Hard times has passed, the skies have cleared up and peace is restored in our little village. I had a lot to do this week, although my fellow builder friends offered to help, i wanted to renovate my tool shack and parts of my house. The stock of wood had dried up and was ready to craft on. One of my biggest interest after building being art and ritual, i want to make a nice little altar outside. It will have a little meditation seat with a little dug out pond covered around with rocks next to it. I want to make it a part of my shed so it looks decorative. I will spend most of my resources on the repair of my house and shed.
The news circulating around about a lama coming to town came out to be true when I went to visit the scholars in the monastery library. They had written an invitation letter and gotten a positive answer from the traveling lama. This was exciting for me I wanted to make offerings and also ask questions. Following a teacher was my biggest need at the moment because was having difficulty understanding some doctrines and rituals. In everything I do, I strive for perfection so needed to acquire more knowledge and who better then a lama!
I bought prayer flags from a merchant woman walking around the Bodhi tree earlier this week when i went on one of my Sunday strolls. Purchased all the ones she had. When we came together with two of my building friends I sold them two each so they could make offerings. The money collected for the prayer flags, was donated to the preparations made for the arrival of the lama. My offering will be five prayer flags to the lama. Also ten art resources so the artist could prepare the drawings of the eight auspicious offerings or symbols front of the entrance of the monastery. I feel compassion towards art because my dearest neighbor and friend is a very talented artist.
Busy with the rebuilding of my house and shack during the week couldn’t participate in the rebuilding of the bridge but am very glad my fellow villagers managed a prefect job. There was also help provided to the next village down stream, which I engaged in by sending them prayer flags. Worked hard and long on my house fixed my leaking roof. When it came to the shed I dug up a small hole in front, enough to fill water in and surrounded it with rocks so it didn’t overflow, making a little pond. I’ve always found water to be relaxing. Put some shelves up on one of the sidewalls of the shack which i later decorated with Buddha figures. Since it was outside wasn’t going to put up prayers so they wouldn’t get wet, the weather was very moody in this region of the Himalayan mountains. Having finished my house and sheds preparations in a week but having no more building resources or gold. Welcomed the new week with joy humility and the feeling of accomplishment hoping it would bring me work so i could make some money.
I was ready for the lama to come I had so many questions. I had read many texts in the monasteries library on the importance of finding and following a teacher. To this age i hadn’t been properly trained in the Buddhist practice but was very interested and eager to learn more from a skilled teacher before I took the path to becoming a nun. Being a nun being my ultimate goal I still had many questions in my head. However as importance I was keeping my purity as a young woman and trying to be involved in my community to help others in need. This excitement wouldn’t go away before I felt the presence of his holiness up close and offer my flags. It is such an honor to have such a visit to our tiny village, I’m sure we will be ready to great him in a way that pleases him.
