Long Walks On Leafy Streets

1/14/2015 The Cemetery of Our Lady of the Snow, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
This morning we got our second round of snow. It was just a coating but nevertheless nice to see the world outside the window dressed up in white first thing in the morning. Last Tuesday on the other hand we got 3 to 5 inches of it. I went running in the snow. It wasn’t all that hard, although I did slip and fall on my behind once. Because the snow fell during rush hour the crews didn’t have enough time to clear it. The roads were full of snow and cars and trucks had to make their own path through it, except on the main roads. I ran on their tracks for the most part. I did wear my long johns and other winter wear and it kept me reasonably warm.
The polar vortex has struck again after giving us a very cold and snowy winter last year. Because of climate change the air above the arctic polar region has become warmer and unstable.
As a result the vortex of air that normally hangs out there is wandering around, reaching further south. So it has been in the twenties and thirties for the most part. They predict that it will warm up this week.
I continue my running and other activities. Meditating more has helped me calm down somewhat. I can really feel the calmness and the difference it makes. Last Sunday at the Buddhist Vihara it was my turn to lead the meditation of the Washington Mindfulness Community. We had a longer meditation. Although I had been running around during the day, visiting my sisters, I didn’t feel any difficulty in concentrating or relaxing. It is amazing how much clutter there is in the mind over the course of our daily lives. We spend so much of our time and energy thinking about things that do not help us lead a constructive existence. It feels as if I had been in a loud party and all of a sudden I stepped out into a quiet garden. I want to continue this state of mind, especially because I will be caring for another life very soon.
During Dharma discussion I told the small group of fellow practitioners of the Sangha that after many years of environmental and political activism I have come to the conclusion that arguing with people does not help. I was referring to arguments people have been having about who is to blame for the violence in France. The best way to bring about positive change in the world is by being peaceful within oneself, spreading that peace and love to others and listening deeply with compassion and understanding. There is nothing love cannot accomplish. Conversely, when you speak to anyone without love and caring, no matter how logically and morally right you might be, it will fall on deaf years. It is my New Year’s resolution this year to try and make sure that whatever I do and say comes out of a place of love and peace.
Incidentally, I got to see another side of France this past week. This was in a PBS “Nature” series documentary about the wildlife of France and what they are doing to bring it back. The stunning photography caught the beauty of the animals and the vegetation very well. I almost felt like I was breathing along with the animals. It was thrilling to watch the brown bear running with its muscles undulating, the stag galloping with its majestic antlers, the wolves prowling and the honey badgers borrowing. The birds diving gracefully into the waters or flying for hundreds of miles – I don’t know how they videotaped all of that. Someone must have been flying very close to those geese.
Watching them at such close quarters makes one feel even more empathetic. I shuddered at all the human, not to mention animal life that has been displaced or destroyed from their natural habitat in order to make place for my own existence in this nice home, with all its material comforts and the food I eat every day. The animals have a hard life. They have to survive by eating whatever they can get a hold of, and make their home wherever they find the place. Sometimes they eat their own young or siblings in order to survive. Their mating habits are also surprisingly varied. They can be tender and they can be rough too. The male turtle pretty much forces himself on the female – that is just its nature. As humans we are lucky to have evolved to the point where we care for each other (for the most part) and are tender with each other. Let us try to keep it that way.

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