Shundo David Haye – Zen Priest

When I planned out my calendar a few months ago, I kept this past weekend free – I am trying to do this at least once a month just to give myself a few days’ breather and a bit of family normality. At one point it looked like it might be possible to get together for another bike ride in the north, but then I was asked to officiate a wedding on Saturday in addition to the one already scheduled for Friday afternoon.

Each wedding is its own wonderful occasion, of course, though these two were quite different in a number of ways: the first couple were older, with grown kids, and a sense of having found the right person after many ups and downs and life challenges. The second were a couple who had been together more or less since high school, with older parents, large families, and fun friends. 

Both were down the peninsula, so I had to do some driving – and have the headache of parking the car in between. I ended up paying for a garage rather than be jumping up and down to move it on a Saturday (parking in this neighbourhood is pretty tough outside of normal work hours, and on our evening walks we watch folks whizzing up the hill, nosing around, and leaving when they can’t find a spot).

In between times, I was trying to relax, but on Sunday, having managed a couple of hours on the bike before returning the rental car, I found myself falling asleep in front of a not escpecially exciting game of football. 

Ruth has also been tiring herself out, spending hours, and nights, at the hospital while her mother’s condition deteriorates. As I write on Monday, the plan is for her to be transferred to hospice care, which will at least be in walking distance rather than over in Oakland.

And so back to the normal work week, with warm sunny weather, a lack of Blue Angels due to the government shut-down (that is the only bright side to a process that could lead to me being unable to pay for health care next year if the subsidies expire).

The other news, which I could have done more to promote, is that the Tuesday morning sitting at Mukunda is now hybrid; you can click on the link to sign up to join remotely, though you are of course more than welcome to come in person if you are close enough.