While vacationing in Puerto Rico, we stopped at a 375-year-old kapok tree. Kapok is the cottony stuffing used in meditation cushions. The roots of the kapok trees are tall buttresses from which other sprouts develop into trees. This tree is well-rooted! These buttress roots give me an whole new image regarding the verse on theRead more about Kapok Tree[…]
Snow has melted off the septic tank–a sure sign of spring. The elements are in motion: snow (water element) is melting due to the heat (fire element) of the septic tank. The earth (earth element) plus water and warmth give rise to tiny crocuses wavering in the spring breeze (air element). We, too, rely onRead more about Septic Tank Melting[…]
I love bringing my fall geraniums indoors for the winter. By now, they are in full bloom. Isn’t that the reason to have flowering houseplants? Bright, colorful blossoms that bring cheer to the heart. Cheerfulness is not mentioned by the Buddha, but i find it to be a lovely mind state. It’s a mix ofRead more about Cheerful Geraniums[…]
Winter and Spring are dancing with each other. Yesterday, Winter led the dance with gusting winds and frigid temperatures, but Sunday, Spring will lead the dance with sunny skies and temperatures in the 50s. The tug of war goes back and forth. Winter, Winter, Spring. The real tug of war is in our minds. WeRead more about The Dance of Winter-Spring[…]
Last summer’s petunias are blooming in one of the flowerpots i brought in from the front step in October. The by-then leggy petunias continued to hang over the edges of the pot for a couple of months, then gradually turned brown. I was careful not to pull the plant out by the roots, but simplyRead more about Last Summer’s Petunias[…]
We woke up this morning to 3 inches of snow and a winter wonderland of snow-covered trees. The sky is blue–a perfect day. March has crept in like a lamb, soft, white, and fleecy. In these turbulent times, can we hold ourselves with a soft and fleecy kindness? A soft compassion for our own troublesRead more about Winter Wonderland[…]
My solarium has a dozen big ceramic flowerpots that come indoors for the winter. Right now, pink thunbergia, a vine in one of the flower pots, is climbing the walls and flowering. Outdoors, snow covers the ground. Indoors, my solarium is super-heated with March sun; it’s a greenhouse in there. When i feel like climbingRead more about Climbing the Walls[…]
This day had a difficult birth. Rain pelting. Wind blowing. Now that the sun has risen behind gray clouds, the rain has calmed, although tree branches still dance in the wind. Blue sky peeps through fast-moving clouds. All is in flux. This breath. This movement of the eyes. These hands. Nothing is fixed.