It has been an active month. Had visits with numerous friends and began the writing workshop at OLLI lifelong learning series, part of the UC Berkeley connections. The teacher Deborah Lichtman, former chair of creative writing at U. of San Francisco, is a superb teacher of memoir and autobiography, and the students are mostly advanced writers. The questions and discussions are right on target. I've learned a lot in this class and will be sorry when it's over next Friday.
I attended several lectures in the department of philosophy and the Buddhist studies department at UC Berkeley. It was easy enough to follow the arguments and discussions even if they were steeped in shades of differences between Kant and Schopenhauer and the philosophical gang. I found myself wearying of the amount of words without the notion of application or activity toward the alleviation of suffering even when that was the aim. Reminded me of the old warning to Zen students: get rid of intellectualism and philosophizing before you step into the Zendo. Otherwise, the Zen master will hit you over the head.
Went with my daughter to see "Girl With the Pearl Earring" at the deYoung Museum in San Francisco. Always a great pleasure to see any work by Vermeer, one of my favorite painters. But two Rembrandt's were almost more thrilling. The Vermeer work was behind bullet proof glass so it was a little hard to enjoy the crackles that have resulted in the canvas due to aging. You'd see it better on a print. The Rembrandt paintings, also under glass as were all of the paintings in this exhibit (they are 500 years old and can't stand much light without deterioration), were masterful by right of their painterly nature and relaxation of subject. There was also a large adjoining exhibition of etchings by various artists of the same period well worth viewing.
The last weekend in February I returned to Olympia for several days to attend and support a Celebration of Life service for my niece Jamie Steele, who died February 8, way too young and before her time. Other family also came and Jamie was adamant that we not mourn and weep so we started out the service with one of her favorite pieces of music: "Oye Como Va" by Santana. Jamie also had loved Wagnerian operas so we closed the gathering with "Entrance of the Gods into Valhalla" from Das Rheingold. Not much of "Amazing Grace" or "The Lord is my shepherd...." in this gathering!
The day after I returned to Berkeley, I drove down to Mt. View and Stanford to give a talk at Kannon-do. I spoke about the manuscript I've just finished (at least as a good first draft) and the subject of Kakarembo, Hide-and-Go-Seek, Ryokan's favorite game. Of course the Hide-and-Go-Seek acts as a metaphor for many of our lives as we move in and out of hiding and appearance. Also received the key for the place I'll be staying for two weeks in Stanford faculty housing in the middle of March, watering plants and taking in the mail for old friends. Can't wait to be down there. It's gorgeous, gorgeous and the Stanford Museum is excellent and free. I can walk in and out all day if I choose and there's a free bus that runs around the campus all day long.
Seeing more friends before I drive down to Stanford next Friday where I'll see some more. It's only four more weeks before I return to Olympia. Time is suddenly racing. I haven't written so much on the blog because I too easily write myself out and the manuscript had to come first. I'm soaking up the vitamin D every chance and loving the views of cows grazing on green hills just above the Stanford campus.
