Namaskaaraha, I bow to you all.
I have lived and worked in the Washington DC area for 16
years now, but my roots are in the Pacific Northwest, with grandparents buried
in Poulsbo and Bremerton, and parents living on the Oregon coast. I was born
into a not terribly religious family, and can still remember the day my parents
decided we needed to start going to church, as I was old enough they wanted me
to have such a foundation. For over 30 years, I did what I was told, and for
some of that time was a true believer. Some things never made sense to me, and
as I aged, I grew bolder in questioning them. I grew inactive, and a couple
years ago when my wife fell ill with Cancer, her best friend died of it, and my
so-called faith was shaken to the ground. The church had no answers for my
questions, there was no substance under the platitudes, and I was lost.
I became a seeker, looking for some answers, looking for
meaning, looking for something to cling to, when I discovered Buddhism. A good
friend who practices gave me some things to ponder, and I explored out from
there. One day, it clicked, and I had a moment of sublime understanding, a
brief glimpse of Samadhi. It still took me another year or so to adequately
describe what had happened, and find a system which would both accept my
experience as genuine, and give me a framework to re-discover it at need. This
led me to Zen Buddhism, and eventually my teacher Koro Kaisan Miles. I owe him
a great deal of thanks for validating my assertion that solitary practice has
as much (if not more) value than large organized zendos. Even before I was more
than superficially aware of Buddhism, I had always found more divine nature in
the great outdoors, in the desert, in the wilderness and woods, upon the ocean,
and away from “civilization” than I ever had in a chapel or temple.
So now, I am no longer a seeker, I am an apprentice
Wayfarer, with great love for the peace and acceptance of the Teachings, and a
devotion to the Practice of Zen. I am attracted to compassionate service to
others as a Bodhisattva, a way of cultivating my Buddha nature and living a selfless
life, as much as living in modern America allows anyone who still has a family
and mortgage, responsibilities that I choose to uphold, while fulfilling my
spiritual needs through Zen.
My hobbies include expression through music, I’m trying to
nurture my writing skills, and I practice metalsmithing at a pro-hobby level. I
have been a Scoutmaster for 20 years, though I’m slowing down now and have
retreated to serving on the committee, attending an occasional campout, and
leading our annual High Adventure trip as my main focus. I also have three daughters, the oldest of
which was adopted out of the Washington State foster care system many years ago.
My wife continues to struggle with her health, but we remain optimistic that
through good living, and good medical care, we’ll enjoy each others company for
quite a while yet.
Thank you for your kind attention.