I woke up in the TV room to the smell of coffee brewing in the kitchen and P grunting as he did pushups next to me on the floor. Twisted in the couch like a pretzel with a big, thick purple blanket wedged between my knees for back support, I had slept alone on the first floor again.

Forget the years, forget distinctions. Leap into the boundless and make it your home. Zhuangzi

Before enlightenment; chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment; chop wood, carry water. Buddha

Education breeds confidence. Confidence breeds hope. Hope breeds peace. Confucius

The place to improve the world is first in one’s own heart and head and hands. Robert M. Pirsig (Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance)

I don’t mind what happens. That is the essence of inner freedom. Jiddu Krishnamurti

Who you are is always right. Ming-Dao Deng

Zen is not some fancy, special art of living. Our teaching is just to live, always in reality, in its exact sense. Shunryu Suzuki

Wherever you are, be there totally. Eckhart Tolle

When we discover that the truth is already in us, we are all at once our original selves. Dogen

Where can I find a man who has forgotten words so I can talk with him? Zhuangzi