Yellow Dog/Bleeding Heart

Little Dog recently told me about an exchange that took place during his second hour Science class. For some reason the teacher asked, with the obvious expectation of receiving no "yes" answers, if anyone in the class was Buddhist. Little Dog was the only person who raised his hand and with confidence stated that his mom was Buddhist. (Note that he didn't rock the boat by admitting that he, for the most part, is also.) His admission led to a discussion of how "weird" it is that his mom is Buddhist - especially since we are not Asian. Yeah. Racist in middle America High School much? Anyway the reason for bringing it up in the first place was to discuss a recent article in our local paper that was about a deformed (two-faced) baby whom the "Buddhists" believe to be a "God." To his credit Little Dog did assert that Buddhism is not a polytheistic religion, but he was outnumbered by those who, still shocked about my Buddhism, refused to hear any l...

There are times when Little Dog will say something that makes me say, "Man, I really do have a teenager now." You know, the requisite eye rolls and responses of " Fiiiiine Mommmm " But then there are other times when he will say something that reminds me I have raised exactly the kind of young man I wanted to raise; the kind that makes me burst with mama pride. Like recently, on the way to school, he said, "Mom, is it okay if I go make sandwiches for the homeless before school Thursday morning?" This was not something I had particularly pushed, but merely an opportunity he came across. Never mind that, in the back of my mind, I had always wanted to find an opportunity to somehow do something hands on to help the homeless. He has a friend who spends Thursday mornings before school making sandwiches to be distributed to our city's homeless population and he wanted to help too. Yay him! I have always tried to live a life that exemplifies giving back. H...

These past few weeks I have been living more like an ordinary person than a Buddha and it has begun to trouble me. I seriously think I have broken all five precepts, which for you Christians out there is like breaking the commandments. Do Not Destroy Life: Aside from the giant bug incident of which my hands, if not my Karma remained clean, I have been shamelessly killing ants in my kitchen. Not even just spraying bug spray to keep them away, but literally smashing them with my finger. There are just sooooo many of them. And they are getting into my food. I don't know what else to do. Sigh. Do Not Steal: For a Buddhist stealing is not just tangibles, but also things like time and ideas. Aside from the fact that I have a new intellectual history hero who all but wrote the final version of some papers for me last semester, I also have been guilty of stealing everyone's time. I've kept Little Dog waiting after school; spent too much time visiting rather than working during t...

Last weekend there was a horrible gi - normous bug in my entryway. Ordinarily I can deal with the average bug, but this one was BIG. And creepy . Little Dog is worthless when it comes to bugs, as he squeals like a baby mouse and flees at the sight of one. So, Saturday afternoon we were standing on the stairs, a good length away from this interloper, both of us wondering what to do. I had the phone in hand and was wondering just who was closest for me to call to come shoo the monster out when my neighbor, Ron, pulled in. I darted out the back door and explained the situation. He is not a big fan of the bug himself, but his chivalry is unrivaled. He grabbed a broom and a bucket from the garage and headed to my house. I felt justified when he saw the creature and was visibly astonished at its size. "What do you want me to do with it?" "Get it out!" And with that, he dropped the heavy bucket smack on top of the bug. Little Dog Shrieked and I must have exclaimed somethi...