Saturday 21 September 2019

Tuesday, September 17th, 2019


Chatham, Ontario

Pulling Out Self-Portrait

At 5:20 a.m., I opted to walk to Union Station from our ashram.  I was looking forward to the train trip that would land me in Chatham, my birth place.  It wound up being a three-and-a-half-hour ride, but seemed like minutes.

My sister, Rose Ann, husband, Jim, and a dear couple from Detroit’s daughter and friend greeted me at the Chatham station, the location where, forty-four years ago, I shocked my parents by informing them of my intention to leave college and become a serious monk.  It’s an historic place for me.

We drove to Erieau, a fishing village of the past, and a location where, as children growing up, our dad took us to the beach in the summer for excellent swimming and catching some energy from the sun.  The transistor radio we brought with us and sat on the sand was our constant companion as teenagers.

Today’s crew trekked the pier.  We could not dodge the white poop from gulls and cormorants on its surface.  It was everywhere.  We drove along a portion of the “Underground Railway” where Black slaves journeyed  almost two centuries ago seeking refuge from the days of onslaught in the deep south.

We dined at the Indian restaurant in Chatham, browsed through Rose Ann and Jim’s bookstore, where my sister pulled out an acrylic self-portrait I had rendered at age eighteen, before I committed to becoming a monk.  Yes, that was me alright, with hair and all.  We also lazied at Tecumseh Park before I embarked on the train journey.

May the Source be with you!
7 km




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