whatever
freshman year in my seminar, I learned something really interesting and beneficial and it’s finals week and I’m procrastinating so whatever sue me for sharing.
we went to a Korean Zen monastery for a class field trip and a few people there led us through a short prayer and meditation ceremony. it was raining outside, and inside the monastery it was freezing. I wore a coat and some sweats as recommended by my professor, Jonathan. there was a point where we were allowed to ask questions of the teachers, and someone asked what challenges they faced in their daily life as Zen practitioners. one lady started talking about keeping her mind in the present, and then, out of nowhere, she mentioned the cold outside. a lot of us were kind of shivering, and all she said was “yes, it’s cold outside. but when I leave here, I will go to my car, start it, and I will be warm in a few minutes. so why dwell on how cold it is?”
which leads me to this question: why do we complain, and is it worth our time, our energy, our thoughts? what benefit do we gain from these types of questions? if none, why are we still asking them?
whatever byeee