Ten Thousand Flowers

Ten thousand flowers in spring,
the moon in autumn
a cool breeze in summer,
snow in winter,
If your mind isn't crowded by
unnecessary things,
this is the best season of your life

--Wu-Men 365 Prayers, Blessings and Life Affirmations to Celebrate the Human Journey From Around the World: 1996 HarperCollins, San Francisco.


Life in general makes it difficult to not "crowd the mind with unnecessary things." There is clutter everywhere: Messages bombarding us, telling us what to buy; what to do; how we should think; what we should ask our doctors about. We have songs screaming in our ears what we should love and what we should hate; what we should think and perhaps not think at all. But inevitably, most of us find several moments of solitude - moments to actually think for ourselves. And in those moments when we have command of our presiding thoughts, I hope for triumph - as we are the best champions of our own causes. I hope others respect those moments of free will as we challenge our soul and choose our own roads without accomplices. For our journeys are ours to walk, and may they be blessed as the best seasons of our lives.