This week’s topic for reflection is alone. Feeling alone, not noticed and that no-one cares is heart breaking. The other day, driving up Interstate Five we pulled over and stopped at a rest stop. Off to one side sat a woman with a sign reading, “Anything will help.” Senkei asked if I was going to give her anything and I said, “Yes.” Bending over to give her a dollar bill, she looked up. Reaching up to take the dollar she said, “Thank you.” I was surprised to see how completel

This week’s topic for refection is your voice. Utilizing our voices we express what we think and what is in our heart. Our voice functions with the breath. The breath makes it possible for the voice to be real and create change in the world. This voice is open, in the moment, confident and humble. What we say can be helpful or harmful, honest or deceitful. What we say reveals where we are coming from. Our personal morality or ethics. Are we humble and respectful or arrogant

This week’s topic for reflection is “I need you to breathe.” About half way through the thirty minute cataract surgery to replace the lens in my eye, the surgeon said, “I need you to breathe.” I hadn’t noticed I wasn’t breathing so I started to slowly breathe again. This helped with my anxiety during the fully conscious procedure with my eye wide open. All I needed to do was not move, relax and breathe. Also to trust my doctor and the team supporting her. My sight and eyes a

This week’s topic for reflection is transition. In the past few weeks I had cataract surgery on both of my eyes replacing both lenses with new artificial clear ones. This morning, looking across the kitchen, my sight is remarkably clear and vivid. It’s also springtime and everything seems to be in transition and in bloom with explosive growth. There are a few short months available between the cold dormant winter and the hot dry summer to build nests and have offspring and fo

This week’s topic for reflection is letting go. Letting go involves being open to letting in. Letting go may not be possible sometimes and may not even be a good idea. It might be easier to allow the space to be open to what is hard to take in or experience than letting go. Let it in and then let go of the position you usually take. This might mean letting go of being right or being in control. You might need to model this for awhile before others get the idea. Letting go al

This week’s topic for reflection is meeting heart to heart. Meeting heart to heart is different from meeting to have a discussion. The heart is not intellectual or necessarily rational. The heart naturally cares and is at times, passionate. The heart is usually honest with us when we care to listen. We say the heart is intuitive because it doesn’t rely on rational thinking and observation to notice what is often not apparent. In this sense "meeting" is a connection where hear

This week’s topic for reflection is a continuation of showing up with intention with an addition at the end. There are two requirements for success. The first is you have to show up. The second is you need to be clear about your intention. Let’s look at showing up first. Being human we have the potential and opportunity to do something but first we have to show up. Showing up is about choosing what you want to do and then showing up to do it. This sometimes means being coura

This week’s topic for reflection is showing up with intention. There are two requirements for success. The first is you have to show up. The second is you need to be clear about your intention. Let’s look at showing up first. Being human we have the potential and opportunity to do something but first we have to show up. Showing up is about choosing what you want to do and then showing up to do it. This sometimes means being courageous or determined. Yes, really show up . Gre

This week’s topic for reflection is less is more. In our society there is a constant need and desire to have and get more. Somehow we believe if we have more money or a bigger house or a more important job we will be happier. For Zen teachers sometimes there is an unspoken desire that to be more successful means having more students, more programs, more successors etc. I’m not so sure this is true for Zen teachers or actually for anyone else. When we die we loose everything

Joyfulness is this week’s topic for reflection. Please give yourself permission to be joyful this week. Joy has a close friend, appreciation. If something gives you joy say, “Thank you.” I truly appreciate that it is spring. The birds are returning and almost everything is growing again. Afternoons are warm enough to not wear layers. I am warmed with joy to see the colors and growth of all the new life coming out and returning. I find allowing a small smile on my face prepa

Quiet stillness is this week’s topic for reflection. If there is a goal, this would be the goal of zazen meditation. Allow the mind to become quiet and the body to become still. Sitting upright in a balanced posture, being aware of or relaxing into natural breathing is a good way of becoming still. One way to quiet the mind is to patiently observe the breath, in and out. With practice the fascination with thinking calms and recedes, allowing a return to quiet openness. This s

This week’s topic for reflection is this moment. For a little while, be present in this moment. Right now. Relax and patiently just be present. Without needing to accomplish anything, just be present. Don’t hurry this. Did you learn anything about this moment? Did you learn anything about yourself? Is it easy or difficult to simply be present in this moment. How do you distract yourself from being present? Try to not be in this moment. Try to hold onto this moment or find th

This week let’s continue the reflection on the topic of beliefs. Beliefs are thoughts that we hold as true or necessary. If a belief is not a thought, what is it? Do you have any beliefs that were true at one time that may not be true any more? How did you acquire your beliefs? In your view of the world around you, what role do beliefs play? Here a few a my thoughts on beliefs. Beliefs add certainty to our life. I believe when I see a red signal light I should always stop. I

Beliefs are this week’s topic for reflection. A belief can be something subjective like I’m a good person or I’m a bad person. A belief can be subtle and unquestioned for example I have self consciousness. The one thing that is true for all beliefs is we hold onto them. Hopefully when we are presented with evidence a belief is not true we are able to let it go and not insist it is true anyway. Some beliefs take time to let go of. For example when someone who we love di

This week’s topic for reflection is love. Love is a term that is used to express many things, from a fleeting infatuation to a timeless, selfless abiding. Love is the permission to participate, to see and be seen. Here are a few of my reflections on love. Unconditional-unbreakable-forever-no matter what love. Wide open. A relationship bigger than both of us. Receiving-sharing love through zazen. Love is an equal sign. You can’t give something you don’t have or receive

This week’s topic for reflection is satisfaction. Imagine you are at the end of your life and ask yourself, “Am I satisfied?” Before you read on, please take some time with this question. What does it mean to you to be satisfied? Is there something that needs to be completed or accomplished for you to feel satisfied? If you completed it do you feel complete or satisfied? Here’s a few of my thoughts on satisfaction. There’s the satisfaction that simply says “Yes

This week’s topic for reflection is anxiety, fear and clinging. We have anxiety about the unknown, especially what might happen in the future. We also have a fear of loss. What binds these together is our persistent need to cling because of our anxiety and fear. Let’s first reflect on anxiety. Anxiety is never very far away for me. I hold it in my eyes and around my eyes. Actually it shows up throughout my body as a sort of nervous alertness. The thought is something d

A quiet mind is this week’s topic for reflection. Quiet doesn’t necessarily mean silent or empty. In contrast there is the mind racing forward with thoughts and reactions. This mind seems distracted or at least obsessed with options and judgements. There is very little space for openness and genuine curiosity. This kind of mind often needs to be in charge and dominate. Another type of mind is the overly emotional one. I mean strong emotions that crowd everything else o

This week I would like to repost a previous topic for reflection on sanity, with editing. This morning’s Washington Post had an article on the situation in Minnesota. It said in part, “Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Sunday accused the president and top Trump administration officials of putting out a “flat-out insane” narrative regarding Alex Pretti’s shooting death.” I don’t want to get into the politics of this situation but instead address sanity and insanity.

This week’s topic for reflection is being embodied. Yes, being embodied as a human being. Please take as much time as you can this week to recognize what it’s like to be alive as a human being in your body. Here are a few points I would like to make about this. For example we have feelings or emotions with our body. They include sadness, fear, joy, confusion, anger, and determination among others. How often are your emotions the boss that determines your actions? Whic