Open your eyes.
Open your eyes and see that you are no longer in the dreary landscape you habitually occupy in your head.
This is a head’s up and sincere invitation for you to take part in two eye-0pening events coming round the bend.
The first is a Beginner’s Mind One Day Meditation Retreat I’ll be leading on Sunday, Feb. 15 at Hazy Moon Zen Center in Los Angeles. It’s perfect for you, and it’s only $25.
The second is the half-day Palo Alto Mothers Symposium at Stanford University on Saturday, March 7. It won’t be complete without you, and it’s only $20.
Now, before you tell yourself what you always do, “I can’t possibly go,” stop and open your eyes. Read aloud the next words you see here:
Let’s just see how it goes.
Let’s just see how it goes. That’s what Maezumi Roshi always said to me. It’s not just a social courtesy. Not a simplistic cliché. It is a precise instruction on how to live an enlightened life.
Open your eyes.
That brings me around to mentioning something that might seem peculiar about zazen, or Zen meditation. We meditate with our eyes open. Slightly open, but still open. What you probably think of, and maybe even do, is meditate with your eyes closed. But that’s not practicing meditation, or awareness. That’s daydreaming, or sleeping. Daydreaming is nice, but no one needs to practice it. If you want to meditate with your eyes closed, I suggest you just opt for a deep tissue massage and get total body benefit out of it. That’s what I plan to do with the gift certificate I got for Christmas.
Wanna get away?
See how it goes. See that airfares, in some cases, are delightfully low. See that cross-country or even cross-town, is amazingly close. See me smile in total rapture to finally meet you face to face.
This time of year, we might find it easy to make long-range plans and commitments to improve our health, break old habits, lose weight, enhance our productivity and save or make more money. But can we commit even a few moments to transforming our lives and everyone in it? Sure we can.
Open your eyes and see.
I’m going to put those dates on my calendar and see where I am when the time comes. 😉
Comment by Mary P Jones (MPJ) — January 11, 2009 @ 8:54 pm
I told my husband you personally invited me to come out to California for a one days beginners’ mediation retreat.
He looked at the post and said it seemed to be a general invitation.
I told him, no, it was just for me.
He said I was a funny girl.
Comment by Mrs. B. Roth — January 11, 2009 @ 9:24 pm
i’m smiling…you make me smile…my eyes wide open seeing the beauty right in front of me…you!
thank you for the smile..and the reminder…to just open my eyes and see…
it is like breathing out…xx
Comment by pERiWinKle — January 12, 2009 @ 8:31 am
What’s the best airport? LAX or another?
Comment by Kelly Hudgins — January 12, 2009 @ 1:39 pm
Now there’s a good question: the cheapest! For Hazy Moon, LAX; for Palo Alto, San Jose.
Comment by Karen Maezen Miller — January 12, 2009 @ 2:51 pm
Now wouldn’t that be something.
Comment by denise — January 12, 2009 @ 3:16 pm
I would love to come and sit at the Hazy Moon center. But, I live in the Northeast 🙁
Comment by Anna — January 12, 2009 @ 3:54 pm
Feb. 25th. Sounds workable. We’ll see how it goes.
Comment by Chris — January 12, 2009 @ 6:27 pm
and my eyes are open.
my mind is turning over the words: “really now, do you know how very close you live to LA?”
we will see how it goes.
Comment by jessamyn — January 12, 2009 @ 7:06 pm
Chris, I hope Feb. 15 sounds workable too, cuz that’s the date. Just clarifying for readers and seers everywhere.
Comment by Karen Maezen Miller — January 12, 2009 @ 7:33 pm
How I’d love to attend both, but particularly the Mother’s Symposium! Not practical, perhaps, but not impossible. I remain open, and shall see, as you suggest, how it goes.
Comment by East End Jenn — January 12, 2009 @ 10:05 pm
Let’s just see how it goes. Such a good, simple teaching. So wish I could join you in LA.
Comment by Leah — January 12, 2009 @ 11:52 pm
I love that: “let’s see how it goes.” Quite by luscious accident, I said that today about an event on Saturday. I’m not sure how my body will feel then, so I am going to see how it goes. =-)
Comment by 32poems.com — January 13, 2009 @ 5:36 am
please keep up with the invitations. Someday I WILL be there.
Comment by Bridge — January 13, 2009 @ 3:21 pm
Do you have any summer events planned? Those dates are already booked with the school musical and spring break.
Comment by Kathleen Botsford — January 13, 2009 @ 10:18 pm
Dear Karen, I’m stopping by just to say a big thank you to you for your support throughout my journey with cancer. I so appreciate your comments and you make me smile. I would love to fly from Australia over to you and come to both your events, I think they will be absolutely fabulous! I also LOVE ‘let’s see how it goes’ such a helpful answer for me to give and use. Take care my dear and thanks so much again, Jen B. xxx
Comment by Jen Ballantyne — January 13, 2009 @ 11:59 pm
“Just see how it goes” created all this space for me the past few days. Just when I needed it. Thanks.
Comment by Michelle — January 14, 2009 @ 1:47 am
“Let’s just see how it goes,” may very well be my mantra for 2009 … but, of course, let’s just see how it goes.
Just booked r/t from Cincinnati to SF in April for $255. Incredible! Only wish I’d have the chance to travel south to meet you while I’m out there.
Comment by jakk — January 14, 2009 @ 3:52 pm
Just seeing how it goes. Seeing someday turn into today.
Comment by Jena Strong — January 15, 2009 @ 2:53 am
I’ll be in Palo Alto. Looking forward to it!
Comment by Kathryn — January 16, 2009 @ 4:45 am
I expect to be able to make the Palo Alto gig.
Fingers crossed,
–Chris
Comment by Chris Austin-Lane — January 16, 2009 @ 7:28 am