Ode to Coffee

From India to Idaho! Just when you thought it couldn't get any colder than Dharamsala in December, try the Sawtooth mountains in March. As many of you know, I am almost deathly allergic to snow and have to carry a picture of Hawaii with me in case I go into shock. What in the world would possess me to go deep into the woods and stay in a rustic cabin bundled up in twenty layers of clothing? This is the power of the dharma. I went to see Anam Thubten teach - he is the author of "No Self, No Problem" and "The Magic of Awareness". Please check out the website and watch the video teaching at www.dharmata.org.

Anam Thubten's style is progressive and timeless. His presence radiates buddhanature. He is not on the path, he is the path. His conceptual teachings come through pithy instructions and his non-conceptual teachings come through his smile, gaze, and silence. Guiding us through several meditation sessions a day for one week, Rinpoche led a group of us on a journey of consciousness discovering itself. This is the magic of awareness.

During a particular teaching, he encouraged us to fall in love with the ordinary, to make loving life our daily practice. He spoke of hymns written by the ancient Tibetan masters while meditating in their dark and solitary caves. Well, the idea must have ignited something in my subconscious because a spontaneous poem came to my mind instantly and completely intact. See the picture above? See what I'm holding in my hand? Yep, coffee with cream. Yum.

On that note, I give you my Ode to Coffee. Dedicated to Anam Thubten and all the coffee lovers in the world. May your enjoy your ordinary life, may the tasks of daily living bring you joy.

ODE TO COFFEE

My beloved,

Every morning you greet me.

In union with water and cream,
your sublime scent soothes my mind.

The first taste is always new and

I treasure your very existence.

Selflessly you pour forth your rich, dark nectar.

With a smile, you are my last thought before sleep.

Emaho!

In eight hours we shall meet again.