We must be
The change we wish to see
In the world.
Mahatma Gandhi
Found on the paper tag hanging from a Celestial Seasonings tea bag, English Toffee flavour I think it was.
This quotation was used by my monastic colleague during her Dharma Talk today
when making the point that one endeavors to be the Precepts, to be Compassion.
(This first paragraph has been edited slightly to, hopefully, bring better orientation to the subject at hand.)
Be prepared to be shocked and informed and have light shine on the subject of physical/mental sensory perception and how messages can get wired incorrectly. Think phantom limb syndrome.
Brew a cup of tea and settle down for a long read.
Scientists once saw itching as a form of pain. They now believe it to be a different order of sensation. Its mysterious power may be a clue to a new theory about brains and bodies.
One womans harrowing story is documented in this article in the New Yorker. The excerpt below sets the stage for her journey, with an itch which went on and on and…
It was still shocking to M. how much a few wrong turns could change your life. She had graduated from Boston College with a degree in psychology, married at twenty-five, and had two children, a son and a daughter. She and her family settled in a town on Massachusetts’ southern shore. She worked for thirteen years in health care, becoming the director of a residence program for men who’d suffered severe head injuries. But she and her husband began fighting. There were betrayals. By the time she was thirty-two, her marriage had disintegrated. In the divorce, she lost possession of their home, and, amid her financial and psychological struggles, she saw that she was losing her children, too. Within a few years, she was drinking. She began dating someone, and they drank together. After a while, he brought some drugs home, and she tried them. The drugs got harder. Eventually, they were doing heroin, which turned out to be readily available from a street dealer a block away from her apartment.
The New Yorker, June 30, 2008, The Itch by Atul Gawande
Later in the article we find solutions to perception difficulties such as phantom limbs, through the use of mirrors.
One’s heart cannot but go out to ‘M’. Light a stick of incense.
Animateur:- The word is French and referrers to someone capable of presenting abstruse and complicated philosophical ideas in clear, vivid and attractive form.
I first encountered this word on top of the moors above Throssel, Northumberland. My companion used it to describe his teacher’s exceptional ability to explain Buddhism with great clarity and vision. I’d agree completely.
Now having taken a look around the Internet I see that there are people employed as Animateurs. In the case below such a person can help bring music, the understanding and appreciation of it presumably, to the general public. Perhaps to those who would not normally go and listen to classical music.
The tradition of having an animateur as an integral part of an orchestra is, curiously, British. Many orchestras in the U.K. have animateurs on staff (some are orchestra musicians and some are composers); they are musicians who are committed to community work. That’s what an animateur is, but what does one do?
An Animateur’s Journey: A report from the field
Again, Animateurs are being employed to address community issues, such as health.
Animateurs are recruited from the local community and can receive fees and training for a fixed time period. In Doncaster Health Action Zone, people were recruited from the local community to work as community health animateurs. They became involved in included community audits and delivering training on community issues. They also undertook work placements in a range of community and health organisations.
Community Scotland.
This word brings with it much food for thought, that is in terms of developing wise ways of animating Buddhism, especially here in the West. Perhaps Buddhist blogs play their part.
My time is coming to an end here in Montana. It has been a joy to walk out in the early morning as the sun rises over the mountains, and to meet many old friends too.
Many thanks to Scott for the photograph.
I’ve spent the morning thinking, reading and writing words. Answering interview questions for my blog tour. Reading and article about long time Buddhists. Replying to an email from a local artist I met yesterday, and checking out her blog which leads to more blogs, more blogs, more blogs.
Sometimes there are too many words.
I’ll be hosting Fiona July 9th on her blog tour for her new book Small Stones. You can see the contents on the blog of the same name.
Now all I need to do is come up with some questions for the interview and then set up a time for a live messaging session.