‘Be Prepared’ our motto went! Early training as a Girl Guide stands me and so many other ‘Guides’ in good stead. Perhaps especially at this time of year with festive meals, well let’s say multiple days of festive cooking. But there is a shadow side to being prepared. That’s being over prepared; with anxiety-driven days of to-do lists and recipes to ponder on. I have got a policy of not bringing recipe books out of the kitchen office however, deep breath, there is internet searching isn’t there!  And once a recipe has been found  the ingredients need to be multiplied, but by how many times? I see the ‘meal count’ at the moment stands at 23 and that should hold true for weeks to come. No coming and goings as is the case usually as we segway into January.

Ah, January 2020! Memories of so many people here to cook for the community. So many arrivals and departures. Keeping track of the meal count was a real challenge at times. And yes people were serially dropping like flies with a heavy cold/flu. Many now think, on reflection, that we had the virus Covid, early but I have my doubts.

Back to being prepared since this is very much to the fore at the moment. Yesterday, perhaps later than was good I realized, with cold clarity, repeating a mental laundry list of the multiple projects I need to be prepared for is NOT HELPING! Not helping me to actually get stuck in and prepare in an orderly way (another early-learning Girl Guide thing). So one last time and for the record there is; meal planning for six days from the 22nd, talk preparation for the New Year Retreat 28th – 1st January, ceremonial preparation for the Secular New Year Ceremony.  And then prepare for the ceremony on the 1st remembering Rev. Master Jiyu.  (January first being her day of birth, making her 90 years old this year. Had she lived on). See her Guide badges above, she was in the Heather Patrol and that’s her second class badge along with her GG badge, shamefully unpolished!

Having paused, reflected, taken refuge by writing here, having decided NOT TO vacuum my carpet! I’ll get stuck in. Activities such as dusting, taking a walk, sorting out cupboards, cleaning, while ‘good’ to do, need to be recognized for what they sometimes are.  Displacement activities! If reading this has assured or comforted you to know others can become drowned in details it has been worth writing. A post was well overdue and one of the ‘must do’s’ on my project list.

Merit to all cooks and cooking activities everywhere these holidays. It is a joy to nurture friends and family and to create beautiful meals. BTW I volunteered to cook next week. What a privilege, what a joy.

Bodhi Day, or Rohatsu which means the eighth day of the twelfth month, is this very day. Traditionally in Mahayana Buddhism Rohatsu is the day we celebrate the Buddha’s Enlightenment and in Zen, we generally end the week-long Rohatsu Sesshin (intensive retreat) at midnight on the 8th. For a number of reasons our retreat here at Throssel ends on the 15th December and starts on the 10th.

A happy and joyous Buddha’s Enlightenment Day to all who come here and read, have read and will read this blog, now 15 years old. To think, it was just an experiment! The photograph was taken three years ago at the Monterey Market in Berkeley, Northern California.

The Buddha lacks for nothing but needs something. Our hands!

This is a day late yet non the less heart felt.

Almost everything will work again
if you unplug it for a
few minutes – including you.
Anne Lamott

So true, so very true. Sometimes it is just good to spend time with oneself, to unfurl. Perhaps to read a book – rare for me. Go for a walk – every day in my case. Sit or recline and nap – that’s a yes for me, now and then.

However, should you make this part of your ‘practice’ you’ll most likely curl right up again!

Many thanks to Mark for the photograph and to Julius for the book, titled Keep Going by Austin Kleon which I’m nearly halfway through at just one sitting.

V Mail was developed during WW2 for US soldiers to receive news from ‘back home’ swiftly and securely. Not quite email! I’m just amazed at the physical process involved as well as the security checks. It was quick though and desperately labour-intensive compared to our zingy, zippy electronic means today.

I am reflecting on my recent glitch with my FB Messenger ‘hack’. The mistake, my silly mistake, brought contact with so many from far and near, so I ended up grateful. Many thanks, everybody for your support, help and advice. I’m happy because I have an email on its way to me as a result of the contact and yesterday I had a great catch-up call.
Shortly after entering World War II, the United States military found that shipping and delivering immense volumes of mail to and from servicemen overseas would be a challenge, especially given the need to reserve cargo space for critical weapons and supplies.

The solution, based on the British Airgraph Service, was called Victory Mail — V-Mail for short. The Eastman Kodak-designed service launched on June 15, 1942 and became the primary method of communication between soldiers on the front lines and family at home. A V-mail letter would be written on a piece of standardized stationery, then photographed and transferred onto a roll of microfilm. Upon reaching its destination, the letter would be blown back up to a readable size and printed. From a Mashable article.

Sorry folks, if you have received a link from me via Facebook in the last 12 hours please DO NOT open it because it is spam. I’m locked out of my account for security and now I am working on finding out how to secure my account. Especially difficult as its hard to know what is authentic help for retrieval and what is further scamming.