Lojong Slogan

"four practices are the best of methods"

This is the slogan I pulled today. So I look it up as it is one that is not easily remembered by me in 'Start Where You Are' by Pema Chodron.

The first practice is to accumulate merit - that is to be willing to give, willing to open, willing not to hold back. Harder than it looks. I know when I can do it that the world is very hospitable. It means not to shield, to hide, to cocoon. Be willing to meet the world with my sad and tender heart. OK!

The second practice is to confess evil actions. This has four (the Buddhists love lists more than me even!) parts:

1) Regret

2) Refrain

3) Remedial action

4) Resolve

The third practice is to feed the ghosts. This means to make a relationship with oneself, especially the unsavoury parts of oneself - for me it would be my anger and my defensive reaction to being crowded for instance. Of course, there are lots more but that is between me and me.

The fourth practice is to offer to the protectors. The protectors are sometimes characterized as wrathful figures that are about to wake us up from our lah-dih-dah routines. They will not buy our trip no matter how we gussy it up. They ain't having it. They are around to protect us from our unkindness, harshness, petty-mindedness etc... I might be caught in my trip - 'oh poor me, everyone is being mean to me so I have to fight back' when I hear one of my protectors shout "NO!" and I remember that this is just my trip.

So the upshot of all this is that the slogan of today tells me to lean into my unwanted circumstance, befriend my emotions and wake up - all this crap on the path IS the path and it will take me straight to enlightenment or if you like it not so glitzy - to waking up and smelling the real coffee or the good poop that grows brilliant sweet mama squash.

OK - faithful readers - that is me reporting in before I go on my yearly ONE day vacation out to stay with my best friend Kerol at the cottage in Green Bay where we will walk on the beach, play several games of scrabble, go to the 2nd hand store for deals, talk a lot and do it all a few more times tomorrow. I will be there about 24 hours and believe me it will be a complete vacation!

This Precious Life

I can see the little peeps just outside my window in the garden. They are eating the purple flowers I think but I don't care. Their Mom has her head up high looking out for danger. They are growing so fast.
My grandchildren were just here with their parents. They liked looking at the chickens and they were able to feed them from their hands but not the little ones - they are too skittish. They couldn't have done that with John Wayne here. We had pizza that Ron made and then went down to the playground where they played like mad for awhile while Jess, Shelley and I talked. It was very nice. I just put a gingerbread into the oven. We're taking it tonight to Pete and Sue's - they are getting married again tonight. I married them the first time about four years ago but now they're getting it all official like. We're going to drink mango margaritas and sit out in the back yard eating desserts. At first I wrote deserts but that would not be good to eat I think.
Then I have two days to do nothing but work on my book. The kids will be with us but it is summer and they are teenagers and so. Jake is working with his dad and the two of them are loving it. So nice when it works eh?
In two weeks from yesterday a friend of mine is coming for a visit with her husband. I have not seen her in 28 years. I have never met her husband and I have whole husbands she's never met either. I am so excited and scared and just well full of something.
I happen to know today that life is precious so kiss your lovers, your kids and even maybe your dogs. Love your precious life as you only get to love one at a time (life that is). Eat things that please you that are made with love, create works that please you and are made with love, look outside at whatever version of tiny peeps getting to know the world that you may have and rejoice.
The lojong slogan I pulled today says "Having changed your attitude, remain that way." OK - I think I will.
later...

Illusion's many guises

Today, in a valiant effort of will, I took the dog for a short walk. We walked down the road and into the marina. There I saw a very lovely yacht standing amongst her peers, her tell-tales shivering in the breeze. She was for sale - a sad story for someone I thought and her name was Illusion. I wandered farther with Hoagy back up towards home and around the ruins of the former rope factory. I thought what a large and lovely spot it might make for an artists' retreat - a modest Banff-east perhaps. I also imagined a job for myself at my former work - CEED - a job that I created that would allow me to do what I do best and have health benefits - a natural thought coming after the week's illness. All of these thoughts I abandoned upon entering the house. I then went on to cleaning up my in-box and making weekend plans to catch-up on work and maybe even play. I read some blogs I've been following and then I thought hmmm...best write my own and then maybe sit and then maybe write on my novel and so on... plans upon plans. I turned over a Lojong card for inspiration. It happened to be "In the postmeditation experience, one should become a child of illusion" . Oh, a doubling of the word illusion and as well - yesterday I had read a post on the Sunspace regarding this slogan. It is one of my most favourites but I have not caused myself to look at why. Perhaps merely because it has the word child in it. Yes, I shall become a child - forget about all those adult anxieties...but now I see that it is the parentage which needs to be examined. Be a child OF illusion. What illusion led people to spend money on a yacht and name it illusion? What illusion led an arsonist to destroy a good and decent business? What illusion caused me to start scrambling for purchase on slippery economic ground? The illusion that pain and ice and disaster can be avoided? The illusion that I can avoid them but still remain awake and open for love and soft spring ground and everyday magic while being closed to those other darker elements? Think I'll go sit for awhile lovely readers. I'm only tipping at this one.

The lojong slogan for today is

"Don't misinterpret." I look it up in Pema Chodron's book Start Where You Are - hmmmm...

Don't think you are being generous when you're just trying to obtain a big feeling. Don't think you are being patient when inside you are plotting someone's death because they are such fuss-budgets. Don't think you are being harmonious when all you want is to give in or collapse or over-power everyone else so it'll be quiet so you can just friggin think for a moment.

OK. I'll think on that.

a short statement of worth

Today I flipped one of the Lojong cards over to see what I might focus on - "Abandon any hope of fruition." hmmm...good one - could've stopped anywhere and still been good. Abandon - yes abandon - abandon anything you are holding on to - let it drop - let it roll - let it go. Any - any - even that most precious of things - hope or your wallet or a dream or - the point is ANY which means all - search out in the rag & bone shop of your heart ALL little things you are hiding and clutching and hoping to sneak through the gate past the border guards - Hope - which is what exactly - what exactly is hope so beloved of the Christians so derided by the Buddhists - hope for something later because now just ain't good enough? OF - being born from - anything being born of hope - which could be just itself -hope that is and then Fruition - the harvest, the goodies, the final wonderful tying up of loose ends - the performance instead of this tedious not quite good enough rehearsal. I have to abandon that? Alright. Now will have to do.