Taking Refuge (Fall Sesshin theme)
From Jill's talk on refuge:
I take refuge in my redwood tree, so big and vast, born before me and will live many generations after, if people leave it alone.
I’ve had a garden here for going on 40 years; often I think the redwood is the real beneficiary, for its roots go more than a hundred feet in all directions, soaking up the fertilizer and water and compost, saying thank you, growing taller, wider.
I take refuge in the oak tree nearby, a volunteer that we did not take care to remove 35 years ago; we might have more sun in our yard had we noticed it, but without our care and feeding, directly anyway, it is home to birds and squirrels and insects and stays bright green all year round.
I think of these two sometimes as embodying life's active and receptive principles, tall and nurturing, reaching to the sky, reaching out with arms to many creatures. The redwood probably over 85 feet; the oak perhaps half that size, but rounder, fuller. Both of them taking care of us, probably taking care of each other through their root systems, for all I know.
I take refuge in these trees which teach me that life is longer and deeper and wider than I can imagine, they teach me patience and forbearance and uprightness. All that coming and going we humans do; staying in one place, growing year after year, harboring so many beings – they give beyond measure.
And in the end I will return to the earth, return to the trees, become compost, humus, one with the earth again.
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Our ZHS on-line schedule
- Mondays: 7-8:30pm - zazen, short service, lecture/discussion
- Tuesdays-Fridays: 5:30-6:10pm - zazen, offering of merit/bows
- M-F: 7-7:30am - zazen
- Saturdays: 8:00-10:15am - zazen, short service, tea, discussion/study
- For more information: www.zenheartsangha.org)
Special bows for today:
- Please offer bows for all those families who have lost their lives or their homes in the recent fires in Oregon, California, and Washington
- Please continue to offer bows of well-being for:
- Please offer bows for Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who died on 10/9/20
- David Shaw, who suffered a stroke on 9/30/20
- Takiko Kawakami, Fumiko Arao's mother who died 9/2/2020
- Phyllis Merrill, Misha's mother, who is dying
- Rev. Les Kaye, Misha’s Zen teacher, who is recovering at home undergoing chemotherapy
- Zen Heart Sangha website: resources about COVID-19: www.zenheartsangha.org
- From our dharma brother, Bill: National Geographic article on coronavirus https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2020/05/graphic-tracking-coronavirus-infections-us/
- From our dharma brother, Jim C.: fascinating look at the Scarlet Medusa jellyfish https://www.nowness.com/series/nowness-asia/scarlet-medusa-immortality-jellyfish
- From our dharma sister, Shannon: There are moments when the confines of normal reality crack and we are opened up to Providence. “Hallelujah” performed in honor of RBG. As big as she was in life, she is even greater in death. You can actually feel her spirit being released to God and sense its largess when listening to this song. Crying cleansing tears.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-INgWwo8TY&feature=share&fbclid=IwAR2q4LrrWs6POWRJ0vq-ChvyXhT_7ex-f3BU69DmAU7a5Mf82zGAxjEJMmM
- Need something to lift your spirits? https://youtu.be/JNgCM7zp30M
- If you would like to leave a comment on this blog: Here is a quick video on how to--it's from 2017, but should work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T4RflO5Wgg
Many thanks to those of you who are sending me articles to share, links to helpful information, and for making comments…it is a gift beyond measure. Please know that you can either leave a comment on the blog itself, or send something directly to me and I will be happy to paste it in.
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