...Another opportunity for deepening... ~ Buddhist thought for the day

"As a basis for change, we need to recognize that as long as we live in this world,
we will encounter problems, things that obstruct the fulfillment of our goals. If, when these happen, we lose hope and become discouraged, we diminish our ability to face these difficulties. If, on the other hand, we remember that not just we but everyone has to undergo suffering, this more realistic perspective will increase our determination and our capacity to overcome troubles. By remembering the suffering of others, by feeling compassion for others, our own suffering becomes manageable. Indeed, with this attitude, each new obstacle can be seen as yet another valuable opportunity to improve our mind, another opportunity for deepening our compassion! With each new experience, we can strive gradually to become more compassionate; that is, we can develop both genuine sympathy for others' suffering and the will to help remove their pain. As a result, our own serenity and inner strength will increase."  

~ His Holiness the Dalai Lama

(from The Compassionate Life)

Every day, it's another headline, another spiral, 

another argument online between sides. 

And I keep looking for ways to make sense of it all;

ways to give despair some meaning beyond hopelessness,

somewhere more opportunities for deepening. 

There are so many arguments 

that may seem to make sense in our rage 

but only add more flame to the fire. 

So.

This.

Compassion. 

This thing that fuels understanding...

this thing that makes us see with our hearts...

that makes us step outside of ourselves...

that gives us a sense of peace.

This. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

What Matters Most~ Buddhist Thought for the day

"Each morning we are born again.

What we do today is what matters most." 

~Buddha

Have been on a little end-of-summer hiatus. Please excuse my absence.

I was looking for a Buddhist quote about time and found this. 

It is such a gift to remember that today

---and the present moment---

are what really matter most. 

Eckhart Tolle calls the present moment

the main portal into spiritual awakening.

Every morning that I awake,

I try to make connecting with the divine

the first thing I do. 

My morning meditation is often about maintaining that connection,

staying in the present

and then setting my intentions. 

But it can often become filled with the minutiae of my day.

That movement of gently bringing thoughts back to the present 

is what I need to fill my day with.

I mean really, if the minutiae insists on being part of my meditation,

then my meditation should insist on horning in on the minutiae. 

Let's just try that for awhile. 

What they call mindfulness. 

May your day be filled with peace 

and presence. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen

Taken in Sonoma, CA.) 

The Secret of Health~ Buddhist thought for the day

I had a different post scheduled for this week

but the untimely death of a certain public figure

and beautiful, tortured human being

as well as the recent diagnosis of a family illness

left me with the need for something different. 

Monday, August 11th,

was also the birthday of a beloved friend

who would have been 51

but was taken from us,

fighting all the way,

at 26. 

So I went in search of Buddhist quotes 

as I sometimes do. 

"The secret of health for both mind and body

is not to mourn for the past,

nor to worry about the future,

but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly."

~Buddha

Today's quote is so basic

but a real reminder that when we spend our precious energy

on rehashing the past or worrying about the future,

our bodies don't have their full energy potential for healing and staying healthy. 

And usually, rehashing and worrying

are filled with toxic, negative emotional components

that also destroy our ability to heal. 

Being in the present

gives our bodies all the attention they deserve

and the energy they need. 

And since the present moment is really the only thing we truly have,

we might as well be living it to the fullest. 

Take a moment today,

maybe even more than one,

and spend it in gratitude just for this one particular moment

and the beauty around you,

your friends, your family,

and the love that encompasses you

through the grace of God and the universe. 

Feel that peace. 

And wish that soul (among so many others)

who just chose to leave us

a breathy, beautiful farewell

and that same peace. 

My hope is that my friend is there to greet him,

these two who both so loved the same city.

That they still feel the love we send them

and know how much joy they brought to us

and that they keep each other giggling 

with their funny characters and voices. 

Miss you both.

Til we meet again. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen

Lithia Park, Ashland, Oregon)

Constant Flux~ Buddhist Thought for the Day

"Buddhism holds that everything is in constant flux.

Thus the question is whether we are to accept change passively

and be swept away by it

or whether we are to take the lead 

and create positive changes on our own initiative. 

While conservatism and self-protection 

might be likened to winter, night and death, 

the spirit of pioneering 

and attempting to realize ideals 

evokes images of spring, morning and birth." 

~Daisaku Ikeda 

Let's go for spring, morning and birth.

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen

Taken at Portland Japanese Gardens in Oregon)

Victory Comes ~Buddhist Thought for the Day

(Photo from the Portland, OR Japanese Gardens)

"Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines,

but it is to the one who endures

that the final victory comes." ~ Buddha

I'm back from the Whidbey Island Marathon,  

 where I walked 13.1 miles in my very first half marathon.

It was a lovely Girls' weekend with fabulous women,

good food, gorgeous weather and a beautiful course. 

I had more pain than expected   

(due to a pesky, slightly weighted fanny pack) 

but made it across the finish line. 

Now I can't wait for next year! 

And am thinking about doing the Happy Girls Half Marathon 

in Sisters, Oregon in November.

A friend is on his way to Boston

to run one more Boston Marathon

after last year's tragic event. 

Sending out endurance energy and good thoughts!

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen) 

Triple Truth~ Buddhist thought for the day

"Teach this triple truth to all: 

A generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service 

and compassion are the things which renew humanity." 

~Buddha

Sometimes in the presence of other egos,

especially those vexatiously engaging mine,

I lose my way and need this reminder. 

I'm still working on being loving, kind, compassionate and generous

in the face of such egoism.  

I cannot just remove myself 

because they are clearly my life lesson

so will find me wherever I go. 

So I continue prayer and meditation

in the hopes that something will one day work;

that my thin skin will bolster up;

that offense will not be taken

(no matter how aimed),

and that my heart will be generous and compassionate. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen

Vaux de Cernay Abbaye, France)

Clinging and loss~ Buddhist Thought for the Day

"You only lose what you cling to."

~Gautama  Buddha

I'm clinging to summer

maybe because it's the last day of August,

the sun is setting sooner and my flowers are tired. 

Even though summer started early in the Pacific Northwest,

it's still gone faster than I can wrap my head around. 

Since mid-August, 

I've felt the head of fall rearing itself 

and instead of feeling grateful for all those long, luscious summer days,

I'm mourning the end of them. 

I know we'll have plenty more beautiful days coming to us

but I can't stop feeling sad for the end of them. 

This is where the 'being in the present moment' idea comes in handy. 

And the quote above. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen) 

A single flower~Buddhist Thought for the Day

"If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly,
our whole life would change." 
~Siddhartha


I feel this sometimes like the ripple of a fish that has jumped but you missed it
and all that's left is the tiny portal through which it came and went and,
in a split moment, is gone and you wonder if it actually happened.

The beauty of our every day world gets so lost in the hustle and kerfuffle
of worries about money, jobs, lack of time
(not since I was a teenager has it been about too much time),
those 'time-saving' techno-gadgets and their constant maladies
and the physical energy for handling and maintaining all of the above.

So take a moment,
gaze at a flower.
It's that perfect season, they're everywhere.
See it for what it is...
a miracle.
Then find more of them in your world.
I promise,
you won't have to look far.
Just tap your sparkly red shoes.



(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Love Life~ Buddhist Thought for the Day

"Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions." 

~The Dalai Lama

I always come back to the phrase, "The Power is in the present moment." 

Reflecting on this over the years, 

sometimes I understand it and sometimes I don't. 

But I think it is about choice,

our own choices being the only ones that can make us happy... or not.

In each given moment. 

Not always an easy task, holding and pocketing the present moment, 

making it shiny with our worn fingertips,

but always...leading us to our future

and pointing to our destiny.

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen

Haight-Ashbury, San Francisco)

Faith is Nourishment~ Buddhist thought for the Day

"On life's journey faith is nourishment, 

virtuous deeds are a shelter, 

wisdom is the light by day

and right mindfulness is the protection by night. 

If a man lives a pure life,

nothing can destroy him." 

~Buddha

It's been a whirlwind, in and out of town

for both the most difficult of family times, to the best of times and back again. 

Right after my father-in-love passed, 

I flew to Park City to join my father's birthday bash/family reunion in progress, 

then back this week for the extended family memorial service. 

An emotional roller coaster to say the least. 

I liked this quote because it exemplified exactly what everyone has been saying 

about my father in law. 

He is still with us. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)  

Beauty and fearlessness in simplicity~ Buddhist Thought for the Day

"The only reason we don't open our hearts and minds to other people 

is that they trigger confusion in us that we don't feel brave enough 

or sane enough to deal with. 

To the degree that we look clearly and compassionately at ourselves,

 we feel confident and fearless about looking into someone else's eyes." 

~ Pema Chodron 

What would that feel like to look fearless into someone else's eyes? 

Or, for that matter, into our own? 

I took this photo in Point Reyes, Ca., a couple of years ago

and it reminds me of the spectacular beauty of simplicity. 

Look in your own eyes today

and see that beauty.

Then look in another's. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Thousands of Candles...~ Buddhist Thought for the Day ~

Photo via Pinterest

"Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, 

and the life of the candle will not be shortened.

Happiness never decreases by being shared.

I teach one thing and one only: that is, suffering and the end of suffering.

Just as a mother would protect with her life her own son, her only son,

so one should cultivate an unbounded mind towards all beings, and loving-kindness towards all the world.

One should cultivate an unbounded mind, above and below and across, without obstruction, without enmity, without rivalry.

Standing, or going, or seated, or lying down, as long as one is free from drowsiness, one should practice this mindfulness. 

This, they say, is the holy state here."

~Sutta Nipata

One of ma belle soeurs got me to a yoga class this past weekend and it's been way too long. 

I even did a 75 minute session on my own at home this morning 

which almost never happens. 

There is just something about that mindfulness (all by itself) 

but especially combined with the strengthening and lengthening and focus on the body. 

Mind/body focus.

I'm determined that this start will put me back on the yoga mat on a more regular basis. 

And while I don't do a long meditation every single day (like I'd prefer) , 

I do find that a few minutes several times a day is still tremendously helpful. 

Love that term: 'An unbounded mind.' 

And 'happiness never decreases by being shared.' 

Too often we share the opposite. 

What if every single day, 

we opted to share happiness through an unbounded mind?! 

What would the world look like? 

Inviting You To Go Deeper~ Buddhist Thought for the Day

"I am inviting you to go deeper, to learn and to practice

 so that you become someone who has a great capacity for

 being solid, calm, and without fear, because our society needs people 

like you who have these qualities, and your children, our children, need people 

like you, in order to go on, in order to become solid, and calm, and without fear."

~Thich Nhat Hanh

I love this quote because it reminds us that our journey is not just for ourselves

but also for those who look up to us, who follow us, learn from and imitate us.

Children look to us for how best to get along in this world

whether we are their parent, teacher, or friend. 

As Joseph Campbell once said, 

"It is by going down into the abyss that we recover the treasures of life."

They need to know, as do we, that life is filled with heartaches,

and the best life is not one without heartache or failure

but the one in which we find the treasure in every difficulty. 

(Photo: San Francisco Japanese Tea Garden)

(Copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Nurture selfless thoughts~ Buddhist Thought for the Day

"We are formed and molded by our thoughts. Those whose minds are shaped by selfless thoughts give joy when they speak or act. Joy follows them like a shadow that never leaves them."
-- Buddha

I've been creating my own little Japanese garden space and the more I add to it, the more joy it inspires. Yes, a little messy, off balance, not quite like the prototypes...but that's because it's made by me. Some might easily recognize these traits. All I know is when I sit on the boulder just across the patio and stare at it, I find myself in a meditative state with a smile. And joy. 


Today, nurture selfless and joyous thoughts. Who doesn't want joy shadowing them?! 

Touching Life and Deeply Alive~Buddhist Quote

"Only in the present moment can we touch life and be deeply alive." 

~Thich Nhat Hanh

This is the quote for September
in my Thich Nhat Hanh calendar
and on this last day of the month, I'm sharing it with you.

I've been rereading (and listening to) Eckhart Tolle's
'The Power of Now' 
and the exquisite truth to this touching life and being deeply alive quote
is sometimes very hard to grasp.

We spend an inordinate amount of precious time in our lives in the past and the future,
in some way always focused on some conversation, slight, or fun or unhappy experience long since passed.
Or else we linger, dwelling in positive or negative anticipation of some future event.
I even find myself having future conversations in my head,
words I have yet to speak with someone (usually when I'm angry).


I've always wondered why certain childhood memories are so powerful
and why I so strongly feel the need to be with them again through mind or travel.
As I do more meditation and TRY to spend more time in the powerful present moment,
(they don't call it a Practice for nothing)
I think I've realized that those childhood memories are so commanding
exactly because, at that time, I was so alive with the present.
Nothing else mattered but that moment, that beauty, that light-filled meadow
because I was so deeply in the present moment with no other worries.
As adults with so many responsibilities and commitments, vows, pledges and promises,
we learn to function constantly in a multi-tasking frame of mind,
always concerned with what we've done, said or must do.

Meditation allows us, even if just for a few brief moments during the day,
to be free from the overwhelming, manic, monkey-mind that constantly plagues us.
Just for a few minutes today, while you're sitting (or standing- anytime, anywhere),
stop the chatter of what happened or what's to come
and focus on your breath.

"In, I am breathing in...
Out, I am breathing out."

Tomorrow, give the breath just a few more moments of precious time-free time.
Keep extending it just a little longer.
Or do it a few more times.

And watch what happens to your body, your surroundings, the people you come in contact with.
Make this very moment as powerful as your greatest memory.
Like a child,
touching life and deeply alive.

~Photo from Pinterest~

Buddhist Quote~ Two Mistakes Along the Road to Truth...

"There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth,

not going all the way, and not starting."

~Buddha

There's an obvious theme running here in my Buddhist quotes these days,

Truth.

I find that I cannot do without it in my relationships. 

Not truth as weapon but as healing, creative energy; 

to be allowed to birth one's truth,

to hear and feel the refreshing ripples in waves of honesty,

not the dead, dank air of a storage locker where tired, used old phrases 

and unspoken rules lay covered, waiting in mossy darkness. 

But a sharing as exquisitely rich and lush as the blessed song of any mountain stream 

or the tiny, flapping wings of a sun-drenched, blossoming meadow. 

Truth can be difficult, painful, heartbreaking,

but like the stretching of birth,

it can bring joy, creation, forward motion.

Magic. 

Total Eclipse of the Moon~Buddhist Thought for the Day

"Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth."

~ Hindu Prince Gautama Siddharta

I chose this quote today not only because it spoke to me personally

but also in honor of the lunar eclipse happening this week. 

According to Susan Miller (via AstrologyZone.com),
Eclipses "shine the bright light of truth",
"act as brilliant illuminators",
"are especially effective at revealing someone's character or true motivations".

They "have a way of changing perspective...
as though a puzzle piece suddenly fell from the sky, right into your hands",
"bring unexpected changes of direction",
"play with our sense of time by compressing it and speeding things up".

With three eclipses in a row (each two weeks apart~ one on June 1st ~solar~,
another on the 15th ~lunar~ and another coming on July 1st ~solar again~,
it could be a BIG month of changes and/or illumination.
That's a lot of alignment among our 'time planets' too.

If you're experiencing a lot of change or emotional upheaval right now, don't worry.
The eclipses just rattle our foundations a little (or a lot, as the case may be)
and force us to make changes we might not have otherwise made,
get us out of that rut, nudge us on to the next level.
They call it evolving and we all get to do it.
Just take care of your health, and
hold on to your hats just in case
 the floodgates may
be opening.

Ok, now that we've been forewarned,
I'm ready (especially for that puzzle piece).
Are you?


~For more information on eclipses,
read Susan Miller's entire article on
How To Deal with Eclipses~

Each Moment is a Gem~ Buddhist Thought for the Day

"Each moment you are alive is a gem. You only need to breathe gently for the miracles to be displayed." ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

The birthday card my aunt sent this year

had this sentiment on it. Little did she know, the Buddhist calendar The Chef got me for Christmas

had this very sentiment for the month of February. So when I read it, I knew I'd seen it before and I needed to pay attention. 

A friend of ours from Greece survived colon cancer

and his daily motto is:

"Each day is a gift!" 

And each motto reminds me of the other. 

Wishing you the miraculous gift of every single day!

(Photography copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Constant Flux~ Buddhist Thought for the Day

(Photograph copyright: Kirsten Steen)

“Buddhism holds that everything is in constant flux. Thus the question is whether we are to accept change passively and be swept away by it or whether we are to take the lead and create positive changes on our own initiative. While conservatism and self-protection might be likened to winter, night, and death, the spirit of pioneering and attempting to realize ideals evokes images of spring, morning, and birth.” ~ Daisaku Ikeda

Needed to hear this today. And I'll take spring, morning and birth!

Tripping over Clouds~Buddhist Thought for the Day

"Fixed ideas are like a wisp of cloud or smoke, but nonetheless people find themselves blocked or captured by these. You would laugh if you saw someone tripped by a cloud, or if someone claimed that they were imprisoned by the air. But, in fact, people are endlessly being trapped by things no more substantial than air or clouds. They make a wall with their mind, and then it imprisons them.

Inherently, there is no wall or anything to trip over. These things are mirages they've created from the thoughts they gave rise to. Do not insist upon your own fixed ideas. Your persistence is your own narrow mind. If your mind is broad, it can easily embrace the entire world. However, if your mind is narrow, even a needle cannot enter. You have to keep letting go of your stubbornness, and always be deeply respectful of all life and things. This is returning to and relying upon the Buddha-Dharma. This is also how to become a free person. Always be humble. Be humble. The fragrance of your broad and generous mind will warm others' hearts." ~Zen Master Daehaeng, No River to Cross: Trusting the Enlightenment that's Always Right Here

I love this quote. It reminds me that my thoughts and judgements about other's behavior are just that, my own thoughts and judgements which keep my mind narrow. Still working on the 'fragrance' of my 'broad and generous mind'. Trying to remember humility and compassion.

(From ViewonBuddhism.org)