Blowing
the Stack
“On
a personal level, I believe that we are all capable of improvement.
We can transform ourselves. If, for example...you were to spend a few
minutes everyday thinking about and trying to develop compassion,
eventually compassion, the essence of spiritual practice, will become
part of your life. When that happens I am convinced that not only
will your life be happier but you will also make a direct
contribution to peace and happiness in the world as a whole.”
His
Holiness the Dalai Lama
Yesterday
was a day of pure frustration. The planets were out of alignment, the
gods were not happy, and wrath rained down in sheets upon this
mountain. And it was all due to our precious technology. First
the television reception faltered, leaving those who wanted to watch
'their shows' in the dark. One of our party, the most cool and level
headed (NOT I!) spent hours on the phone with tech support to get it
back in order.
Then,
in a separate but equal conflagration, the internet dropped out of
existence. With seven 'connected' women here, some who had to be
available to work/school, that was not a good thing. So our prudent and kind-hearted friend spent more hours—many more hours—on the phone
with yet another cohort of techno-geeks only to be flummoxed at every
turn. We still do not have internet access, so I will be trekking
down to Starbucks to post today. At nine-thirty last night Ma Bell's
minions said they would have to dispatch a technician to 'assess the
problem' sometime today. In short, yesterday was a technological
black hole into which we all fell.
When
I'm in a black hole, I am not compassionate. Had I been the one
trying to communicate with the support folks, I would have singed
their eyebrows with vitriolic rage and thrown the flat-screen and
every single laptop in the house off the side of this mountain.
Fortunately for the world, I was not in charge. It was a beautiful
day and the autumn colors are beginning to peak, so I went for long
walks and thought calming thoughts. I can't say I managed to conger
compassion, but at least I didn't draw blood. Progress is progress,
don't you think?
I
pray that your day is free of frustration and that you will be able
to practice compassion in all that you do. Pray for me, too. I'll try
not to rip the AT&T technician in unspeakable places, which I
think, all in all, is pretty darn compassionate.
In
the spirit,
Jane
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