Taos Retreat

I am sitting in Love Field in Dallas waiting for a delayed flight back to Austin after a week of retreat in the snowy mountains of Taos, New Mexico. As I type these words, the irony of "sitting in a field of love" suddenly captures my awareness and re-centers me, drowning out the harsh and garbled flight announcements, the overstimulated screams of running children, and the patchwork sounds of one-sided cell phone conversations (not to mention the penetrating smell of Cinnebons). Amidst all this, I am actually sitting in love's field! It is fun to entertain this silly play on an airport's name, and yet it does point to something deeply true to my experience and something fresh from days of sitting and relating warmly in silent community. We have been sitting in love's field, and, as our morning chant says, one characterized as a "formless field of benefaction." As I contemplate a 3 hour unexpected wait and write this small message, I see that this, too, is ultimate reality showing itself to me in one of its many forms. Sometimes we sit in the zendo, sometimes at our desk at work, sometimes in front of the TV or computer, and sometimes with a friend. All of them are in love's field, whether we notice it or not. Our practice it to take notice, and sitting together offers us a better chance to notice this formless field of benefaction taking form, right now, as THIS!