The Buddamom

AUGUST NEWSLETTER

In 4 days I will have been on this earth 53 years,

and today I stand in utter not-knowing,

putting one foot in front of another,

striving only to do no harm

as I pass through this darkness.

But you, dear child of my heart,

are at the beginning of your years of service.

I see your life stretch before you like an unsolved puzzle,

I see it stretch you beyond your imagined limits,

rip away at what you thought was real,

what you thought things would look like,

should look like.

I sit helplessly near your pain

only able to extend a hand in friendship,

and remember alongside you that this pain

is a natural part of the human condition,

that this pain, like all other things, is impermanent,

and that the self that feels the pain

changes in each moment

leaving us free to renew our way of being in this world.

Dukka, annica, annata.

Maybe there is some fresh air in this constantly changing reality.

I wish I could anoint your body with lavender and roses,

and like a mother kissing a fresh wound,

make all pain magically disappear.

Perhaps a moment of awareness could do this

much better than anything I can ever say.

May you be safe in this uncertain world,

May you find humor and self-forgiveness

In the middle of anger and desperation,

May you love and care for your body,

Regardless of how busy you are.

May you go through your day with awareness,

regardless of circumstances,

May you be free.

Each moment your are born anew.

This is my birthday wish for you.

Jacqueline