an old writer and his words

  • VISIONS

    The small child peers through the bamboo poles of the bridge as he stares down at a turtle who stares up at him with equal fascination. His mother excitedly says, “see the turtle?” Of course he can see the turtle but he also sees an Ichthyosaurus and giant whales and frightening fish. Later, as she…

    Lou Faber

  • MOTHER

      I called my mother the other day and she did not answer, which she would always do when I called. The dead, I concluded, no longer play by the rules they did when they were still alive. Of course she will call me soon, disrupting my sleep, and chastise me for not trying again.…

    Lou Faber

  • TIME’S ARROW CURSED

      He will be 90 in a few weeks. He doesn’t think this is possible. He says he wasn’t supposed to live this long. He asks again how old he is. You’re still 89, I tell him. He has a relieved look on his face. Then he smiles at me, says, that means you are…

    Lou Faber

  • ONCE

    It was easier being Buddhist when I was young, despite the fact I had no good idea what Buddhism truly was. for a child the moment is all there is, the past so short that it means nothing, the future something that will arrive as and when it wishes. For a child, things will go…

    Lou Faber

  • QUANTUM GRAVITATION: ADOPTION

    Quantum gravitation, I strongly suggest, is something on which you cannot really count. I know all things are supposed to be relative but as an only and adopted child I have none, for me relativity is something special and generally the lack weighs heavily.

    Lou Faber

  • QUANTUM

    Quantum gravitation, I strongly suggest, is something on which you cannot really count. I know all things are supposed to be relative but as an only and adopted child I have none, for me relativity is something special and generally the lack weighs heavily.

    Lou Faber

  • THE GIRL COMES OUT 無門關 四十二

    She sits undisturbed Shakyamuni by her side. You can wave at her, she will pay you no mind. You cannot grasp her mind and maintain a hold on your own, you will grow deaf from the chatter but a child can curl at her feet and she will stroke his forehead in perfect Samadhi. A…

    Lou Faber

  • TAI YRA MANO MOTINA (THIS IS MY MOTHER)

    It’s odd how your stature has grown as I dream of you occasionally staring at your yearbook picture. It was only four years ago that I knew you existed, but hadn’t the faintest idea of who you were, anything about your life, why you gave me up, and, therefore who it was I might have…

    Lou Faber

  • INFINITY

    A three year old can easily understand that a full cup can hold nothing  but an empty cup has an infinite capacity.

    Lou Faber

  • A BUDDHA SPEAKS

    A three year old can easily understand that a full cup can hold nothing more but an empty cup has an infinite capacity.

    Lou Faber