legion Post 7 to revitalize the grounds.

October 27, 2024
How Rituals Can Serve to Heal Grief

Loretta Downs

November 3, 2024
Learning Love

Greg Kemp

November 10, 2024
"Deaf Cat in the Rain" and other stories

Michael Hogan

If You Missed an In-person Presentation, You Can Still Enjoy It Online

"Thank You for Your Service"

Tran N. Dang, J.D., is the founder and executive director of The Rhizome Center for Migrants, a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing post-deportation legal, advocacy, and reintegration support to the returned and deported community and their families in Mexico.

Tran is a recognized expert and leading voice on the mid- to long-term consequences of U.S. immigration enforcement policies on the U.S.-Mexico border region, with particular emphasis on their larger impact on mixed-status families, labor migrants, and immigrant veterans.

Past Presentations

About Open Circle

For nearly 30 years, the Lake Chapala area has been honored to host Mexico’s longest-standing weekly English language lecture series. Begun in 1995 by volunteers under the title of “New Dimensions” and initially focused on various aspects of spirituality, in 2001 the program became “Open Circle” and was hosted in homes and restaurants. The Lake Chapala Society became Open Circle Ajijic’s permanent home in the early 2000’s and (since 20021) has become an official Lake Chapala Society program.

 

Mission Statement: 

“Open Circle Ajijic provides a supportive environment to gather for social interaction and to improve our understanding of ourselves, our community, and our world. Presentations span a wide range of intellectual, cultural, physical, and spiritual topics. We do not necessarily agree with the ideas and philosophies of our presenters. We encourage you to listen with an open mind and form your own opinions.”

 

Tales from the Tomb
Dale Hoyt Palfrey - October 20, 2024

Many people are not aware that more than 500 foreign residents have been laid to rest in Chapala’s Municipal Cemetery since 1955. Among them are many former leaders of the expatriate community, including 14 former LCS presidents, benefactor Ed Wilkes whose Ajijic home now houses the Wilkes Education Center, a number of outstanding artists, dozens of military veterans, and the first victim of Chapala’s notorious Black Widow.
Dale will share some of their stories and talk about the history of the foreign sections of the cemetery and a current effort spearheaded by American Legion Post 7 to revitalize the grounds.

Dale has been a permanent resident of the Lake Chapala area for more than 50 years. She is well-known as chief local correspondent for The Guadalajara Reporter.

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How Rituals Can Serve to Heal Grief
Loretta Downs - October 27, 2024

We kick off a special week of commeration and celebration at LCS, highlighting Mexico’s most beloved annual ritual, Dia de Muertos. We all lose important parts of our lives from meaningful possessions to abilities, identities, dreams, hopes, and most painfully, the people and animal companions we love. The natural response to loss is a seven-step process a person goes through that can culminate in healing the wound created by a loss.

Loretta will explain grief as an active and dynamic process that continues throughout life. She will explore rituals as vehicles for creating peaceful transitions as we travel through the challenging stages of grief.

Loretta Downs is a death-positive advocate and educator who has been serving death for 40 years. She is an uplifting and inspiring speaker who is passionate about improving the end-of-life experience. Her perspective on the end of life is informed by years of being a companion to AIDS patients, friends, family, hospice and hospital patients, nursing home residents, death doula clients, and their loved ones.

She has published numerous articles, been quoted in articles and books, and interviewed for videos, radio shows, and podcasts. She teaches Advance Care Planning classes at LCS.

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Learning Love
Greg Kemp - November 3, 2024

Is it possible to learn to love? Certainly important to ourselves, our community, and our world.
I will outline the 5 levels of love; the Spectrum of Love and its opposites; read mystical poetry from Rumi and Hafiz; discuss falling in love, heartbreak, and grief; yearning for an unknown better; and the practical application of love in the world.

I have resided in Ajijic with my wife, Alicia, since November of 2023 and before that we lived in the central highlands of Guatemala for 13 years. We co-founded Project Somos (www.projectsomos.org) It was a project that responded to the question, “what would Love do?” to assist indigenous children and families living in dire poverty.
In my youth, I was trained in Kundalini Yoga, became a Mevlevi Dervish (whirling dervish), and later a pastor of the Essentialist Church of Christ. I have been an active student of Love for most of my life. My only religion is Love.

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"Deaf Cat in the Rain" and other stories
Michael Hogan - November 10, 2024

A sometimes humorous and sometimes poignant series of stories presented by well-known author illuminating some of the missteps and joys of living and working in Mexico from his latest book The Michael Hogan Reader.

Michael Hogan is an historian, author and poet who has lived in Mexico for 35 years. He has written thirty books including The Irish Soldiers of Mexico which was the basis for an MGM movie. His short stories and essays have appeared in numerous magazines from the Paris Review and Harvard Review to the Smithsonian. Penguin Books includes his work in the college text, 100 Great Essays.

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