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A Mid-South Collective
dedicated to the practice of meditation and the teachings of the Buddha.
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Bodhisattvas in Scooby Doo Pajamas I work at St Jude Children's Research Hospital. You would expect a facility catering to children with catastrophic diseases to be a place of heaviness and despair, but it is quite the opposite. The energy within these walls vibrate with the powerful life force of hope and healing. It is a pediatric facility peopled by many old souls that zip down the halls on tricycles seemingly unaware of the catheters in their arms or the surgical masks they must wear. Bodhisattvas in Scooby Doo pajamas, leading us to enlightenment in so many ways, if only we are still and listen. There are hundreds of stories, some that will make you cry, some that will make you laugh, but all will make you stop and be mindful of our precious human birth and to savor the wonders that are all around us. The Dharma becomes a living force here at St Jude, although not many would recognize it. A young child asks a doctor to sing her a song, and, as he launches into the Sponge Bob Square pants theme all sense of self and ego is dissolved. Parents and staff embrace in transference of suffering, one to the other, and the power of Tonglen becomes palpable. In extraordinary acts of compassion patients are concerned with the progress of their fellow patients, all the while accepting their own plight with incredible equanimity. St Jude is as much a shrine as it is a meditation hall, inviting all being that it touches to open up to fear, joy, despair and impermanence. Sometime, when you want to experience the full impact of the changing forces of life, walk through the main entrance of St Jude. It is yet another dharma door, a door I am privileged to walk through everyday, an important door on my path to enlightenment. |
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