New Year

From the Dhammapada: Better to live in virtue and wisdom for one day than to live a hundred years with an evil and undisciplined mind. Better to live in goodness and wisdom for one day than to lead an ignorant and undisciplined life for a hundred years. Better to live in strength and wisdom for one day than to lead a weak and idle life for a hundred years. Better to live in freedom and wisdom for one day than to lead a conditioned life of bondage for a hundred years.
In most cultures there is a celebration that marks the coming of a new era. These celebrations may not all happen on the same date on our calendars but they are all the same in their intent. This New Year is an appropriate time to start fresh. Yes, I know the pundits (pundits are who is referred to when people say, "THEY said") tell us that New Years resolutions are doomed to fail. If that's the case then wait until January 2nd or 3rd if you must. Spend some time over the next few days and take an inventory of your life. It probably won't take more than a few minutes to get a short list of things that you would like to improve. Are they connected in some way? Is there a root cause? Is it based in fear?
Read the lines from the Dhammapada again. Okay, if you are freaked out by something called the Dhammapada, then pretend the words are coming as lines of your favorite song. Either way, give them some thought.
If you find that you are unhappy much of the time, resolve to discover the reason why and work to fix it. If you think you know the reason why and are not moving to fix it...reflect on your reasons for staying with your unhappiness. If you choose to not reflect at all...please check to see if you are accepting the conditioned life of bondage.
It seems that very little is learned if we continue to move through life on auto-pilot. Pull over occassionaly and walk around the vehicle...kick the tires...look under the hood...see if you want to continue traveling in the same manner. Maybe a new direction or new ride is in order...after all it's a New Year.

Tolerance

Practicing tolerance today. This means accepting people and events as they are...not judging, labeling or keeping score. Sometimes the lessons I learn are not pleasant but they are the lessons I will remember. There is always a lesson to be learned when your cage is being rattled...there you are...cruising through life...and then, "Hello! I'm your univited lesson. This is going to hurt a little or a lot...you decide!" If I can handle peeling off a layer of my ego (and keeping it off) I become a better person.
I've started a semi-structured training regimen for the upcoming Ironman in November. I know it's a long way off but it's a very long race. I've been swimming an hour on Monday, Wednesday & Friday and run for an hour on Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday. I'll soon incorporate some indoor cycling into the mix. My diet has cleaned up some from the Thanksgiving session. Too many carbs and sweets!
Have a guilt trip free Christmas! Give hugs to everyone in the room during your holiday gathering...this will get the conversation going.."What the hell is wrong with him? Oh, you know...he's practicing kindness or patience or tolerance...some of that new age stuff."
What a great opportunity to practice tolerance. Enjoy.

Days go by

Where did the time go? Just yesterday I was 18 years old and hitchhiking across Texas. My friends at that time were cowboys, hippies and crazed rednecks. Maybe I'll blog about that era someday. I'm guessing the statute of limitations will cover most of the legal issues. The rest of the topics are another story. Now I'm 56 and living on the East Coast. My current friends include Buddhist priests, yogis, surfers and triathletes.
When I look up into the sky the stars seem pretty much the same now as they were when I was 18. I'm sure some astronomers will (and should) diasagree but to the average guy (me) the stars seem the same. I'm pretty sure that people are the same too but my perspective has changed.
If you have a chance on a clear night, find a spot away from the artificial lights and step outside. Look up for a little bit. How long has it been since you have noticed the vast canopy surrounding our little marble in space? How long since you've taken more than a brief glance up as you hurry through your life? Can you comprehend how far away most of the stars are? Some of the starlight reaching us is coming from stars that are no longer in existence.
It's the same with some of the great souls who have graced this planet. Their bodies are gone but their light still shines for us. All we have to do is slow down and look toward the light. Just stand still in the light for a bit and marvel at the mystery of this life.

Matching Donations

This past Friday and Saturday I was at the Zendo in NYC for another round of contemplative care training. Some generous donor has decided to match all funds donated to the Zen Center between now and the end of January. He set a cap of $25,000. I'll be happy to let you know if this happens. If you want to have double the impact for your donation...now (or before February:) is the time. Click the "Donate" button near the bottom of this page and help crush the $25k limit.
One of the training exercises was working with "non-responsive" patients. Most of us assume that there is nothing going on if a person does not respond to our presence in a way that we can understand or expect. Google "The Diving Bell & the Butterfly". This might change your perception about what is going on under the surface for someone.
Practice meditation...any style...just begin...learn to see what's under your surface.

Perspective shifter

I did my volunteer shift today on the Oncology floor @ Jersey Shore University Medical Center. It was very busy and full of doctors, nurses and patients. Spoke with a lady who's lungs were filling with fluid. She had some fear and anxiety about drowning and dying. I talked to her about relaxation techniques and said I would teach them to her. She was very interested. When I came back she was asleep. Her husband said it was the first time she had slept in a few days. I guess just talking about relaxation can be relaxing. I talked with a man who was in for his second of possibly four rounds of chemo. He ran down the types of cancer he had been diagnosed with and surgeries he's had since 1989...I'll spare you the details. He was tough. He said, "This ain't no big deal. You feel bad for awhile..lose your appetite..then it comes around and you get better. I beat all of the others...I'll beat this one too." On to the next room:
A friendly fellow was speaking Italian and English as I came into his room. He was preparing to go home and was waiting on a transport service. He didn't have any legs and had lost the strength to pull himself around by his arms. He used to play tennis in tournaments and was very active. He apologized for crying as he talked about losing his ability to move himself around in the world. He said, "When you come down to this...all you have is your memories." I felt tearful too. I was asked to get a wheelchair to help a man downstairs so he could go on a daypass. I went to the room and met a big, biker looking dude with long brown, braided hair and tattoos covering both arms. He still had the ports taped into his arms but no tubing as he was going for a 3 hour outing. He had a walking cane that he used to punch the buttons on the elevator. When the door closed and it was just the two of us he said, "They gave me a death sentence this morning. Throat cancer." The door opened and I wheeled him outside and into the sun until his ride came.
When I got home this afternoon it was getting darker and colder. I decided to go for a run and I started out a little faster than normal. I watched as the sky shifted in colors and the sun began to drop. I fully enjoyed the ability to move my body. I appreciated the fact (and it is a fact) that everything is passing. Enjoy the moments as they pass.

Love and Fear

Here is a poem, Love and Fear, by Michael Luenig.

There are only two feelings, Love & Fear.
There are only two languages, Love & Fear.
There are only two activities, Love & Fear.
There are only two motives, two procedures,
two frameworks, two results,
Love & Fear, Love & Fear

Today I will try to pass all of my thoughts, words and deeds through these two filters:
Love & Fear

Giving Thanks

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Some of us will be with family, friends, loved ones, not-so-loved ones, etc. If you are reading this I'm thinking that you, just like me, will have more than enough to eat and a warm, comfortable place to sleep on Thanksgiving night. It's a wonderful thing. Pause for a moment and send some energy to those who do not have enough food or a warm, comfortable place to sleep on ANY night. Thank you.

Get your mind right

From the Dhammapada:

"As irrigators lead water where they want, as archers make their arrows straight, as carpenters carve wood, the wise shape their minds."

The untrained mind causes all kinds of problems for us. It exhausts us by jumping around like a monkey and getting into all kinds of messes. How quickly it moves! Try to count the number of topics that the mind will touch in a single minute. Most people will give up on this exercise because it's almost impossible to keep up. This monkey mind can be trained. Meditation is recognised world wide as a method to shape the mind. If you have never meditated I'll give you a very simple, yet effective, technique to start with:
Sit upright in a comfortable position (don't worry with crossed legs, lotus position, etc.), close the eyes and begin to follow your breath. Use your imagination and see the breath moving into the body. Let the belly soften and extend with the inhale. Follow the exhale out of the body as the belly deflates. You can count the breaths if you like. The mind will wander off again but gently bring it back to watching the breath.
Yes, there are many more exotic techniques but a simple one is just as (or more) effective and can be done in almost any setting. Try this method for as long as you like and as many times as you like during the day. I'll suggest that you find a quiet place in the morning before you start the day. Initially it doesn't matter if you sit in a chair or on the floor. Over time your practice will take you where you need to be.
Don't wait any longer to try this. Begin right now, where you are and get your mind right.

Feeling Grateful Today

On Thursday I usually volunteer on the Oncology Unit (Brennan 6) @ Jersey Shore University Medical Center. But today I was escorting a family member during their medical exam at Sloan-Kettering in NYC. Today was the second time this week that I received news that family members do not have cancer. I'm elated but I still feel sorrow for some that I saw in the waiting rooms. The weight of what they were dealing with was bearing down on their faces, their bodies and their friends and family. The weight of cancer is carried by so many.
I send my prayers to all that are doing battle with cancer.

I'll leave you with two thoughts (okay..the second one is a run-on thought).

From the Dhammapada: "The Truth is One...the wise call It by many names."

Don't get too caught up in the details and philosophy...become your true authentic self...not just an imagined version of who you think you should be.

Getting the donate button installed.

I'll consider my fundraising research as part of my practice of patience. There are LOTS of sites out there that want to help you raise funds for any and everything. I'll spare you the excruciating details and just let you know that I've decided to use PayPal to collect funds for my fundraising efforts. There is now a button at the bottom of this blog. Go ahead...try it out. I'll continue to geek out on the development of this page as I prepare my training schedule for IMF 2011. Later ~

One thing leads to another.

I am in the Foundations Program at the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care. After listening to Chodo and Roshi talk about their travels and encounters with people who don't have access to basic medical treatment, I decided that I needed to do something to help. I registered for the Florida Ironman held in November of 2011. I planned on using the Janus Charity Challenge as a way to raise awareness about the work of the Zen Center and to raise funds for this non-profit organization. Two days after I made this commitment, the Janus Charity Challenge program, in place for 10 years, was cancelled. It seems the the WTC (Ironman) and Janus can't find a suitable agreement which would allow them to continue the program. That's the main reason that I've started this blog. I'm looking for ways to raise money for the Zen Center so that they may continue to support the sick, dying and suffering across this planet. The Janus Charity Challenge matched or donated to individuals who participated in certain Ironman races in the US. They also provided online donation gathering for the racers and distribution to the non-profit. I'm going to participate in the race regardless of the inability of two big corporations to find a way to continue to benefit others. This blog will be one of the ways I connect with others about fundraising, Ironman, yoga, fitness or anything else that is of interest to me...(hey it's my blog). Hopefully others will find something useful, entertaining or thought provoking. If not, please start your own blog and let me know what's on your mind.