an old writer and his words

  • JOSHU’S DOG

    My teacher once asked me“what do you haveto say for yourself,” and Ianswered “absolutely nothing,”or did I smile and remain silent? You assume the teacher wouldbe upset with the silent studentand in most cases you wouldbe perfectly correct. But if this occurredin a zendo, having nothingto say is a step toward no-selfand you can bein…

    Lou Faber

  • CLOSE ENOUGH TO HEAR

    We sit around the small tablesglad to be out of the sunwhose midday glare seemsto blind the drivers slowlyapproaching the Jetty Park lot. A family chatters, the childrenlaughing at nothing, at everything,and nearby a dog lays outdreaming of a good walkand dinner, hoping for scraps. We can hear the waterof the inlet, the waves breakingonto…

    Lou Faber

  • PECULIAR?

    I grant you cats can be peculiarbut they have one significantadvantage over all other pets,except maybe hamstersand gerbils, for when youneed someone to talk to,to unload your problems on,to try and wrestle witha thorny issue of public policyor geopolitical intrigueand that night has swallowedeveryone you know, anyoneyou might dare disturbin the hours after midnight,you may…

    Lou Faber

  • ISAN’S NO BUDDHA NATURE

    You may askabout the true natureof Buddha nature,but who can you ask.If you should meetthe Buddhain a coffee shop,perhaps you should askif the Buddhahas dog nature A reflection on case 115 of Dogen’s Shobogenzo (True Dharma Eye) Koans

    Lou Faber

  • CANINE

    The dog refuses to walkaround the house and checkthe driveway, and sothe shells will rain on the villageas they do each time she senses fear. She has a sight beyond thatI can fathom, curled underthe heat vent, as thoughthe cries of children carryin her dreams, her taildances against the grate. On most nights when she…

    Lou Faber

  • PATIENCE

    Even a cat knows when the screen is on Zoom, you sit and wait. Or stick your head in the picture so all can acknowledge your presence. Either works, and you know patience is not a virtue, but at times a necessity. You are a cat, after all. Patience is for dogs, poor beasts, having…

    Lou Faber

  • WE ARE IN KANSAS, TOTO

    In my dream, the worldwas at peace, and I was ridingacross Kansas on a unicycle, towingmy car, packed to the windows,my dog walking alongside urgingme to speed up because shewanted to visit South Dakota.I am due for a tricycle, Iremind the dog, “the gravemore likely,” she respondswith a sneer that teeters betweenlove and spite, always…

    Lou Faber

  • DEAR PAVLOV

    We both know that havinga pet at our age is wisefor they provide a companionshipthat can be difficult to find.I’ve had both dogs and cats,but the decision this timewas reasonably simple,for dogs have an insatiableneed to walk their people,weather is no impedimentand my arthritis is no longerall that forgiving of damp and cold. So we…

    Lou Faber

  • HOUSING CRISIS

    I laid it outwith great care, insuredthat it comported bothwith my idea and sound engineering. I drew it witha draftsman’s pencil,measured each dimensionat least twice, visuallytested every joint. It ws the culminationof a lifetime of trying,my final success, afterwhich I would stop,there being no needto improve on almost perfection. Building it took time,but I completed…

    Lou Faber

  • JOSHU’S DOG

    Joshu’s dogand Schrodinger’s cat-are they oneand the same?Leave the lidon the boxof the mind.What isthe half lifeof a thought? A reflection on Cse 114 of teh Shobogenzo (Dogne’s True Dharma Eye)

    Lou Faber