It doesn't have to be sad...

This morning I served food (eggs exactly) to the homeless people at the kitchen. There were about 180 people passing my spot with scrambled eggs on their trays. I cracked 300 of eggs before that.

When I looked at them in the eyes, most of them were neutral, some of them were disengaging, some of them were just gazing, but a few of them had sparkling in their eyes. I was especially impressed by one man. He wore a very positive demeanor and had lots of shen in his eyes. I was even energized by his bright eye sight for a brief moment in that windowless basement kitchen. That bright eyesight immediately reminded me of my friend John B. who is currently working in Africa right now. I always felt a sense of wonder and his expansive warm presence whenever I was around him.

It made me wonder what made that man stand out from my radar screen. I am guessing that a person doesn't have to be sad when he or she is in a difficult situation. There must be an innate joy and innocence in everybody. It really is not by default that we have to react with sadness when we are in a difficult situation. The innate joy, love and light, are always there and will cut through the fog.

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Rumi's poems quoted in Wikipedia

* All day I think about it, then at night I say it. Where did I come from, and what am I supposed to be doing? I have no idea. My soul is from elsewhere, I'm sure of that, and I intend to end up there. * Come, come, whoever you are. Wanderer, idolator, worshipper of fire, come even though you have broken your vows a thousand times, Come, and come yet again. Ours is not a caravan of despair. o Variant: Come, come again, whoever you are, come! Heathen, fire worshipper or idolatrous, come! Come even if you broke your penitence a hundred times, Ours is the portal of hope, come as you are. * Do not grieve. Anything you lose comes round in another form. * Every tree and plant in the meadow seemed to be dancing, those which average eyes would see as fixed and still. * Everyone has been made for some particular work, and the desire for that work has been put in every heart. * Everyone sees the unseen in proportion to the clarity of his heart, and that depends upon h...

Miyamoto Musashi's painting

One of the monochrome paintings he produced later in life "The Shrike" expresses his ultimate teaching of swordsmanship, namely, "the myriad principles are all of the Void." The insect that can be seen roughly in the middle of the painting, crawling up the branch of the withered tree, provides us with a hint of the meaning of swordsmanship hidden within the work. Ono interprets the painting as such: The Shrike is waiting for the fish in the pond. She could shake the dead branch to make the insect fall into the water which will entice fish to come out and eat the bug. Before then, the insect has eaten up all the leaves of the tree which was transformed into a dead tree. The shrike could catch the fish, and strike her catch to the other pointed branch to kill it. Thus: Fish kills worm; worm kills tree; shrike kills fish...; The unseen kills shrike; new trees grow around the dead tree; Shrike, fish, worm, dead trees all turn into fertilizer to grow the new tree. Such i...

Banana Bread

Last night it was a good cause for celebration as I made my first banana bread in my life. It is so delicious... Above all, it is so easy to make. Here is a recipe that I found online. I put it here and will try this one instead of the one from my cooking bible. Ingredients 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup butter 3/4 cup brown sugar 2 eggs, beaten 2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas (about two of them) 1 cup chopped nuts (walnuts preferred) Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs, mashed bananas, and nuts into creamed butter until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake in preheated oven for 55 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bre...

Mind activities of a Stone boy

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