I have not been writing as much as I would like lately. There are a number of reasons for this, but primarily it has been my deeper exploration of the Buddhist path. Since starting this weight loss process, when I read "Savor", I have taken quite an interest in the Buddhist aspect of it, and I have grown in that area steadily. In fact, I would say that the weight loss has taken a back seat to the exploration of Buddhism in the last several months as I slowly realized that the weight loss was a simple and natural by-product of my mindfulness and Buddhist efforts. At the time of my post, some months ago, about my visit to the Dallas meditation center, I saw that I was at a critical juncture in the Buddhist aspect of my journey.
That experience solidified a number of thoughts I'd been pondering such as my feelings about meditation and how beneficial I thought that it might be for me and my thoughts on Buddhism as it fits in to my life. Most of all, I now had to decide what tradition of Buddhism I was interested in pursuing, if any.
With those things solidified, new questions unfolded before me. To assist with these, I really dove in to reading a lot of books, listening to a lot of audio books and podcasts, and talking with as many other Buddhists as I have been able to. I also continued trying to find Buddhist groups that I could visit with to see which appealed to me. When I was last at the Dallas meditation center, brother ChiSing suggested that I do this, and it has been excellent advice. Specifically, he said that I wouldn't find anything exactly like the DMC but that there would be numerous similar groups and that I should try them all until one felt comfortable.
I'm still in the process of doing so, but it's becoming clear to me that I will ultimately need to try and get a Sangha started in my area if I want a group close to home. But that's another story. And a story I am working on!
So, I guess the reason I am writing today is that I feel like I have an overwhelming amount of things to share, and I am hoping to get back to writing here more often. Due to my submersion in reading, I have tons of experiences and books to review. Appropriately, I am writing this post as I am 38,000 feet in the air, heading to Dallas, where I expect to visit the DMC again and sit with them. I'm sure I will write about that experience again as well.
One of the reasons I started this blog was to share my experiences, but at least equal to that was the goal of any readers sharing their thoughts and experiences with me as well. So it is my hope that anyone reading this will chime in and share their stories, questions and advice as well. Here's just a few of the things I am exploring at the moment. Any feedback or suggestion is most welcome.
- What has been your experience finding a Sangha near you?
- If you didn't have one close to home, how have you dealt with that?
- What tradition do you follow, if any, and why?
- How do you use technology and the Internet in your practice?
Lastly, I'd like to share two more things. Today, I stepped on the scale before leaving for the airport (exactly as I did 10 months ago) and found that I have officially lost 90 pounds of my 100 pound goal so far! Also, Happy Mothers day to all of the Moms out there!
Be well,
MS
