Cool head - Memonkry Number X

Before the sun set, after a long forest walk.

“Tell us a story, a story from your travels!”

“Sorry, cannot come up…”

“Please, please!”

“Ok, ok…But then we go to bed.”

“Yes, yes.”

“There was once a monk (now my words would be, should be “my teacher monk”) that used to get lost truly, truly deep and far, far away.”

“Deep how?”

“Deep, as when you sleep and cannot wake up, no matter what happens around you.”

“Ok.”

“‘For the sake of us all’ (as he used to say, don’t ask me why), he wanted to become a lord of peace. We met, how? Cannot recall. By chance, perhaps? Could be, but for sure not on purpose, though surely a very lucky day for me (as when you come across a jewel on the pavement, so rare!) But nowadays my memory just says that we used to wander together here and there and for many, many days, unaware of both names of places and dates.”

“Were you young? Were you old?”

“Not too young, not as you; not too old, not as me. No sooner had we met than we became best pals, always together, everywhere. But for me he soon became the one and only creature on my way.”

“Were there no other people around?”

“For sure there were. But they weren’t as unusual as he was. They couldn’t teach me new ways to go, but he… he really was, what one would call, a freak of nature, not from the pack. You may say “Grandpa’s delusory – everybody’s just the same!”, but let’s allow my memory to tell you the story, the monk’s story.”

“Papa! Memory plus monk equal memonkry!”

“That’s a good name for my monk pal memory, Tommy! Memonkry.”

* * * * * *

Memonkry 1 – On the weather

“Hey Dorje! Take a seat next to me, would you?” he always wanted me to stop whenever my heartbeat seemed faster than normal.

“What are you up to?” my response, always purposeful.

“Not much. Just look at the sun.” Orange-red was the color. And all around was serene, no unnecessary murmurs, not even haze, just an unearthly glow.

“Such a lovely day, eh!” my gaze – yes, what an awe!

“Yep.”

All of a sudden, a huge dark cloud landed above us. “Great! Just to break the peace!” my uneasy thought.

“What a heavy…! Let’s go!” was my cry for help as the drops fell around us and covered us all.

Totally calm and funny he uttered, “Don’t you know? All weathers are perfect!” Then he stood up and danced all around. My shock, no movement: “All weathers are perfect.” That’s true. Repeat the words to myself once more: “All weathers are perfect.” And we danced together the rest of that day.

That was a lesson not to forget.

.

.

.

“No matter what happens around you, you’re able to cope, and not only that, often you can even have fun.”

“No matter the weather, papa?”

“No matter the weather.”

“Tell us more, tell us more!”

* * * * *

Memonkry 2 Double-folded easy

On a sunny day we were close to the sea, just by a crystal clear bay.

“Don’t go too far!” my control head, as my monk pal faded out, completely water-covered.

“Easy!... All good!” was the answer back, plus a gentle breeze.

A few moments later, as the waters were tougher:

“Just come back!” my concern, my faster and faster pulse.

“All good,” an even gentler breeze got back.

But you could only see how he was further and further, every second just further. Holy, no!

“Come on, man! Just come back!” my desperate cry. Couldn’t take any more, let me off to the sea! Easy prey of my fear.

On my way (of course) my temper got lost; but soon he was just next to me. (Thanks God!)

“You can go back, all by yourself. Just stop, relax, feel the sea, sense the waves and flow back.”

“Easy to say… But ok, ok.”

For some reason, he had that effect on me: whenever he was around, my heart and head would always, gradually feel completely at ease. Eventually my body somehow managed to reach the shore. As for my soul? Calmer than ever.

.

.

.

“Were you scared?”

“Not when he was there, somehow he would take control…, but he was also far enough to let me sort out my way back on my own.”

“You knew the guy – that’s why you could trust he was to be there.”

“That’s true, but that happened also to a complete stranger…”

* * * * *

Memonkry 3 The hurt gal

On a cloudy day we went up a rocky surface, but soon we faced a tall wall and a group of three teens: two young boys and a gal. One boy held a rope attached to the gal, the other boy only stared. She had a good pace, but as she went up, one rock broke off the wall, followed by a sharp yell: her shoulder went out of place. They brought her down. My teacher monk got closer to her, before she started to cry.

“Ok. All good. Easy, just breathe. Close your eyes, just breathe.”

He just knew how to do that, how to calm people down. To our amazement, we all saw what happened next: her eyes were closed, her body was calm and suddenly her arm made a short and soft turn and went back to normal. No haste, no ache, no force.

.

.

.

“How come?!”

“No need to struggle, just breathe and let all around you just be.”

“Why was he always so calm?”

“He worked hard to be that way. Not an easy path to follow.”

“Normal people seem to throw tantrums tout le temps, always!”

“Toddler adults!”

“Some of them are. They just don’t know (or haven’t learnt or won’t ever learn) that that won’t help at all.”

“You just need a cool head, grandpa?”

“Exactly, Jeanette!”

“But that’s hard to get.”

“Remember Easy comes, easy goes?”

“Yes.”

“Well, my monk pal, my teacher used to say:

Not easy to stay easy.

Easy to be an easy prey of fear.

Deswegen, that’s why, you have to work hard to get there, to ‘stay easy’. Ok, guys! Enough! Let’s go to bed.”

“But, grandpa, how can you just let be? Tell us, how can you always ‘stay easy’?”

“Tomorrow. Let’s leave another Memonkry for tomorrow, ok?”

“Ok.”

The moon stared gently above those heads.