Do You Blame The Lettuce?

“When you plant lettuce, if it does not grow well, you 
don't blame the lettuce. You look for reasons it is not 
doing well. It may need fertilizer, or more water, or 
less sun. You never blame the lettuce. Yet if we have 
problems with our friends or family, we blame the other 
person. But if we know how to take care of them, they will 
grow well, like the lettuce. Blaming has no positive 
effect at all, nor does trying to persuade using reason 
and argument. That is my experience. No blame, no 
reasoning, no argument, just understanding. If you 
understand, and you show that you understand, you can 
love, and the situation will change” - Thich Nhat Hanh

Eternal Oneness

“Consider your own place in the universal oneness of which we are all a part, from which we all arise, and to which we all return.” - David Fontana

Complete Presence

“Who we are now is all that really matters.”  - Amy Joy

Today's Short Story: Rain or Shine

There was once an old lady who cried all the time. Her elder daughter was married to an umbrella merchant while the younger daughter was the wife of a noodle vendor. On sunny days, she worried, "Oh no! The weather is so nice and sunny. No one is going to buy any umbrellas. What will happen if the shop has to be closed?" These worries made her sad. She just could not help but cry. When it rained, she would cry for the younger daughter. She thought, "Oh no! My younger daughter is married to a noodle vendor. You cannot dry noodles without the sun. Now there will be no noodles to sell. What should we do?" As a result, the old lady lived in sorrow everyday. Whether sunny or rainy, she grieved for one of her daughters. Her neighbors could not console her and jokingly called her "the crying lady."

One day, she met a monk. He was very curious as to why she was always crying. She explained the problem to him. The monk smiled kindly and said, "Madam! You need not worry. I will show you a way to happiness, and you will need to grieve no more."

The crying lady was very excited. She immediately asked the monk to show her what to do. The master replied, "It is very simple. You just need to change your perspective. On sunny days, do not think of your elder daughter not being able to sell umbrellas but the younger daughter being able to dry her noodles. With such good strong sunlight, she must be able to make plenty of noodles and her business must be very good. When it rains, think about the umbrella store of the elder daughter. With the rain, everyone must be buying umbrellas. She will sell a lot of umbrellas and her store will prosper."

The old lady saw the light. She followed the monk's instruction. After a while, she did not cry anymore; instead, she was smiling everyday. From that day on she was known as "the smiling lady."

(A story from the scripture, as told by Venerable Master Hsing Yun)

"The practice is to train yourself to stop--stop running after all these things.  Even if you don't have irritation, anger, fear, or despair, you're still running with this or that project, or this or that line of thinking, and you're not at peace.  So even (or especially) at those times when you have no problem at all, train yourself to be here, to be relaxed, to stop, to come back to the wonder of the present moment." - Thich Nhat Hanh

What is YOUR World Cup?

As the FIFA World Cup ended on Sunday I cannot help but let my mind wonder.  Watching sports has become a little more difficult for me lately--although I still love them--as I see people living their dream and doing what they love and it makes me wonder why I am not doing that more often.  Although my life is completely perfect in this second, I know there are certain things in life I must do and places I must go.  Those will require risks, but letting them unfold should not cause much mental strain, what they should do is happen easily once I commit.

Seeing all of the teams in the World Cup compete was an absolute joy.  Whether it was a team that did not make it far into the tournament or if it was Germany that won the entire thing, every single team was able to enter the biggest tournament in the World and compete at the highest level.  All of which created a frenzy in their respective countries and made so many millions of people feel the joy of watching their country represented.  Every player on every team got to perform on the biggest stage in the world, under the brightest lights and have an incredible time seeing their hard work come to fruition simply by competing in the tournament.

So, this begs the question:  What is your World Cup?

What are you working on or thinking of working on that you can commit to and when its all over you can say, "This is my dream and I gave it my all."

That is a question I know I need to ask myself more often.  Maybe you can ask yourself the same question and the only advice I could give is to more of the things that you love to do.

What do you Have in Common With the Entire Universe?

Not only ARE you the entire universe, but you share a very important trait that is deep within you that is a reflection of the universe itself: an inherent nature of giving.  In response, it (aka EVERYTHING THERE IS) gives right back.

As you offer help to a friend, you are nourishing the universe.
As you hug a stranger, you are nourishing the universe.
When you breathe slowly, you are nourishing the universe.
When you show patience, you are nourishing the universe.
When you tend your garden, you are nourishing the universe.
When you help support a farmer, you are nourishing the universe.
When you clean your surroundings, you are nourishing the universe.
With every smile you give, you are nourishing the universe.
With every act of kindness you give, you are nourishing the universe.

Just as when you give air on your exhaling breath and you receive air on your inhalation, when you nourish the universe it will nourish you in response.

When a friend helps YOU, the universe is nourishing you.
With a stranger hugs YOU, the universe is nourishing you.
With every drink of water or juice, the universe is nourishing you.
With every hug, the universe is nourishing you.
With light from the sun, the universe is nourishing you.
With the drops of rain, the universe is nourishing you.
With the flow of the rivers, the universe is nourishing you.
As water from those same rivers evaporate and form clouds, the universe is nourishing you.
As the clouds drops its rain again, the universe is nourishing you.
With meditation, the universe is nourishing you.
When every breath, the universe is nourishing you.
With every step, the universe is nourishing you.

You do so much already to help nourish everything outside and inside of you.  There may be ideas that you have to expand your reach and spread that gratitude even further, so go ahead and explore.   Whether it is with a positive attitude or by participating in a particular practice such as meditation or simply by smiling more often to strangers and being a little more patient, go for it. Whatever it is that you choose, the universe will surely reciprocate those feelings.

Please share if you have any ways you feel nourished by all that is within and by all that surrounds.

Enjoy this day, my friends!