I had a wonderful weekend in Pasadena at an artists convention, taking art classes from various professional artist, as well as some classes that were just plain fun (like doing Japanese style raku with polymer clay). It was great to get away and just enjoy doing some art and learning so many new techniques.
Hopefully over the next few days I’ll get back to studying Tao and posting my reflections again. It gives me a lot more peace and serenity than worrying about the elections, even if people don’t bother to read them or comment. I think this place is more of my personal journaling than anything else, anyway. It’s a bit weird to do it in a public place, I suppose, but I enjoy it, and that’s what matters. I find I don’t typically enjoy journal writing as much, perhaps expecting too much of myself to write every day, perhaps just the actual act of writing being so much more difficult for me than just typing. Here, I can post whatever pops into my head easily.
So with two weeks before the election, I am dreading the October surprise. I know it’s coming, it’s all just a matter of when and what. And whether it leads to four more years of hell, or if we as a people will manage to pull our democracy out of its flaming ashes or not. I’m so tired of Republican horseshit. I wish everyone else was sick of it as well. Maybe it takes an even deeper descent into fascism to get peple to wake the hell up.
At least my 18 year old is voting, and adding his voice to this election. I hope the younger voters will be able to get through the boomer deadlock of left and right and get the country moving forward again. To me the disaster of the last four years is so obvious that I can’t even imagine how the hell anyone can support Bush. But then, I’m a proud member of the reality-based community, as the bloggers are all saying this week. (Well, the bloggers I read).
At least San Diego has gotten its first rain in six months, several days worth of good soaking rains. The garden is so clean and seems so happy. I can’t wait to get out and toss down some wildflower seeds and get the flowers of next spring off to a good start. I planted a fall garden that is coming in beautifully.So there is much to be thankful for as we come into the season of Thanksgiving. Even if things go badly in the election and we have to endure four more years, life will continue, the garden will grow, and the world will take little notice of us in the long run. We will survive, and we will recover, even if we are in for a long season of decline.
So, a bit of Tao for tonight:
Answer quickly. Do you have a soul?
That is the critical question. And you need to look deeply into that question, because the answer will determine your entire attitude toward the spiritual.
If you say you are the soul, then where is it? If you are it, then why is the soul invisible?
If you say that the soul is inside you, then bring it out. You say you cannot? Then by saying that, you have already indicated the soul.
If you say that the soul belongs to you, then you have confused things.
If you say that the soul is immortal, then you have not looked far enough into the situation. The soul may be immortal, but why is it immortal? Answer that and you will be very close to profoundity.
If you want to know where the soul is, ask yourself who is considering the question.
It seems strange that the people I have most regretted losing from my life told me they didn’t believe they had souls.
Perhaps, they were right.
No Responses