The Open Heart Cafe: Closed on Sundays.

The first principal of buddhism according to Kornfield says: "See the inner nobility and beauty of all human beings."  Illustrating this principal is a quote from Thomas Merton:  "The saints are what they are, not because their sanctity makes them admirable to others, but because the gift of sainthood makes it possible for them to admire everybody else."

It has been awhile it seems since i felt my heart truely open and receptive to and of and for the noumena and other entities around me.   The second principal of buddhism is: "compassion is our deepest nature.  It arises from our interconnectedness to all things."  Buddhism is an extremely well inter-connected organization of thought and comprehension of ways of journeying through this life.

I have practiced waking up with the intent to go through the day seeing the nobility and beauty in others.  It is not easy.  But, it is fun. And.....it most definetly softens the heart.  It most assuredly massages tender spots within one's heart.  Its easy in some ways which are surprizingly hard in others.  For me, it seems to require a combination of other practices.  Metta, right intention and for god's sake, right speech!  It's not that there are right words so much as there is a right spirit and if the spirit is right the words will be right.  Pretending to secretly be the Dali Lama is kinda cool.   Cool and easier I think than pretending to be  Jesus Christ or a vestal virgin.    And as much as doing this can supercharge the day, lighten the spirit and perhaps enlighten the mind - there is an aversion to starting each day like this.  There is within me, an aversion to being so "chirpy" and a desire to awe and shock.....Or hide from.

And still my heart feels guarded.  Not tight, not shut down, just guarded.  A little self-protective still but increasingly more clearly aware of the subtle changes and shifting of the vagueries of the heart as it navigates through the vissiccitudes of life.   I long for spring!  We all long for spring!  And still, the snow falls, and still the sunsets, and still my heart beats. 

It was the night of the Weird Pic show put on by Carson Jones.  It was cold.  I was missing the presence and warmth of the spouse, and killing time when i took this.  Since i took it i have been putting off working on it and this, perhaps only the first attempt checking in just to see what my condition is in.  "Yeah, yeah, ohhhhh yeahhhhh."