Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Special bows for today:
·
Please offer bows of well-being for Lilith
Armitage, Shannon Bergman’s daughter, who is having knee surgery today
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Last night we entered a new world, a place where ‘shelter’ took on
a whole new meaning when we were asked by local health authorities to ‘shelter
in place’. Normally this is an
emergency category designed to protect us from the danger of toxic air from gas
leaks or the smoke from terrible fires—not because of a concern that the very
‘normal’ air we are sharing might be harmful to our health. Naturally, this
unseen enemy makes us all a bit nervous to be with each other, to occasionally cough
or sneeze, or to even do that most basic of human activities: breathe. The government
has told us to ‘shelter in place’ and we are actually relieved to go to that
place where we feel the safest: home.
In the famous movie, “The Wizard of Oz”, Dorothy runs away from
home hoping to find a place with ‘no trouble’, somewhere ‘over the
rainbow’. The great revelation of her
journey is in discovering that no such place exists—not in in her humdrum life
in Kansas, nor in the amazing land of Oz where evil witches and demon monkeys live
side by side with wise but cowardly lions and men of straw with wits of steel. Slowly
but surely she begins to understand that her mistake was in wishing for things
to be different than they were rather than finding her joy in where she
actually was…which was home.
At the end she keeps repeating , “There’s no place like home,
there’s no place like home…” while clicking her ruby slippers. Not because
nothing bad ever happens at home—after all, that’s why she left in the first
place—and not because the physical walls of her house were going to protect her
from enemies, seen or unseen. No, it is
because Dorothy finally sees clearly that home is her shelter from the inevitable tornadoes
of daily life—it is where our loved ones (human and animal) live, where our
friends share time with us, where we have created a sanctuary in which to rest
and rejuvenate, and where we are surrounded by the things we love—books, music,
art.
Take heart in ‘sheltering in place’. Enjoy being in your home with
your loved ones. Read books, listen to inspiring music, practice yoga or dance
joyfully, write letters, sit in meditation for long hours. Shelter in your
heart and find your breath waiting for you.
P.S.--If you wish to make a comment or offer a contribution, click on the words at the bottom that say 'no comment'. This will open a comment box and you can add what you wish. I am hoping that many of you will add your thoughts as the days go by. Thanks!
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Comment by Kathleen Dickey on March 15th:
Dear Misha,
Thank you for starting this blog. I, too, am feeling so grateful in this time of whiplash news for seeking refuge on my zafu and in the sangha. bows, Kathleen
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Poem sent by Marya Shahinian to share with everyone:
Dear Misha,
Thank you for starting this blog. I, too, am feeling so grateful in this time of whiplash news for seeking refuge on my zafu and in the sangha. bows, Kathleen
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Poem sent by Marya Shahinian to share with everyone:
Lockdown
Yes there is fear.
Yes there is isolation.
Yes there is panic buying.
Yes there is sickness.
Yes there is even death.
But,
They say that in Wuhan after so many years of noise
You can hear the birds again.
They say that after just a few weeks of quiet
The sky is no longer thick with fumes
But blue and grey and clear.
They say that in the streets of Assisi
People are singing to each other
across the empty squares,
keeping their windows open
so that those who are alone
may hear the sounds of family around them.
They say that a hotel in the West of Ireland
Is offering free meals and delivery to the housebound.
Today a young woman I know
is busy spreading fliers with her number
through the neighbourhood
So that the elders may have someone to call on.
Today Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples
are preparing to welcome
and shelter the homeless, the sick, the weary
All over the world people are slowing down and reflecting
All over the world people are looking at their neighbours in a new way
All over the world people are waking up to a new reality
To how big we really are.
To how little control we really have.
To what really matters.
To Love.
So we pray and we remember that
Yes there is fear.
But there does not have to be hate.
Yes there is isolation.
But there does not have to be loneliness.
Yes there is panic buying.
But there does not have to be meanness.
Yes there is sickness.
But there does not have to be disease of the soul
Yes there is even death.
But there can always be a rebirth of love.
Wake to the choices you make as to how to live now.
Today, breathe.
Listen, behind the factory noises of your panic
The birds are singing again
The sky is clearing,
Spring is coming,
And we are always encompassed by Love.
Open the windows of your soul
And though you may not be able
to touch across the empty square,
Sing.
Yes there is isolation.
Yes there is panic buying.
Yes there is sickness.
Yes there is even death.
But,
They say that in Wuhan after so many years of noise
You can hear the birds again.
They say that after just a few weeks of quiet
The sky is no longer thick with fumes
But blue and grey and clear.
They say that in the streets of Assisi
People are singing to each other
across the empty squares,
keeping their windows open
so that those who are alone
may hear the sounds of family around them.
They say that a hotel in the West of Ireland
Is offering free meals and delivery to the housebound.
Today a young woman I know
is busy spreading fliers with her number
through the neighbourhood
So that the elders may have someone to call on.
Today Churches, Synagogues, Mosques and Temples
are preparing to welcome
and shelter the homeless, the sick, the weary
All over the world people are slowing down and reflecting
All over the world people are looking at their neighbours in a new way
All over the world people are waking up to a new reality
To how big we really are.
To how little control we really have.
To what really matters.
To Love.
So we pray and we remember that
Yes there is fear.
But there does not have to be hate.
Yes there is isolation.
But there does not have to be loneliness.
Yes there is panic buying.
But there does not have to be meanness.
Yes there is sickness.
But there does not have to be disease of the soul
Yes there is even death.
But there can always be a rebirth of love.
Wake to the choices you make as to how to live now.
Today, breathe.
Listen, behind the factory noises of your panic
The birds are singing again
The sky is clearing,
Spring is coming,
And we are always encompassed by Love.
Open the windows of your soul
And though you may not be able
to touch across the empty square,
Sing.
Richard Henrick,
Franciscan priest.
March 13th,
2020
Hello from Salinas CA! As of right now, there are no reported cases in the county but that may be just a matter of time. We are secure and healthy at this time.
ReplyDeleteI have to say that from a standpoint of social observation it has been interesting to see people's preferences in this turbulence. By looking at the shelves, I can see what folks prefer, or not. Some of it makes sense, and some of it doesn't. I think that the lizard brain is responding to perceived scarcity, but in the end it is fear driven. It is trying to divine the future without having any real information about what that future will bring. And that brings me back to now.
Today, it is bright and sunny. The wind blows, the grass bends. It is cool, the squirrels and crows are out doing their thing. The waves are still crashing, and flowers are still blooming. But, I am reminded as I look out the window at my neighbor's houses, that we are still a tribe of humans, and a tribe looks out for each other. Do not let shelter in place be shelter in loneliness.
As the next moment arrives, I try to remember that there is something bigger than myself, and I try to let that "something bigger" in by stepping out of the way. Get out of my head, to allow it to enter. That is where my peace comes from, as I send it to all of you. There will be suffering, there will be relief, time will pass, and things will change. Let's "be together" as this all plays through.
My love to you all!
Jim
FYI, if you are looking for a good read during this time about tribes and belonging, highly recommend this:
Deletehttps://www.amazon.com/Tribe-Homecoming-Belonging-Sebastian-Junger/dp/1455566381