SPRINGTIME

Tao is at once the universal pageant of the constellations and the budding of each new leaf in the spring. 

It is the constant round of life and death and all that falls between. 

It resides in us as we reside in it. 

It is the source as well as the end of our being. 

It neither judges nor condemns but continually blesses, in all moments, an unending cycle of change and renewal. 

It is a belief in life, a belief in the glorious procession of each unfolding moment. 

It is a deeply spiritual but decidedly non-religious way of life. 

It involves introspection, balance, emotional and spiritual independence and responsibility and a deep awareness and connection to the Earth and all other life forms. 

It requires an understanding of how energy works in the body and how to treat illness in a safe, non-invasive way while teaching practical ways of maintaining health and avoiding disease and discomfort. 

Taoist meditation techniques help the practitioner enter deeper or more expansive levels of wakefulness and inner strength. 

But most of all it is a simple, natural, practical way of being in our bodies and our psyches and sharing that being with all other life forms we come into contact with.

TAKE COURAGE

Today a friend told me about being annoyed with a drip last night in her New York City apartment. As she grew angrier and angrier she opened her eyes and saw the full moon

sitting next to a very bright star. She got up from bed and sat in a chair looking at the moon 

and the star and the silhouette of the buildings beneath them and felt a profound connection to something greater and to the drip. 

Many, many years ago in a land far, far away there lived a people with a direct connection to the earth. There were dripping sounds from the dew coming

off the rock ledges and the same moon and star bathed everything in light even though it was

considered night. They honored their connections to what had come before and left images for those who would follow. We are connected to them just as assuredly as we are connected to the moon and the star. This realization lessens the anger, returns it to an annoyance and finally to a connection to everything and one's self. 

What a blessing to have such a friend(s).