digitalZENDO

The other day I had a conversation with someone at work. It went something like this. "They say that you're Zen Buddhist. Is that true?" I said, Yes. He goes on, "I was reading some books on it in college. How would you summarize or explain Buddhism?" My response was, "Show up for This life." He asked, "Are you serious? There's got to be more to it than that. I said, "Okay, be present and show up for This life." Before he walled away with a look of disappointment he said, "Zen double speak."

Though the person thought I was probably being enigmatic, Zen mysterious or messing with him, I was actually completely serious. I'm not a Zen teacher and I'm not a Zen Master. I'm a person who happens to practice Rinzai Zen Buddhism.

What I've been to learned over the years is that there are a lot of times when plain and simple that I don't show up for life. In fact, sometimes I'm on total auto-pilot, lost in my thoughts, planning, anxiety, computer code, busy-ness. That means that I'm probably not being very mindful and not paying close attention as I could, if I was more on my game at the time. The Readers Digest version of that is, "I a zombie." I'm walking and talking but not really present, which as good as being dead.

I have mentioned here, several times that my teacher (Genjo Marinello Osho) frequently says, "Wake up, be aware, be present, pay attention, concentrate, be alert, be Mindful!" In fact I once heard Thich Nhat Hanh say, "Go back to the present moment and take good care of It." They are encouraging this instruction for a reason and it's not to kid around.

When I'm able to do that, the present and I are able to take care of each other. In fact, I feel very alive and connected, almost like I'm plugged into a vast power source. In fact many things even appear different to me and when situations arrive, I give very different responses as opposed to when I'm not in the present moment. It really effects the quality of my life.

So after nearly twenty years and saying, "Just show up and be present for This life," may not seem like I've learned much, but it sure does feel like the entire world to me. When I'm just present for a full 60 seconds, the lights are really on, and somebody is finally home.