Shundo David Haye – Zen Priest

Teaching People

So my week of diverse teachings has come and gone, and left me with a mild sickness, along with a general feeling of satisfaction. 

Last Thursday. I set off out of town early, along the mostly peaceful 280, to the fog of Skyline, and a place I had passed many times on my bike (I get more nostalgic in my next Patreon post tomorrow). The plan was for us to do a standing meditation outside, as the sun rose over the trees lining the side of the steep canyon. At the end, the group of twenty or so rushed off to breakfast; I didn’t get much feedback, so was a little unsure how my words on the theme (of relating and connection) had landed. 

The deck we used for the meditation – though we did not tackle the labyrinth.

Sunday at Green Gulch felt much more like a home run. Again, I got out of the city early, and it was an unusually glorious day (more on that below). We had a dozen folks and a loose plan, which meant I could relax with what I was saying, and enjoy the times of silent zazen. When the group broke up into small groups before lunch, I ran into Nadia outside, and we caught up on the gossip. I saw a number of old friends out there, including a former regular at Roaming Zen who volunteers at Green Gulch every weekend now. 

By the end of the session, which I wrapped up with a few one-on-one chats, I was feeling a little wiped out from being “on” for a number of hours, and my throat was a little dry. It might have been the wood smoke from the fire that had been thoughtfully set in the Wheelwright Center; or perhaps something in the new electric rental car fabric or ventilation; or allergies; or maybe I just picked something up from someone.

I disturbed a garter snake as we walked around the garden after lunch.

Over the next few days, it turned into a cold and then a cough – not Covid, at least as far as yesterday. I didn’t feel sick, and was able to go down to Alchemy for the only public session out of these, where we had a half-dozen in the wonderful space, and I got to imbibe some more of the energy that is getting that place launched, with ideas for collaborations in the near future.  Plus a few rounds of the sauna and the cold plunge before heading home.

I was ready to get out of the cold plunge when I was asked to pose.

Today I have an afternoon wedding in the city, and a roam tomorrow. I think I have the energy for those things.

Unusually for the time of year, the weather has been rather dreary on the whole, with clouds and a chilly northerly wind persisting. Even on some of the warmer sunny afternoons the heat dissipated by the evening. A couple of Sundays ago I had a free day and was looking forward to a long ride, but when I checked the forecast before I got ready, it announced rain for the next hour, so I decided to stay at home and watch Liverpool win the Premier League instead. Last weekend I had two cloudy mornings of riding, and wished I could have been out on the Sunday – though of course I was glad to be at Green Gulch in the fine conditions. We have had a couple of warmer days this week, but there is still rain threatening next week…

The one really warm evening, on Monday, when we sat on the bench at the top of the street and watched the world go by. I sent the picture to a friend from England who had been excited to see Waymos in LA. They are somewhat old-hat over here now.

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