Droplets from "the places that scare you" by Pema Chodron

I took action, yay, and bought myself the book, only £1.50 second hand, I'm pretty easy to please :-) Already on page 1 there were two quotes I wanted to share so I kept a running collection of them, which is why this blog post has taken a while to materialize.

It is very much a book centred around Buddhist teaching, so if that's not for you, maybe you wouldn't enjoy this book. However I'd recommend it any way, for as Suzuki Roshi is quoted as saying at the start on having an open mind - " In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert's there are few".

As a beginner, the book contains a fair few concepts that I've not been able to get my head round. I have a friend who may be willing to help me understand the Buddhist teachings better than I managed on my own reading of this book. Lots to think about tho. And she writes: "If we put it [a drop of water] on a rock in the sunshine, it will soon evaporate. If we put it in the ocean, however, it will never be lost. Thus the wish is made that we not keep the teachings to ourselves but use them to benefit others"
Now of course technically nothing is ever lost in the closed water cycle, it merely converts to another form. But I like how it can symbolise for us that putting our learning alongside that of others is better than staking it out as exclusively our own.

There's lots on how we create fear as we seek stability rather than accept how things are, in a constant state of change. As she says, "there is no cure for hot and cold." Later in the book there's a similar call to seek equanimity rather than be pulled to hope or fear. I've had to reexamine already my predilection towards hope so this interests me. I understand what she is saying, that we can get caught in a cycle of attraction and aversion, and can see merit in "the vast mind that doesn't narrow reality into for and against"

In the chapter on strength I like her call to a "commitment to use our lives to dissolve the indifference, aggression and grasping that separates us from one another... to respect whatever life brings... to use discomfort as an opportunity for awakening, rather than trying to make it disappear". The end of the book focuses on our pull towards comfort. It's been interesting, but has taken some effort. I already have my next non fiction book lined up, "The love languages of God" by Gary Chapman. I wonder if you'll get to hear about that too?

Enigma

Note to self: whilst I want to keep watching films that raise vital social justice issues, these are best watched when there is then time to channel my outrage, rather than me try to sleep after. It's not even the first time I've watched The Imitation Game, and I rarely watch films twice. Once again I'm appalled, upset, and so angry. And of course I can't guarantee I would have stood up against homophobia or slavery even tho I'd like to think I would; and there are no doubt atrocities happening right now that I'm turning a blind eye to that future generations will ask why didn't I act.
The current book group book, Homegoing, is horrific too, about the treatment of black people throughout history. Right now I'm feeling pretty disgusted with how so many of us treat others. We still have a lot to learn.

Sensitivity

You may remember that I like to be warm, frequently to be found in at least one scarf and a big fan of the unexpectedly large amount of heat generated by candles. Thankfully it's a mild weekend to have a boiler on the blink, but I'm still missing it. At 14 degrees in my room, that's enough to spark a headache, so as soon as my girly heads to her dad's I'm going to acquire the oil radiator from her room to take the chill off mine.
I really don't know how people on the street physically survive, and indeed I'm aware that many do not. When I get overly cold I can feel my body starting to shut down. I know some people don't register temperature so intently, I see them out in shorts no matter what the wind chill factor. Is it to do with our varying regulation systems? Maybe I'm just a sensitive soul?
I know I'm sensitive on the emotional front (probably not news to anyone) and have been particularly moved by the last two films I've chosen, crying copious amounts even for me. I'd highly recommend both - Lion, and The Shack. Identifying strongly with the feelings of loss by a parent in both cases, I found them really powerful. Watch them and weep :-)