Monday, March 22nd, 2010

Open a Coconut and Share It

Coconut Grove, Florida

Ever since I was a kid my mind would romanticize about being a monk. The dream certainly came true. It’s been 37 year s since I joined, late March, something like that in ’73.

With Dr. Romeres I took to walking in the afternoon and with P. Krpa, someone I call a professional coconut tree climber. It was at Coconut Grove that we used as our venue looking for an outlet to access the ocean when two joggers dashed by. Relating to them as comrade marathoners and less as a monk (momentarily), I asked the surgeon, “What about joggers? What’s your diagnosis of them?”

“I understand many of these athletes don’t always live that long. They’re hard on their bodies.”

I asked, “Amongst your patients do you sometimes have wrestlers or boxers?”

“As a matter of fact I just had a wrestler the other day. The problem they have is mostly at the joints – the knees for instance give them a hard time. Many athletes do things in excess but you can’t stop them.”

He was implying that with athletes the passions are so strong a force that nothing hinders them until their bodies tell them “NO MORE” It becomes break down time.

Once we got to the sea access we were anticipating to spot some manatees that have survived the Florida freeze. They are lovely non-threatening and huge creatures. Over 120 manatees were found dead in the area. We were not fortunate to find a living one.

We did, however see dozens of homeless persons who camp out on a nearby island and boat in crude canoes to the mainland to purchase food. What a lifestyle!

By evening we found ourselves in the large ISKCON temple on Virginia Street and what really was going to be an open forum discussion with the community ended up being more of a proposal from my side to implement a monthly festival referred to as the Sankirtan Festival. This program emphasizes outreach through public chanting, distribution of snacks and books. It specifically is designed to be inclusive. As we pointed out “to spiritually be evolving we need to be involving.” It resonated with the group that there’s a need to be inclusive and less exclusive. That is the way of making personal spiritual progress. Let the public have a different taste of the ears, eyes and the tongue. Do something for them and automatically you are doing something for yourself.

15 KM