Hello Again

Hello, and long time no posts from me. I have finally gotten a break from the hectic-ness of trying to keep my small business a float in this stressful times. The situation isn't dire and I am always just focused on what I can do for this moment. Talk about downsizing, ha ha ha well business has almost dried up in my marketplace. That stated, I am close to closing a few deals that may bring some relief to the urgency that exists right now. Being a software developer is interesting as it requires a great deal of up front work and the results if we can call them that come later.

Our small Zen Group continues to grow and to flower, it is of this that stirs my passion. How may help you...... this is the essence of Zen. The minute we think its about us, or about a particular way or style we lose it. So, my sanity exists in working and interacting, first and foremost with teacher, James Ford Roshi, he is like an anchor to 'not knowing mind.' I think we all need to have a teacher, even if we are a teacher. This is an important point, to maintain our humility and not lose touch with that beginners mind that Shunryu Suzuki Roshi wrote about almost 40 years ago. We are all beginners on this path and that is the joy of the path, it is always new and alive and refreshing. We really have no where to get to, there is no arrival point and there is no beginning or end to our practice. When our practice is constant, then we are blessed with this path that unfolds out into eternity, it is only when we think we arrived somewhere and that we are know going to show this arrival that we fall into hell.

For us in the West, this season is our time of family and introspection. It is the Western Hemisphere's end of a cycle, which marks the beginning of a new cycle. The cycle itself isn't new as it is constantly repeating, so the rotation comes around again and we think about the short term life around us. The flowers and insects that have shorter life spans and are more dependant on the seasonal flux. But the earth has its cycles and lifespans, much larger than we can really imagine, so where do that leave us? Well it leaves us right here, black letters on a white background, perhaps the hum of a computer exhaust fan humming quietly near.

May we all find peace, love and harmony in the ever expanding presence of our own lives. Merry Christmas and thanks for reading, I will try to find more balance following this break period.