I don't know what to say. This post about walking the track is so evocative, insightful, and expressive that I almost feel that I understand what it's like to be incarcerated. It describes a very simple ritual, and explains how this simple custom channels the intense, but rigorously controlled feelings of the diverse community of people who participate. This was beautifully written.
Tony, I looked at your profile page. Your artwork is provocative and deeply interesting. I hope the Buddhism helps you get things under control. I always respect a person's endeavors to improve his standing in the world, and I wish you success -- All the best, Puccesca
HI LEONARD, MY NAME IS EVA AND I WILL LIKE TO BLOG WITH YOU I KNOW HOW IT FEELS TO BE ON LOCK DOWN AND HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO HAVE THAT OUTSIDE COMMUNICATION I WILL DO MY BEST TO KEEP UP WITH BLOGGING LOL CAUSE IF I HAD TO WRITE A LETTER IT WILL PROBALLY TAKE MORE TIME THAN I SHOULD LET IT TAKE (LAZY) LOL BUT I KINDA LIKE THIS NEW WAY OF COMMUNICATION SO LETS SEE HOW THIS WORKS
It might be surprising to know that your message is a promise of redemption to someone outside, but it is. So many people make such terrible mistakes in their lives, and it is so easy to give up in despair. But you are right - it's never too late to work on fixing it, and that is a better solution than just giving up. Thanks for your post, it has helped me to clarify a big problem in my life right now - one that seems huge, but now I see that it really isn't. I'll survive no matter what. I wish the same for you.
That was a very powerful message. It sounds like you've been lucky because you had the will to try to change yourself. Most of us don't have the will or the strength, and we just coast along lying to ourselves and everyone else because it's easier. I wish you true success in your quest. Oh, and the artwork is pretty impressive, too. All the best, Puccesca
Writing can sometimes remind one of emptying a large bucket of water. You have to start slow or you will loose water where you did not mean to spill. When you pour with care the lighter the bucket becomes until you realize one day....you can now carry the bucket with you anywhere because it does not weigh you down any longer.
Your bucket is heavy now but pouring will change all that!
Mindfulness to me is the realization of the entirety of existence held in the moments of our consciousness. That the way reality as we perceive it is only a perception, but also a direction of choices. I've recently been inspired by a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. from his book 'Where do we go from here: Community or Choas'. It goes "Freedom is always within destiny. It is the chosen fulfillment of our destined nature. We are always both free and destined."
Thank you for your letter as it has inspired me also.
I give you a lot of credit for being so open and straightforward; it isn't easy to do. I know just what you mean when you say the past is set in stone. Right now, I'm facing a very painful situation. It is very different from yours, and I'll admit I'm still far better off than you are, but for me, my situation is devastating - all because of my own actions. No matter how hard I wish I could have a "do over," I'm stuck with the choices I have made, and there's no undoing that. The only thing I can do now is to do what you're doing - try to show some dignity and accept the consequences. Your post has kind of inspired me that way. Thanks for writing it. ~ Puccesca
People who are unpleasant, annoying, frightening, or just mean, often also have some surprising, unexpected goodness in them, too. People aren't always willing to see the goodness, though, because that takes a little effort, and makes it much harder to slap a label on someone and then just forget about them. I wonder about you, about who you are and what your world is like. I try to imagine it, and what it is like for you. That's not a really strong connection between us, and maybe it's just a passing connection, but it's a connection. You've reached someone.
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All the best,
Puccesca
MY NAME IS EVA AND I WILL LIKE TO BLOG WITH YOU I KNOW HOW IT FEELS TO BE ON LOCK DOWN AND HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO HAVE THAT OUTSIDE COMMUNICATION I WILL DO MY BEST TO KEEP UP WITH BLOGGING LOL CAUSE IF I HAD TO WRITE A LETTER IT WILL PROBALLY TAKE MORE TIME THAN I SHOULD LET IT TAKE (LAZY) LOL BUT I KINDA LIKE THIS NEW WAY OF COMMUNICATION SO LETS SEE HOW THIS WORKS
All the best,
Puccesca
Your bucket is heavy now but pouring will change all that!
Love Dad
Thank you for your letter as it has inspired me also.
~ Puccesca