Photo: Pink Sunrise on Blue Mountains.
Today is my last full day at the Monastery. And it went so incredibly fast. I think that I could spend easily a lot more time here. Even much so, I’ve been thinking that if one day I was totally sola in this world, I would consider living here.
My "lazy morning” consisted of getting up at 6.30am, doing some washing and yoga, going for breakfast, and some intense jog-walk-lunges session in the woods, to come back to the scheduled working meditation. Something interesting happened: I had been assigned with taking care of the orange tree in the Jade Meditation Hall and a woman who had just arrived was assigned with stacking wood. However when they mentioned her task, she became all uneasy and said she did not have the strength to do so. A. and I jumped saying we could do so. But then the sister said that it was not necessary to stack any wood since it had been done 2 days ago; however that I could go and help Sr. Lan in housekeeping. And Sr Lan was my blessing of the day and of this stay. Although it took me a while to find her because she was already working, she was sheer joy and happiness. I had to vacuum two guest rooms, as well as clean their bathrooms. I guess she felt not-good with my assignment and said we could switch, alternating tasks. I said it was honestly the same for me. And I ended up cleaning 2 bathrooms, and she vacuumed the 2 rooms. Then she said if I wanted to help her folding clothes in the laundry, and she dispatched the other girl who had done the full third room by herself. We were talking about Thay (TNH) and about life; we connected really well and I believe she is highly perceptive. Then she invited me to go for a walk in the afternoon, at 2, with her usual enthusiasm and quiet happiness. We went for a 1.5-hour walk.
Quote of the day:
“Universally, whatever country, race or religion, the thought of taking pain and suffering for others onto ourselves, quietly and secretly, is true spirituality”.
[From “IF NOT NOW, WHEN?” by Tsem Tulku Rinpoche, www.kechara.com. Kechara is a non-profit Buddhist organization.]
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