The picture above was the photo I used for the flyer about the Festival of 1,000 Lights & Flowers.
I don’t have long to write, a bubble bath awaits my attention, but I wanted to share the blessing of yesterday. The festival ended up being a wonderful event that took place after dark at the Enlightenment Stupa at the Temple. Around fifty people gathered around the stupa and our precious Lama, Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo, arrived to light the first candle (see the picture below) I’m in the upper right corner with fur around my hood. We each received a lit candle, which we carried around the stup while chanting mantra for world peace, and then the candles were placed around the base of the stupa. Then we all gathered around Jetsunma, some sitting on the ground other standing, and she gave us a brief but loving teaching on how to view the new year coming.
I wanted to write this before too much time went by because there is no more precious moment in a students life then to sit at the feet of their splendid Teacher and drink from the wisdom that pours forth. As she shared and included us in her teaching I really felt our sangha as one body, one entity. She said that we should consider ourselves like a large extended family, a large Italian family (because she is part Italian!), and we might be big and noisy and in each other lives, but that is exactly how it should be. Loving and sharing and forgiving. She tells us that this is going to be a really wonderful year for us, many new directions and success.
For me it was sitting on the ground in front of my teacher listening and savoring every moment, finally maybe, just a little bit getting how to be mindful. An enormous thanks for that, and the belief that it was an excellent way to begin a new year.
