February102012
“After a while, okay, you’ve worked twenty years or twenty-five years. Okay, so you’ve got this many grants, you’ve got this long a resume, you have these people that hate you, you have these people that love you, you’ve done this piece, that piece, this piece, that piece…and then you go to your grave. And what do you think you have—a piece of paper that tells you all the pieces you’ve done? So what? The only reason for doing it is that you might have the joy of discovery on a day-to-day level. The only reason for doing it is really that you love doing it. What it gets down to is: how do you want to spend your time on Earth?”
—Meredith Monk, from Heresies: A Feminist Publication on Art & Politics, no. 17, 1984
~Nancy Rosenbaum, producer
(via beingblog)
February82012
Anger is one of the most common and destructive delusions, and it afflicts our mind almost every day. To solve the problem of anger, we first need to recognize the anger within our mind, acknowledge how it harms both ourself and others, and appreciate the benefits of being patient in the face of difficulties. We then need to apply practical methods in our daily life to reduce our anger and finally to prevent it from arising at all.
~ Geshe Kelsang Gyatso - How to Solve our Human Problems
(Source: dharma-thoughts, via dancingdakini)
6PM
I finally found a sangha near where we live. We went for the first time on Monday night, and we really clicked with the group. It’s a small group, but they have a very nice, established group practice agenda, including sitting and walking meditation, recitation of a sutra or two, dharma sharing, announcements, and fellowship afterward. They alternate parts of this routine according to the week of the month. They also are working their way through “The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching” as a group, using dharma sharing on some weeks as a discussion time for the book. I felt like I was home, there with these strangers. It was the first occasion on which I’d enjoyed the company, both in formal practice and informally afterwards, of other Buddhists. Happy, happy. I am looking forward to going back next week.
“Happiness runs in a circular motion. Thought is like a little boat upon the sea. Everything is a part of everything anyway. You can have everything if you let yourself be.” - Donovan
February12012
“Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each.”
Henry David Thoreau
January292012
“
Mindfulness overcomes distractions — which are all those thoughts we don’t want to think but can’t help thinking if we have a distracted mind. And having to think negative and depressed thoughts all day is clearly no fun.
Being able to meditate on an object is a bit like parking your car home in the driveway after you’ve been on a way too long car journey and it has been hell, full of traffic, wrong turnings, road rage, bad weather, stress, accidents, exhaustion, boredom… Once you find your meditation object — whether it is simply the breath or something that transforms your mind from negative to positive — you can stop everything and relax into it. Really relax. Smile inside. Chill. You’re home.
”
From Kadampa Life (via kadampalife)(via dancingdakini)
2PM
Just ordered seeds for this year’s garden. I’m doing a strategic selection of veggies and herbs that I know I can preserve for the months after the growing season ends. Also doing my beloved morning glories (red ones this time, plus the mixed-up purple/white/blue seeds from last year, if they grow), and some catnip for the kittehs. Also, found that catnip can be made into a tea to help with sleeplessness and mild nervousness. Might try that too.
January282012
“Travelers, there is no path, paths are made by walking.”
Antonio Machado
7PM
“Lasting change happens when people see for themselves that a different way of life is more fulfilling than their present one.”
Eknath Easwaran
