Solitude and Hope: Y'all Come Visit!

"Every other creature on the face of the earth knows how to be quiet and still. A butterfly on a leaf, a cat in front of a fireplace; even a hummingbird comes to rest sometime. But humans are constantly on the go. We seem to have lost the ability to just be quiet, to simply be present in the stillness that is the foundation of our lives. Yet if we never get in touch with that stillness, we never fully experience our lives."

“Within a single speck of dust, the whole earth is contained. When a single blossom opens, the entire universe arises. But before the particle of dust appears, before the blossom opens, how will you see it? If you cut away all complications and bring out your own treasure, you will see that there are originally no seams, no gaps, not a single flaw or scar, and that everything is perfect and complete, above and below, in front and behind.”

--John Daido Loori