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I ran into a friend on Tuesday evening. When I saw them that said, "Do you remember _______? Well, she had adopted a special needs child. The child had a lot of medical issues. Very sad to say, she died in __________'s arms last week. I thought you should know, because You guys where good friends."

A day later in my email inbox, a link appeared to the obituary. As I read about the young ladies life, I smiled. In reading it, she really made use of her short 17 year life and it was clearly obvious that she had genuinely touched many people's lives. I was also smiling because my friend was there to love, care, nurture and support this beautiful child, when others picked a different path for themselves. Adopting the child was a truly selfless act. In fact within my mind, only a True Bodhisattva is capable of such an act.

Reflecting more deeply in Zazen, I was able to notice a seamless quality to __________'s act of compassion. Her sticking with the young lady, though the easy times and the difficult moments and no matter what happening, not giving up, doing everything that she and her own family could do. So selfless, so beautiful and all for the sake of This child and no other reason. There is no inside or outside to It. In fact, for her to love This child, there was not even a possibility of there being some so-called "other choice." And then look even further still, I felt that we all have this same "Capacity," and yet for whatever reasons, lets be honest, we don't always decide to use or apply our [vast] Buddha Nature.

On my "Bucket List," I still have not been able to cross off, "One perfect act of selflessness." Perhaps all of this Zen training is preparing me for That moment. One could only hope. I sense it out there... maybe better said, "in there" waiting. I just feel deeply fortunate that I have gifted friends such as _________, to light This path.

Namaste'

Jaye Morris, Curator
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