I was forever getting lost,
until one day the Buddha told me:
To walk this Path,
you will need seven friends—
mindfulness, curiosity,
courage, joy,
calm, stillness,
and perspective.
For many years, these friends and I have
traveled together.
Sometimes wandering in circles.
Sometimes taking the long way around.
There were days when I thought I couldn’t go on.
There were days when I thought I was finally beaten.
It’s scary to give all of yourself to just one thing.
What if you don’t make it?
Oh, my heart.
You don’t have to go it alone.
Train yourself
to train
just
a little
more gently.
~ from the first free women, Poems of the Early Buddhist Nuns,
Matty Weingast (Shambhala Publications, 2020)
