grain of sand

“IT’S NOT WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU . . . IT’S WHAT YOU DO WITH IT.” A POEM There once was an oyster Whose story I tell, Who found that some sand Had got into his shell. It was only a grain, But it gave him great pain. For oysters have feelings Although they’re so plain. […]

satisfied

Once upon a time there lived a cloth merchant in a village with his wife and two children. They were indeed quite well-off. They had a beautiful hen which laid an egg everyday. It was not an ordinary egg, rather, a golden egg. But the man was not satisfied with what he used to get […]

climbing the tree

 A teacher was watching her students as they all climbed on the big oak tree in the play ground. “Be careful,” she shouted. The whole class room was on the tree. Some were trying to climb to the top while most settled for a perch on the lower branches. When play time was over and […]

The full moon of zen

I was feeling big, and rather strong in my car and driving home. When I saw the full moon peeking through the tall timbered pines above the road that twist and whined.   It made me feel small and rather meek a spec on this earth, where I squeak I bowed to the moon’s ancient […]

cutting the grass

(psst… this is not me in this picture) Like most, I have to manicure the yard. Cutting the grass is like giving the earth a hair cut; prune the scalp (the yard) and let the rest of the body go. My Father-in-law, like most, has a riding lawn mower and finds any reason he can to ride […]

Sculpting the Mind

A great sculptor was out and about searching for a stone that he could work on for his next sculpture. When he found one suitable to his liking he dragged it home and began working on it. Chipping away at it, sanding it smoothly and after several months he was finished. Any and everyone who […]

the seed

Once upon a time, there was a seed and because it was only a seed, nobody cared to notice it. Thus, gripped by a sense of inferiority, the seed gave no importance to its existence. Then one day, a wind picked him up – randomly or otherwise it didn’t know – and threw it mercilessly on an […]

zen’s dying…

  Zen’s dying… A famous zen master was lying on his death bed. A line of people trailed out the door and across the zen garden of those who had come to pay their respects to the master before he passed. They had come from all over to see the great zen master one last time. The zen […]

slow down (a poem)

  Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round, or listened to rain slapping the ground? Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight, or gazed at the sun fading into the night? You better slow down, don’t dance so fast, time is short, the music won’t last. Do you run through each day on the fly, […]

the hug (poem)

The Hug! It’s wonderous what a hug can do. A hug can cheer you when you’re blue. A hug can say, “I love you so,” Or, “Gee, I hate to see you go.” A hug is, “Welcome back again.” And, “Great to see you! Where’ve you been?” A hug can soothe a small childs pain, […]