More than a Gentle Nudge

I've been fascinated with Eastern philosophy off and on since I was 18. Shintoism, Taoism, Zen and Tibetan Buddhism. I read "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind" and "Peace is Every Step" in my thirties. And when I took martial arts with my kids, I was more interested in the self-control and spiritual aspects than the sparring. Later on, Reiki called to me so deeply that I spent three years becoming a Reiki Master.

But it wasn't until I picked up a little Tibetan singing bowl, that I realized this was a previous life speaking to me.

About the same time, I decided that I needed some serious spiritual time. I started looking for a retreat. That was the day before Thich Nhat Hanh sent out an email asking his friends, fans, and followers to support efforts to preserve the area around Deer Park Monastery from development. There was no hesitation. I booked a retreat for the first 10 days that I could (which was not as soon as I would have initially liked).

As my bowl collection grew, so did my desire to relearn more about Tibetan Buddhism. I started consuming books and movies and recordings. My NetFlix queue now looks more like a research list than entertainment. Then a colleague at the university where I teach suggested that I look into a graduate degree so that I could teach full time. I remembered overhearing somebody talk about getting accepted to a graduate institute that Joseph Campbell helped get started.

On Monday, I mailed off my application to this institute (which is still accepting applications for fall). Now I'm pulling together the loose ends to complete my application (references, a sample research paper, financial aid). I'm heading to the campus for an information session in June — something I would not have been able to do had Deer Park Monastery accepted my first time-slot request.

Last night was the clincher, though. That was when I realized this wasn't just an interesting exploration. I took a different path to get to my sacred hiking spot, and while driving along, I thought I saw the word Zen on a sign. I quickly turned around to discover a Zen meditation center about two blocks from where I live. They have daily meditations, Saturday morning practices, meditation retreats (Sesshin), and private meetings with a teacher (Dokusan) to deepen your personal practice.

Orientation is this Wednesday evening. I'll be there.

After all, when the gentle nudges become full-on pushes, it's best to listen.