Blank: Light and Dark

Only when you see the light
Do you realize how dark the darkness is (was).

But I’d forgotten
What light was like too,
Which was the reason
It was so bright.

A voice said, “this is light.”

“What’s that?” I asked.

“That which is blinding you now.”

“Oh,” said I.

And then plunging back
Into darkness,
I saw how dark the darkness was.

Now then,
Where does the darkness
Meet the light?

I expect it happens all the time,
But only when you don’t notice
Anything special,
Or don’t expect it, perhaps.

Blade: And So It Goes

Wow!

What a course that was.

All I have to say is:

The most exciting, rewarding, harrowing adventures I have are the ones I have sitting by myself doing what the outside observer would think was nothing.

Building an anchor is really hard work.

It’s the baggage: it keeps following me.

This reminds me of the time I was riding my bike down this dirt track on a hot and sunny summer’s day. Suddenly I saw my shadow in the dirt, pursued by numerous tiny shadows. It was a swarm of horseflies chasing me, presumably after my blood.

My meditation practice seemed helpful when it was new because it was new; the swarm had not yet located it.

But, now it has, and so the trouble begins anew.

For help, I turned to the late Zen Master, Shunryu Suzuki’s, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind:

“The goal of practice is always to keep our beginner’s mind.”

For, “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities. In the expert’s mind there are few.”

And so, I went back to the most basic practice, the practice of focusing on my breathing, and there I found peace, for a time.

Ah but, the saga continues. . .

Taking a Break

I am going to take a break from blogging now in order to focus on my mindfulness meditation practice course.

But, before I go, leave you with this thought:

It strikes me as ironic that
in order to stop being self-centered,
you have to pay more attention to
what YOU are doing.

Thanks for reading.

Lee