Existing and laughing

How did it feel to wander into work after six peaceful days?

A stranger in a strange land. A wild animal trapped in a zoo filled with melancholic humans, desperate to pass...desperate to get a life. How, as a small Zen monk comfortable with the consciousness, shifting into a zone of peace, I was a ghost in the floating world.

How when someone asked me how I was I replied, "I am existing. Here. Now."

How, maybe this awareness, this small utterance connected their reality with an image, a feeling of inner stillness. How, like a bolt of lightning, my voice articulated the reality allowing them to see the futility of grasping.

"Yes," I said, "I find it peculiar to see and hear people still trapped in their own personal fear, anger, manic behaviors, and attitudes. How I dreamed some of them might have, during the recent retreat, used their time to meditate, to slow down, adjust, adapt, and evolve their direction, motivation and intention as a new year, a new beginning allows everyone the freedom to develop deeper meaningful and beautiful relationships.