Category Archives: Daily Life

She asked me whether I had brought People Magazine on the trip. (The question was loaded with history, with the good-natured teasing we enjoyed around the fact that I sometimes buy People Magazine when I travel, that for awhile I … Continue reading →

Completely unmentioned but silently at operation beneath the surface of these pages, the past couple of months have been characterized by huge dramas, my heart and energies wrapped up in traumatic changes not at Zen Center, but in the organization … Continue reading →

Last week, upon a suspicion that things weren’t right on the left side of my mouth and a fear that I would be in agony over an infected tooth on my upcoming trip to China, I made an appointment to … Continue reading →

The Ino asked if I could cover this morning’s fukudo position, and my response was “of course.”  I had recently trained on the position when I stopped being head chiden for awhile so the role was still fresh in my … Continue reading →

It was Thursday night when we found Dave’s body. I say “we,” although to be precise it was not me but some other specific people, and those people will have had a very particular experience of the events from that … Continue reading →

I chuckled as I sat down on the zafu, because the invitation to sit dokusan with my teacher came at the last minute as it sometimes does, and I had no idea what I wanted to ask him. I decided … Continue reading →

Sometimes the universe screws around with you a bit. I am back to being head chiden at the temple again.  In the same weekend I was invited to again be head chiden, my boss’ half-time scheduling support (at my day … Continue reading →

Saturday was our monthly one-day sitting, required for all residents.  Actually it was a triple whammy Zen day:  a one-day sitting, the middle day of a three-day sesshin (meditation retreat), and the end of the spring practice period.  But I … Continue reading →

One of the things that has changed recently is that I am no longer the head chiden. There are many jobs at the Zen Center – house jobs, bathroom jobs, kitchen jobs, dish jobs, staff jobs.  Chidening falls under the … Continue reading →

The month of May came and went, and I passed my two-year mark of living in the Zen Center. When I’m sitting down to dinner with someone I haven’t met before and we’re running through the usual inquiry of how … Continue reading →