Say Yes

A wise man once taught me that when you are meditating, you should have a slight smile on your face. This is the proper form in certain types of meditation, I think in the Hinayana tradition in Southeast Asia.

It's like you sit still and face whatever thoughts and feelings you might have--all with that smile of the Buddha. You say "yes" to life, whatever it brings you.

The Buddha had money, a stable family, a wife and son--but he left it all in his quest for enlightenment, to find something deeper. I admire the Buddha (maybe you do, too), and I'm glad he didn't stay at the palace getting massages and signing edicts. His parents would have loved that. I admire his bravery for letting go of the need for guaranteed future security.

I've been thinking about the Buddha lately because I, too, have let go of all that is considered "stable" to follow my dream. I perhaps am not the Buddha, but I know the Buddha would want me to follow my own path. "If you see the Buddha on the road, kill him!" were his words. He wanted us to find our own Buddha, something beyond the conditioning of our personal past and our culture.

The way I see it, we all have the same choice. We can live in fear, or we can move to a place of love. Fear means your little boat floating on the sea gets smashed by the big waves--which if you haven't experienced yet, trust me, you will--and you say, "Oh, shit, I've got to protect myself so this never happens again." Maybe you slowly sail back to shore, tie up your little boat, rent a room at the local motel, and watch cable for the rest of your life. A part of you dies. You never come out again.

The other path is love. The same big, bad wave smashes you to pieces and after a bit of time recuperating, you get back out there. You know that no matter how hard the waves come, you will still be okay. The big waves come back and your little boat gets soaked again, but this time, you know how to deal, you know you'll be okay. And maybe you meet other boats and other sailors, and you sail to some beautiful shores. Sure beats infomercials.

Well, I'll keep it short, if you want to see love in action, you can always watch a Free Hugs video, here's another one, in Chicago. And I'm also including a poem by Oriah, which I like, called The Invitation. Or better yet, give out some of your own free hugs or write your own inspiring poem.

This blog entry is dedicated to you--sending you my love and blessings. You can do it!



The Invitation

It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for
and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon...
I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn’t interest me if the story you are telling me
is true.
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
“Yes.”

It doesn’t interest me
to know where you live or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.

It doesn’t interest me who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.

It doesn’t interest me where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like the company you keep
in the empty moments.

我對你的職業不感興趣。我想知道你的渴望，你是否能勇敢依循內心的憧憬，大膽的作夢。

我對你的年齡不感興趣。我想知道你是否會願意冒險，為愛，為夢想，為體驗生命，即使看起來像個傻子。

我對什麼影響你的情緒起伏不感趣。我想知道你是否曾觸及內心憂傷的核心，你是否已從生命中的背叛恢復，願意敞開心靈；或因此而蜷縮封閉，深怕再受傷害。

我想知道你是否可以正視痛苦，與它共處，我的或你自己的，而不需要躲藏、淡化、偽裝或修飾。

我想知道你是否能與喜悅共處，我的或你自己的。你是否能與狂野共舞，讓狂喜浸淫你全身，穿透每個指尖，不再心存戒慎恐懼，不再要求實際務實，忘記身為人類的限制。

我對你所告訴我的事是否真實不感興趣。我想知道，你是否能為忠於自己而讓他人失望；是否能背負他人對你背叛的指控，但求不背叛自己的靈魂；你是否能拋卻信仰，而仍值得信任。

我想知道每一天，你是否能在不美之處看見美麗，你是否能成為自己生命的源頭。

我想知道你是否與失敗共存，你的和我的，而且仍然願意站在湖邊，向天上銀色的圓月高喊，「是的，我絕不放棄。」

我對你住在哪裡，有多少錢並不感興趣。我想知道，在經過了整夜的哀傷沮喪，身心疲憊到了極點，你是否仍能起身，為了孩子，盡你該盡的養家活口的責任。

我對你認識誰，或你如何來到這裡不感興趣。我想知道，你是否會與我一起，站在火的中央而不退縮。

我對你在哪裡，學什麼，和誰學不感興趣。我想知道，當這一切都煙消霧散，是什麼在你內心支撐著你。

我想知道，你是否能與自己獨處，你是否真的喜歡在你空虛時陪伴的同伴。