Sunday, November 27, 2022
TEN OLD MONK POEMS (95)
I COULD MAKE IT
I could make it
look like work
if that's what you want,
the old monk said.
~
HOLINESS
Holiness is not enough.
You also need to be blessed,
the old monk told his students.
~
THE FIRST LESSON
The first lesson is
that there are lessons,
the old monk said.
~
IT'S A WILLOW SWITCH
It's a willow switch,
not a wand,
the old monk said.
It will find water.
It won't find God.
~
YOU DON'T HAVE TO
You can't study
how to be holy --
you just have to
be holy,
the old monk said.
~
GOING UP
Going up the mountain
is not about
getting to heaven,
the old monk said.
It is about
heaven itself.
~
EVEN THE STARS
Even the stars
are lonely --
You get used to that
on the mountain,
the old monk said.
~
SILENCE IS NOT
Silence is not
the last thing
you hear.
The last thing
you hear
is your last breath,
the old monk said.
~
DESIRE WILL TAKE YOU
Desire will take you
places you don't
mean to go,
the old monk said,
and it won't
bring you back.
~
THE TEACHER
The teacher doesn't have to teach much
if the student wants to learn,
the old monk said.
~
