Sunday, August 14, 2005

A Gentle Day

I went to the Zen Center this morning for the first Sunday in a long while, and lead the newcomers' instruction which I hadn't done in an even longer while. I enjoy the enthusiasm and the inquisitiveness of newcomers. It was nice to be there.

Sitting, I came to a realization of just how self-inflicted all my complaining about Pascagoula has been. I suffer while on the road because I apparently choose to suffer while on the road. It will be interesting to see if I can maintain this spirit of acceptance the next time out there.

The rain held off long enough today (it didn't come down until around 8 p.m.) to allow me to finally do some raking. It was still too wet to blow the leaves, but instead I got a good solid two hours of sweaty samu (work practice) raking up the remnants of Hurricane Dennis, and the seemingly daily thunderstorms since then.

Just another day in paradise.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

ZEN SARCASM

1. Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead. Do not walk ahead of me, for I may not follow. Do not walk beside me either. Just pretty much leave me the hell alone.

2. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and leaky tire.

3. Its always darkest before dawn. So if you're going to steal your neighbor's newspaper, that's the time to do it.

5. Don't be irreplaceable. If you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.

7. Always remember that you're unique. Just like everyone else.

8. Never test the depth of the water with both feet.

9. If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car payments.

10. Be! fore you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

11. If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you.

12. Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.

13. If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

14. If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.

15. Some days you're the bug; some days you're the windshield.

16. Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.

17. Good judgment comes from bad experience, and a lot of that

18. The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket.

19. A closed mouth gathers no foot.

20. Duct tape is like 'The Force'. It has a light side and a dark side, and i! t holds the universe together.

21. There are two theories to ar guing with women. Neither one works.

22. Generally speaking, you aren't learning much when your lips are moving.

23. Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.

24. Never miss a good chance to shut up.

25. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night

GreenSmile said...

Shokai:
I didn't notice the complaining much. Your "today I get to be the guy who..." reframings were a useful demonstration of one way a Buddhist could deal with "unsatisfactoryness" [of which business travel seems to be an especially rich source]. Having been dispatched to Orlando for one and two week stints throughout the summer two years ago, I can appreciate the sense of bored alienation. It took me several trips to start enjoying all the non-work parts of a working trip. But then I hadn't your tools or training. Whenever we say "this is just not my place!" it is good for us to stop and think about who is saying that.