Shundo David Haye – Zen Priest

‘We are constantly shoveling into our minds more things to react to; more things to think, worry, and obsess about; and more things to remember, as if our own daily lives did not produce enough on their own. The ultimate irony is that we do it to get some respite from our own concerns an preoccupations, to take our mind off our troubles, to entertain ourselves, to carry us away, to help us relax.’ (Full Catastrophe Living)

I remember that while I was living at Tassajara, I did not look at a newspaper for four months (let alone watch television or go to the cinema). When I finally did pick one up, it seemed that the same stories were still playing themselves out. I had certainly not wanted for entertainment in the mean time.