This past Saturday for the
virtual Children's Program, we introduced ourselves and shared some signs of
spring that we have noticed, such as the melting of the snow, the return of
certain birds, and the blooming of early flowers.
We then read and acted out a
story from a book called Zen Shorts about a farmer whose luck goes
up and down, but understands that there can be good things in seemingly bad
things and bad things in seemingly good things and that good and bad can be all
mixed up together and changing again and again.
Finally, we planted a sunflower
seed, which we will watch grow from week to week.
Last autumn Shao Shan Temple had to remove over 100 Red Pine trees from around the Temple for safety reasons (several of them had fallen on buildings!) We were fortunate that the stumps were almost immediately covered by snow, so that it did not look like a logging site. The stumps are currently being removed and it is becoming more evident how beautiful the open space will be. Those of you participating in today's online meditations have heard the heavy machinery in the background!
Several Shao Shan Temple sangha members have begun making masks to donate to medical facilities or others who need them. Donna, one of the Shao Shan sewing leaders, is coordinating and organizing this effort. People are working in their own homes - one person donating fabric, another cutting fabric, another transporting cut fabric to someone with a sewing machine, yet another person sewing the mask.
