Happy New Year
Chuc Mung Nam Moi
May all beings be peaceful happy and safe
I listened to Thays Dharma talk via internet a few times during this winter retreat. How wonderful, how nourishing!
In
his talk on New Year Eve, yesterday, he spoke about the Vietnamese tradition of coming home to the “fireplace” during the Têt, new years festivities,
How everyone in Vietnam want’s to go home for Têt, with
his, her loved ones, to be around the “fireplace” the heart of family life to celebrate together to be reminded of where we belong, where we feel safe, nourished, understood and cared for, coming back to our roots.
This morning
I woke up, it was quite cold in our home, the sky outside was gorgeously light blue, light pink in the sunrise, but one could feel the crisp and cold atmosphere over the snow covered winter landscape…I went downstairs and I lit the fire in our fireplace
to warm up the house,
Then who called me with a soft sweet voice: “Mimi…Mimi”…my sweet little granddaughter Sofia…I brought her down with me, both of us in our pyjamas, she drinking her morning bottle and
me a warm coffee, we both looked at the fire dancing in the chimney, both warming each other, in silence, enjoying the feeling of being together,
Tho is in Bhutan near Tigersnest for Têt…so yes we miss him and I think he missed
us a bit yesterday …, but we are with him and he is with us …do not worry, time and space are not a reality …
In modern life in the cities, so many people live alone, I recently met a friend who told me he lives in
Bern in a house with 6 apartments and every apartment is inhabited by one person alone!
I really do hope that everyone finds his her “fireplace” to share with others, to come home to, to be together with
Let’s
come together and it will be alright !(Bob Marley?)
In modern life people can have the illusion that they can live “alone” as long as they have money in their bank accounts, enough insurances, health insurance, a TV..internet,
things…etc…that they do not need anyone…that independence is the goal, is a sign of strength?
But truly we all of course know that we are nothing and we would not survive without all the others …who makes our
food, roads, clothes, but also all the thoughts we are thinking, the traditions we feel our own, the endless and countless women and men who have invented, created, built, thought life, made life beautiful, as we have it at our disposal today…EVERYTHING
that we are and have is because of all the others.
In a family we know that without our mother father, grandmothers grandfathers etc..we would not be here, that our grandchildren would not be here without us,
And who
would we be without our friends, without all these wonderful conversations, also the necessary confrontations, who would we be without this weaving fabric of life TOGETHER,
Who would we be without mother nature,…we could not survive
a moment without her!
Tho told me today that he walked in the mountains near Tigersnest and that nature nourished him and he did not feel alone anymore. He felt safe and comforted after having reconnected with nature and her immense beauty
and generosity,
I have noticed in poorer countries people still know that interdependence is a reality a necessity, but in rich countries people can tend to believe that all they need is money and that interdependence is limiting them
in their “freedom”…I guess some people might think this…as long as they are young and healthy …right?
As small children and old people, the stages in life when we are probably closest to who we are and
the most vulnerable, we really need our family, friends, people who care for us, otherwise we could not survive a day !
So today I was blessed being surrounded by my grandchildren, my daughter her family and friends…to have "skyped
with Tho" to have you all in my heart and mind knowing that I need you as you need me, and all this... around the warm “fireplace”
Wishing you all a Happy New Year of the Snake
Ps It is my year the black water snake!