How It's Been So Far

It's been wonderful, busy, at times unusual....to go from being long-distance lovers to living together in one swell foop, as they say! Having to work in the midst of all this bliss certainly balances the scales, and it's sweet to go off early in the morning (2 days a week) knowing that the dogs will be walked and the dishes will be done (yes, he really does the dishes!!!).

Way back when i was first blogging i wrote about some Buddhism courses i was taking. Then Angus got parvo and i basically fell off the Buddhist Bus for several months. I stopped going to classes, stopped meditating and praying even the one or two days a week i was managing....fell off the bus and fell in love, which occupied a lot of time and energy!

Well, a week after Chris arrived, my teacher Geshe Michael Roach and his partner Christie McNally came to Tucson to give the third in a series of teachings on Spiritual Partnership. Chris agreed to go and we really enjoyed the 3 nights of lectures. That was last weekend, Friday-Sunday. Then, Monday night we went to Diamond Mountain University in Bowie, 2 1/2 hours away, to attend the first ordination ceremony held on the University grounds. I knew both people who were ordained--one monk and one nun. The ceremony was quite beautiful and i was moved to tears more than once. Unfortunately the ceremony has not been translated yet, so it was conducted in Tibetan, but that lent a certain mystical aura to the event, and Geshe Michael did at least give a summation before each long declaration with a general idea of the contents.

Afterwards there was an incredible feast of blessed food--much sugary bliss! Then as Geshe and Christie prepared to leave the temple, we were among a group of about 5 people standing around them, and Geshe shook hands with us and thanked us for coming! That was certainly a wonderful and special moment for me.

Chris has taken all this in stride remarkably well. He's studied Buddhism a bit in the past, but i think it's been awhile. I have longed for a partner with whom to share more than just an ordinary life--to participate in something larger, something holier, than "shopping and the new movies" to paraphrase another teacher in this lineage.

Anyway we are off to dinner at a local funky Japanese restaurant, Yoshimatsu--funky in decor and atmosphere, but great in the actual food department. So excuse if this sounds a little off, i've not had time to proofread. Just wanted to give y'all an update!

Ciao for now....