I flew to Paris from Dusseldorf the morning after the UNESCO event first to have an interview with Annabelle, the Swiss magazine that is similar to our Marie Claire. This was at the behest of L’Oreal.

I wanted very much to take advantage of my first-class round trip ticket provided generously by UNESCO to stop by Paris. I am going to be making a French film in Paris in June and I had hoped the cast and director could arrange their schedules to have an introductory dinner together—give us all fantasies and mental images of our playmates between now and June. This will be my first film in French in almost 50 years!! It is a challenge I am greatly looking forward to and, I know, Vadim (my first French husband), will be very much with me during the shooting. It is a tender, humorous, charming story about two couples and another dear friend with whom the two women had once been lovers who, because of the financial and physical challenges of age, decide to all move in together. (As many seniors are doing these days) A young sociologist who is doing research on the lives of older people is invited to live with them as well. I play an American who has lived all her life in France and is a Professor of Philosophy at the Sorbonne.

Before the dinner, the author and film director, Stéphane Robelin and producer, Christophe Bruncher came to my hotel for drinks. I was startled by how young they both are, Stéphane is 39 and Christophe is 35. Just about the age of my children. This will be Stéphane’s first film but he has an air of confidence and creative vision that made me feel I will be safe. I think it’s fair to say we felt very comfortable together by the time we left for dinner.

Christophe, our producer, and Stéphane, our writer/director

We drove up the hill to the top of Montmartre where the iconic church, the round-domed Sacre Coeur, sits imposingly.

Sacre Coeur

Sacre Coeur

The first person I saw when I entered the dining room was Geraldine Chaplin who, with her Chilean cinematographer husband had come in from Switzerland for the evening. I was so excited when I learned she was going to be in the film as I have always wanted to meet her. I was on stage with her father the night he made his triumphant return to Hollywood to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Oscars—the same night I won mine for “Klute.” I am really looking forward to getting to know Geraldine during the filming. I like the way she has done her life.

Daniel Bruhl, the new German star who appeared most recently in Quentin Tarrantino’s film with Brad Pitt, was able to fly in from Germany to be with us. Daniel will play the young researcher who moves in with us and with whom I develop a close friendship. I found Daniel’s presence sweet, attentive and soulful. Perfect for the role.

German star, Daniel Bruhl

Guy Bedos, the renown French actor, came to the dinner right from the theatre where he is performing a one-man show. The beloved French comedian, Pierre Richard, was there looking appropriately hirsute, sweet and bohemian to play the role of my husband. Only Claude Rich was not able to join us because he is touring in a play. This experienced, international cast brings heft and deep talent to our small, independent film. Most importantly, we could all tell that the seeds have been planted for real camaraderie and fun…and a lot of fine red wine.

Pierre Richard drove away in the rain on his motor bike and I went “home”“ for a few hours sleep before making the final trek back to Richard.

Guy Bedos and Pierre Richard...what handsome guys!

Pierre Richard, my 'husband'

I took a fancy to Geraldine's sneakers

There were two big buck on the road just as I was nearing my house. Always love to see the critters. I have gone out of my way to make my ranch a critter-friendly place.

It will take awhile to absorb all that I learned at the retreat, to process and make it useable for myself. It was very important to me on many levels…and to my work and for my book.

Entrance to the Zendo

Dan Siegel is the Director of the Mindsight Institute, co-Director of the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center and a practicing psychiatrist. I don’t think I’ve ever encountered anyone—especially one so young (he’s only 52)–with such vast and diverse training who has amassed such knowledge, learned to communicate it so accessibly and with such playfulness and generosity. It was a privilege listening to him. His sessions helped us understand how the brain works and how our experiences, our relationships affect the mind and even the neural structures of the brain. Critical connections in the brain and the possibility of integrating the right and left hemispheres in the brain can be enhanced or damaged by interpersonal relationships or trauma early in life. They can also be rebuilt and integrated at virtually any point along the life span including (and most interestingly) with mindfulness meditation of the kind we did for 3 hours every day. This was a profound lunge into the neuroscience behind mindful meditation.

Beate Stolte, the co-Abbott, Roshi Joan. Me ready to work, Natalie Goldberg and Dan Siegel

This morning, Dan, myself, Greg with the Metta Foundation and two other men sat on a porch and talked about mindfulness. As we sat there I became aware of an overwhelming sense of joy and deja vu, a sense that I had felt like this before but I couldn’t place it. A little while later as I was doing some physical therapy for my ankle I remembered: In the late 50s I drove to Big Sur in search of Henry Miller (he was away) but I ended up at the Big Sur Hot Springs Lodge which a few years later grew into the Esalen Institute. Dick Price was running the place as he did the Esalen Institute and we became very close. I had never met a man like him, devoted to the burgeoning human potential and mindfulness movement. He tried to teach me to meditate, introduced me to Alan Watts, read to me about Zen Buddhism. A man with his gentleness and consciousness was totally new to me and made a deep impression. I left Big Sur and went to France to make a movie and ended up living there but I never forgot Dick and what it felt like to be around him. Today, on that porch with those four men I rediscovered the feeling. And as the day progressed I realized that almost all the men at the retreat (and there were many men) had some of this same quality of presence, loving kindness, gentleness, respect…all searching to be of service on behalf of the wellbeing of others. A number of them were recent retirees, in their early fifties, who had decided to enter the chaplaincy. Many were therapists. To experience this in a group of women is something I have been lucky to know many times over, including at a women’s retreat last year at the Zen Center. But the male version was unexpected and reassuring.

Later in the day a woman from Holland named Irene Bakker, took me through a short version of her healing work. She does what is called “Big Mind” work. It was wonderful. To hard to explain and it’s too late at night but it will be very useful to me on the film I will do with Eve Ensler next June.

There was so much else but my mind is numb right now.

After breakfast waiting for our work assignments

Listening to Roshi Joan, Dan Siegel and Natalie Goldberg during a session.

Dan teaching about the brain

Inside the Zendo during a session.

View across the parking lot to the Upaya Zen Center

The Upaya kitchen. That’s Sandra McDonald on the right. She’s the lead cook and when there isn’t a retreat she cooks for me and my guests. She’s a saint!

See you next time.