The Practice of Our Life

Today is the first day of September and breathing the cool air in, the thought that fills my mind is a verse from the Gateless Barrier. "A monk asked Ummon in all seriousness, What will It be when the tree withers and the leaves fall? Ummon replied Golden Wind!"

For those who don't know the expression "Golden Wind," means Autumn when leaves turn that beautiful golden color. For me, when I hear the these words, what I feel the them saying is, "We embody the season of this moment, breath by breath." The season isn't just the time of year, the season is We are in This moment. When my mind picks up on This feeling, it's very easy to feel a connection and gratitude for things big and small in Life. It's an opportunity to for 30, 40, 50, 60, 500 seconds to see past the normal clutter of my mind that can fill the day.

My teacher, Genjo Marinello Osho once told me, "For some they may not practice Rinzai Zen Buddhism. That's okay. Maybe their practice is their very life Itself." Reflecting back now, at this very moment, I feel This life, not some other life. We are breathing... sitting... walking... looking... feeling... noticing... being... experiencing... That's pretty okay. Yep, pretty darn easy to feel grateful.

Today, I'm facing what my wild-tiger mind would call some difficult challenges. But my Golden Wind mind tells me, This is our moment. This is our Now. We don't have to time travel to the past or into the future, We can just Stay here now with this moment, not running away from It, just being the practice our our life. That's the gift we can give to ourselves, moment by moment, breath by breath.

May Your Life Go Well,

Jaye Seiho Morris, curator
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