Dangling: Hanging Around

I went out and thought
I’d lost my method,
But came home and found it
Right where I’d left it!

Like confusing the ladder
With the climbing,
Getting stuck on the ladder
And abandoning it,

Picking up its mate
And getting caught on that too,
Tossing that one down
And beginning anew;

How can one possibly
Get over this fence,
When every ladder fails?
This just doesn’t make sense.

Starting over and over,
Then finally ditching
All of them
And stomping off in a fury,

Concluding, I’ll be going nowhere in a hurry!
And so quietly I wait,
Hoping for someone to come along who knows
How to open the gate!

Nevertheless, in the meantime
I prepared for more practice,
Not expecting anything
Other than just sitting;

On the other hand,
Perhaps it’s time
To return attention to the breathing;
As there’s no other guide here now,
I guess it’s up to me, then.

Dancing: Taming Mind-Cats

Carrying on
The recurring theme
Sitting mindfully,
And letting go of clinging,

Very effective for taming
Disturbing emotions,
Which roar like lions
And snap and claw fiercely,

For upon the application
Of the simple formula
Of naming these big cats,
And recognizing them as not belonging to me,

Their thundering growls
Dissolve like melting marshmallows
In a cup of hot chocolate,
And they depart, purring like kittens,

But soon new ferocious visitors arise
And more labeling follows,
The letting go is repeated,
The menagerie gradually defeated;

Thoughts, feelings, sensations,
Flow softly then,
From the lion’s den,
Which is quiet again,

The cats have et their fill,
And are sleeping now,
At peace for a time
Until the bell chimes,

Waking the resting mind,
To rise up once again,
But even then met only with the gentle refrain,
‘Not me, not mine.’

Dance: Letting Go Waltz

Continuing with
The letting go,
Carrying it through
Daily life;

Reaching deeply
Into peace,
And even further
To the depths of relaxation,

But even these
Do not belong to me,
And letting go of them
Left a quiet mind,

Classified this quiet too
As, ‘not mine,’
And letting go of that
Led to something I cannot describe.

Then at that moment
The telephone rang,
Decided to answer it
As I’d gotten behind;

Had a conversation
Unlike any I can recall,
Such clarity of mind,
Strong awareness of the other,

Subtleties in the sound of voice,
Nuances of expression,
All were more visible,
And responsiveness heightened;

Nevertheless still mindful enough
To know when to end
And re-orient the mind
In the direction
Of other tasks requiring attention.