I’m living through difficult times right now. Don’t worry, I’m OK. But I’ve been thinking about how we can approach the stuff that life throws at us that we’d rather not catch. Duck! Run away!
I’m thinking about three things this morning. The obstacle is the path. Today is a good day. And what comes is a gift.
Ezra Bayda reminds us in his books that we often get frustrated by the things that ‘get in the way’ of our path. This could be the tedium of doing the washing up, or a crisis that prevents us from getting on with what we think we SHOULD be doing. He tells us that these obstacles ARE the path. They are the things life is made of. They are the things we learn from, the things we can practice with. It’s a matter of shifting our perspective.
The second thing is what my friend said to me at the weekend. She’s also going through difficult times, and when I saw her she’d just had some bad news. I said something about how awful she must be feeling, and she said, ‘Well, today is a good day’. How easily we forget to take one day (one minute) at a time.
The third thing is something I read in a Buddhist magazine – a quote by Reverend Master Daishin. He said, “What comes is a gift as it shows us what we need to offer.” This last word wasn’t what I expected, and it took me by suprise. What we need to OFFER? Isn’t this about me?!
In the long run, the things we learn help us to help others. We’re all in the same boat, after all. There’s something about the idea of making an offering that gives me comfort.
These thoughts are still a little jumbled, but I hope you can find something in them. My small offering.