Saturday, November 12, 2016

you want to be flawless?

The mistake is politics, thinking you can manipulate things into your image.

For the imageless there is no manipulation, there is no politics.

Dogen said life is one continuous mistake.

Only the dead are flawless.

Friday, November 11, 2016

post-other; the ground of caring

Some men and women joined the military and served for a while. Some fought in combat. Some were hurt. Some died. Those that lived are honored today. It is a sober day.

At conversation tonight talk about the election, the hurt, the combat, the dishonorable comportment, and the surrogate intimidation and snarling dismissive mess that preceded and followed.

Love is attention to what is presenting itself.

Like the visit to Dana Farber I accompanied Thursday.

The attentive care from person to person.

One after the other there.

When community recognizes itself.

Thursday, November 10, 2016

Leonard (d. 10nov2016)

He tried

In his own way

To be free

Wednesday, November 09, 2016

nothing has changed

And so, it is Wednesday.


And things, remarkably, have changed. Or has it?
SLEEPWALK 
Tonight I have walked with you 
along the deaf lanes of sleep, 
and now that it is morning 
nothing has changed, 
other than that the two who during the night 
were completely together 
have left me once again this morning 
and continued together further on their way. 
(Poem by Gerrit Achterberg)

Brought back from Saskia's trip to the Netherlands, an inscription on a house.

On house in Oud Naarden, Netherlands
[You’ll have to get a precise translation for yourself.]
Dymphy translated it for Saskia something like, “ When in the midst of sorrow or difficulty, and you don’t know where to begin, be embraced by poetry.” (Willem Jan Otten)
Droomgericht 
De klok regeert de kamer, 
monotone wetten 
murmelen in den avond,
niemand kan zijn regelen verzetten, 
niemand wordt hier doorgelaten. 

Vandaag ben ik beschuldigd, 
vanavond lig ik voor't gericht. 
Stilte in de zalen, 
alleen het ademhalen 
van de kast, een moeder die mij ziet. 

Wind en regen buiten  
pleiten en verdedigen,  
wind en regen buiten 
pleiten en omsluiten 
den rechter met hun redenen. 

Rinkelend verschrikken  
minuten, minuten;  
uren hijgen voort 
en vier muren klagen 
om een enkel woord 
van vergeven vóór den morgen,  
om een antwoord van vergeven,  
om een antwoord vóór den morgen.

Gerrit Achterberg
[Translated]

Dream Judgement

The clock rules the chamber,
monotonous laws
drone on through the evening
no one can set his rulings aside,
no one escapes this room.

Today I am accused,
tonight I lie before the court.
Silence in the halls,
only the breathing
of the cupboard, a mother who sees me.

Outside, the wind and the rain
appeal and defend,
outside the wind and the rain
appeal and enclose
the judge with their reasoning.

Jerking forward with fear
the minutes, the minutes,
the hours gasp ahead
and the four walls cry
for one single word
of forgiveness before morning, 
an answer of forgiveness, 
an answer before morning.
  
Translated from the Dutch by Barry Goldensohn

Tuesday, November 08, 2016

Polls close. Now

Counting

Votes

Monday, November 07, 2016

flower offered, never grasped

ラブソング
Rabusongu
Love Song
( あ      俳句 Haiku    回想 Kaisō recollection)
頂く
Itadaku
I received

チョ・アンの
Jō An no
Jo-Ann's 

     静か
     Shizuka
     quiet

     目付き
     Shisen
     eyes

     五十
     50       
     fifty

     夏
     Natsu
     summers 

Mae
ago,

Ima
now, 

沈黙
Chinmoku
silence



...   ...   ...

Love Song

   (a Haiku recollection)


I received Jo-Ann’s

quiet eyes fifty summers 

ago,     

now,    

silence 




 

Jo-Ann

I read her death notice at 3AM.

She died, it said, Nov 2nd.

It was All Souls Day.

I was on retreat at Trappist Monastery.

In Massachusetts. She, Connecticut.

It was the nature of our friendship.




Sunday, November 06, 2016

an hour appeared

Where did that hour come from?

from Holland, an email

"Rohr reading from today says it beautifully! Perfect way to start the day. “ --

The Christification of the Universe
Sunday, November 6, 2016

 
The bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. —John 6:51
Jesus the Christ did not talk in this truly shocking way (see John 6:60) so we could worship bread and wine. He came so that we would recognize his presence in all things, not just in the human body of Jesus, not just in the human body of God’s people (1 Corinthians 12:12ff), but even in the nurturing elements of the earth, symbolized by the ubiquitous food of bread and wine (1 Corinthians 11:23ff), and therefore to the very edges of creation (Romans 8:19). The mystery that was made personal and specific in Jesus was revealed as the shape of the entire universe. [1] What else could the universe be but “the body of God”? Think about it. The Incarnate One is the stand-in for “everything in heaven and everything on earth” (Ephesians 1:10). This is not a competing religious statement as much as a highly symbolic metaphysical plan “from the beginning,” “from the foundation of the world” (see Ephesians 1).
God is not just saving people; God is saving all of creation. It is all “Real Presence.” We could call it the primordial “Christification” or anointing of the universe at Creation. This is not pantheism (God is everything), but panentheism (God is ineverything!). Such a central message of cosmic incarnation was never seriously taught in the Western, overly individualistic church, except by a few like Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179), Francis of Assisi (1181-1226), and Bonaventure (1221-1274). It was much more common in the Eastern Church, especially in early scholars and mystics like Maximus the Confessor, Gregory of Nyssa, and Symeon the New Theologian.
Inspired by the more contemporary mystic scientist, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Franciscan sister and scientist Ilia Delio writes:
Christ invests himself organically within all creation, immersing himself in things, in the heart of matter, and thus unifying the world. The universe is physically impregnated to the very core of its matter by the influence of his superhuman nature. Everything is physically “christified,” gathered up by the incarnate Word as nourishment that assimilates, transforms, and divinizes. [2]
From the way we treat the planet, other humans, and sometimes even ourselves, it seems we don’t understand or really believe this. When you don’trecognize that the Christ Mystery is universal, that God is present in—and is saving—all of creation, you can choose what you respect and what you disrespect, what you love and what you hate. The full Gospel takes away from you any power to decide and discriminate where God is and where God isn’t. The old Baltimore Catechism answered the sixteenth question, “Where is God?” quite clearly: “God is everywhere.” But we never really believed it!

Gateway to Silence:
Brother Sun, Sister Moon, help me see God in all things.


I'll vote

I'll vote, once for two things.

Point me toward the booth.

More important: how do you spell the name of the candidate standing for intelligent & kind leadership?

crossroad

Haiku 
     (for Election Day)

In two days the US

votes  In three days we will learn

What becomes of us