The Calm Corner Update, Thursday 26th March 2020

Good morning fellow meditators,

How many of you tried labelling your thoughts during your meditation yesterday? If you did. I hope you found it helpful. Do try it a few times at least, but if you find it a hindrance, just go back to watching your breath only.

One thing that meditation helps us with is reducing our attachment to things, including our thoughts.

And with that in mind, I'd like to share something with you which has its own little story.

Back in 1998, I found an online post entitled 'The Coyote, a Metaphor for the Truth of the Cause of Suffering. It really inspired me and I printed it and have kept it all these years, now crumpled and yellowed, in my meditation folder. (Though of course I've made other copies now too). The piece gave the author's name and it seemed that he was a philosophy student.

Fast forward to a couple of years ago, and I really felt driven to try to track this person down, when his essay had been so useful to me for so many years.

And I found him, online! He is now a Professor of Theology at a university in the United States. He was astounded but very pleased that this had helped me so much. He'd all but forgotten about it.

So I'm reproducing a part of it below as an illustration of what happens when we get attached and obsessed by something:

"THE COYOTE"

"Yesterday I watched a Roadrunner cartoon on TV and its Buddhist theme became very apparent.

The Coyote tried and tries, several times every episode, to catch the roadrunner (to eat him I guess). He fails every time, being exploded, crushed, falling off cliffs and all sorts of horrible things. Each time he fails, his desire to try new Acme contraptions to catch the roadrunner are fuelled even more. But he ALWAYS fails. He never catches the elusive roadrunner. He never sees that if he'd just stop trying to catch him, he could be happier and end his suffering. He just doesn't get it.

Most people are trying to catch roadrunners all the time, and just like the Coyote, they just don't get it. They blame the roadrunner for making them unhappy, when in fact it's their own fault."

-Ethan A Mills-

It hits the nail on the head. It's not just for Buddhists: it's a truth of the universe. The more we chase after something we can't catch, the more we make ourselves frustrated, angry and unhappy. So just like the monks from the story the other day, work at setting things down on the other side of the river. Let your unwanted thoughts GO.

I hope that will help a little bit with your practice.

Please all stay safe and well, and strive to be happy.

Happy meditation everyone.

[Grammy80]

I find this so helpful and can truly see and feel the difference when I take the time to acknowledge, breathe and let go. Thank you

Love the Coyote story as well...like chasing a butterfly. Namaste

[Hidden in reply to Grammy80]

Namaste Grammy80. I'm more than pleased if you are finding this helpful. I was just discussing the roadrunner and the wiley Coyote with fellow moderator Jerry. Do you remember the cartoons?

Happy meditating and take care.

[FredaE]

I though Oh I am getting careless and must have missed something!!!!

[Hidden in reply to FredaE]

Sorry FredaE! It's not you.... it's ME! Take care.

[FredaE in reply to Hidden]

You have no idea what a comfort it is that other people do things like this as well as me....take care

[Hidden in reply to FredaE]

Lol FredaE. I hope that you are taking good care too.

[FredaE in reply to Hidden]

Hi. Last summer I was outside my new partners house in Cornwall when a van drew up . Would I like home delivery of fish and other foods. I was still a stranger to the area and I don't like fish much and I did not really know what david likes to eat so I was very reluctant although I allowed him to show me quite a lot of the stuff he had on board. As I turned away I saw a picture inside the door of some lovely looking pies called Buxton pies.

It caught mye eye because we had hoped to move to Buxton together. Good salesman saw me looking and said he had a selection he could sell me a sample batch. Are they really as good as they look? Yes I can promise you they are. I like to use local firms and Cornwall is not the most prosperous part of the country and I had looked in more or less everything in the van so I said yes why not..

The pies were very good indeed and we have had further orders.

This morning a bang on the door and I opened it and shot back a safe distance to see Andy standing half way up the drive. We both thought that was a very good start to the conversation. The only way David and I will survive this business is not to catch it as we wont get a ventilator at our age however much we need one.

We said we were looking at our next order and he offerred to get us any shopping we needed as well. Half an hour later another knock and there he was grinning from the road having left a bottle of washing up liquid on the door step.. "I have disinfected it"...no I don't want payment (but we shall see about that.) There have been some awful scummy people coming to the surface but most people are lovely. please take care all of you

.Its a week since we were in contact with anyone face to faceand after another week we shall start to feel a bit safer

[Hidden in reply to FredaE]

Isn't that the most heartening thing imaginable FredaE! This dreadful event has reminded us that small is definitely more beautiful. I'm finding much more help and compassion in smaller food stores and far less panic buying and hoarding too. And we know the staff and they know us.

But that's just wonderful and you are so blessed. Cornwall can be an odd county at times and in some locations 'outsiders' are not necessarily made welcome. You are obviously living in a 'good bit'.

It's a wonderful and warming situation. I envy you!

[FredaE in reply to Hidden]

I had heard that too.i have been very careful not to come marching in as if i want to take overand I have found people very welcoming... so I must indeed be lucky here

[Hidden in reply to FredaE]

You've probably hit the nail on the head about arriving quietly and fitting in!