Shundo David Haye – Zen Priest

If there is one thing that I have learned about giving dharma talks over the years, it’s that the best preparation is mental space; I had planned to wait to work on the talk until I had most of my energy back, and most of my other tasks out of the way, but in the end I just left things floating around in my head until lunchtime on Wednesday. I printed out the poem I had planned to lead with, and sketched out a sequence of ideas longhand. This managed to incorporate all the other random notes I had jotted down, so I figured I would leave it at that.

Now that I live further away from Zen Center, I have to bike over to give the talk; it was nice to be able to walk the few blocks from my old place. I arrived early enough that the zendo door had not been opened, but then I was let in by a resident, and got to see the changes from the renovation, all of which looked very impressive – and the unfinished areas. The zendo, when I walked in to check my cushion and pick up a kotsu, was bright, and somehow differently quiet, something I commented on in the talk.

Even more so than usual, I didn’t feel at all nervous, despite the presence of the two Abbots, as well as Paul and Zachary. I felt happy with how it all came out, and managed to field the questions without feeling stumped.

With that over, it feels like I just have some loose ends to tie up before we head off towards England next weekend – including reshaping the talk so I can offer some words to the Hebden Bridge group. The weather here has been warm and sunny, and will be for the next week, while England has been under a severe cold snap (much as the mid-west and east coast has), and of course LA is under siege from the wind-driven fires.