“Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” ~ Zen Buddhism quote
“When hungry, eat your rice; when tired close your eyes. Fools may laugh at me, but wise men will know what I mean.” ~ Zen Buddhism quote
It has been a frustrating week.
Due to a faulty landline I’ve had no phone or internet connection at the farm, unless I hiked up the hill behind the house with my iPhone.
At first I was angry. It’s a situation that has been dragging on for almost three years, with our landline slowly deteriorating until every phone call became a lesson in frustration due to static and poor line quality. (And our internet runs off this line too!) The telco kept sending technicians, and the phone would work a little better for a while, and then decline again. Until finally it broke altogether.
This week while they worked on our line I wondered what I would do. No amount of wishing was going to give me an ability to be online.
So in the end I drew on the wisdom of my favourite Zen quotes.
I rested.
I did laundry and actually folded it and put it away.
I planted things and tended my garden.
I tidied.
I wrote. So many words.
We did yard jobs. We chopped wood, and carried water to the plants where the hose doesn’t reach.
Life became so much simpler when I stopped struggling against the things I couldn’t change and chose to be in the moment instead.
It was peaceful.
There was also something freeing about being so much less available, once I let go of the stress of no longer being in control.
But now the line is fixed. I am reconnected with the world. My internet is fast and my phone line is clear. So exciting!!!
And we have enough wood cut and stacked to see us through the winter.
