Shundo David Haye – Zen Priest

‘This is my first address of the winter season. Yet even now an old plum tree with many tangled branches is beginning to bloom – one, two, three, four, five, countless blossoms appear. These blossoms are not proud of their purity or fragrance. The petals fall, and it feels like spring as the wind blows through the flowers, trees, and grasses.

You monks are no doubt surprised to hear this. Suddenly, however, a great change occurs. A violent storm arises with driving rain and pounds the earth; it then turns into a blizzard, and snow covers the earth. The old plum tree endures various conditions, even freezing cold that seems to cut off its very life.’ (quoted in Shobogenzo Baike)