On the way to the Ft. Lauderdale airport, my Lyft driver went the wrong way at least three times. I got annoyed because his GPS system was clearly directing him to the right route but he wasn’t following it. Then I remembered what my dad would say when I would start to act like a brat about something. “Hey!!! Everyone is doing the best they can.” In my mind I always add “so get over yourself, asshole” because that was the tone of his voice. I sighed and looked at the guy. Older, gray hair, Spanish speaking. I directed him to the Turnpike and just read his GPS to him (which was in Spanish.) When he got on the right highway he took off his sunglasses and I could see the wrinkles and his concerned looks toward the backseat. There’s a Buddhist technique where you put yourself in someone’s head, and then you look out from their eyes. I looked at myself from his eyes. What was he worried about? Bad tip. No stars. A harsh review. I began just seeing things through his eyes. The world softened. The tension dissipated without me saying a word. He got me to the airport. We were both unbothered, relaxed. Total time delayed from expected ETA? 5 minutes. I walked through the airport with all these stressed faces and frantic ppl and it just kept hitting me again and again: everyone is doing their best. Even the crooks who were taught how to steal, even the liars who were taught how to lie, even the servers, security, passengers. Holy crap! What if I walked around like this all the time?
On the plane I spent the entire flight talking to my seatmate (this almost never happens) about life, religion, celibacy, meditation, traveling to Asian countries, and quantum physics. There was a Hassidic couple behind us and the husband asked if we had any water b/c his wife was getting nauseous. She was shaking and breathing strangely. I didn't think I was allowed to touch or physically assist her, so I sent prayers to her as we talked about meditation and breathing exercises. She calmed down and a doctor helped her out on the plane. When we landed the Hasidic ambulance was there with workers to help but she was fine. My Lyft pulled up and the driver jumped out to take my bag. I made a mental note 'this guy looks...different. Asian, but different.' I got into this massive black Chevy Suburban and saw a golden prayer wheel and mala beads on the dashboard. He said he was Tibetan but came here b/c he married an American. He drove the black tank through traffic while talking about how Tibet messed up by mixing religion with politics. I asked 'wasn't Tibet a wild country? Didn't monks take over b/c warlords were killing and destroying everything, and the monks were asked to lead?' He agreed, talked about the Great Fifth Dalai Lama, the Kadampas, and his family. "There was a time when Tibet defeated China." He then said Tibet made the biggest mistake by not having children and dedicating so much of the male population to religion and monkhood, thus decreasing thus decreasing the birth rate. I said that the 6th Dalai Lama tried to end celibacy...at least for himself *ahem." He wrote love poetry and wanted to get married. For his efforts, he was killed. We wondered if history would have been different if monks could have gotten married, had kids, study, and continue the population growth. So the evening started with a discombobulated Spanish Lyft driver in a Honda Civic and ended with a feisty Tibetan driver with a prayer wheel in a Suburban tank...and a plane and Hasidic ambulance in the middle. Different vehicles of learning. Mahayana.
On the plane I spent the entire flight talking to my seatmate (this almost never happens) about life, religion, celibacy, meditation, traveling to Asian countries, and quantum physics. There was a Hassidic couple behind us and the husband asked if we had any water b/c his wife was getting nauseous. She was shaking and breathing strangely. I didn't think I was allowed to touch or physically assist her, so I sent prayers to her as we talked about meditation and breathing exercises. She calmed down and a doctor helped her out on the plane. When we landed the Hasidic ambulance was there with workers to help but she was fine. My Lyft pulled up and the driver jumped out to take my bag. I made a mental note 'this guy looks...different. Asian, but different.' I got into this massive black Chevy Suburban and saw a golden prayer wheel and mala beads on the dashboard. He said he was Tibetan but came here b/c he married an American. He drove the black tank through traffic while talking about how Tibet messed up by mixing religion with politics. I asked 'wasn't Tibet a wild country? Didn't monks take over b/c warlords were killing and destroying everything, and the monks were asked to lead?' He agreed, talked about the Great Fifth Dalai Lama, the Kadampas, and his family. "There was a time when Tibet defeated China." He then said Tibet made the biggest mistake by not having children and dedicating so much of the male population to religion and monkhood, thus decreasing thus decreasing the birth rate. I said that the 6th Dalai Lama tried to end celibacy...at least for himself *ahem." He wrote love poetry and wanted to get married. For his efforts, he was killed. We wondered if history would have been different if monks could have gotten married, had kids, study, and continue the population growth. So the evening started with a discombobulated Spanish Lyft driver in a Honda Civic and ended with a feisty Tibetan driver with a prayer wheel in a Suburban tank...and a plane and Hasidic ambulance in the middle. Different vehicles of learning. Mahayana.
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