You may be very surprised to learn that the boy, the legal adult, and the man, are all one in the same person; me. As is customary, let’s start from the beginning.
Day 1:
I wake up to the sound of my packing; that’s how quick I was with it. For some reason my mother was very encouraging of my potential decision not to go. “Come on… just stay home and relax!” she said. “No,” I thought, “this is my last chance at enlightenment and I am not going to blow it.” My mother understood my thirst for the Buddhist fountain, so she let the issue go and finally started to back my decision. I have never really liked sleeping bags; I much prefer the ghetto sleeping bag; two blankets; one on top and one on bottom. My mother helped secure these for me. To quell the impeding hunger, I made some spinach and tomato omelets which we quickly masticated and off my brother and I went.
The plan was for me to hitch a ride from *Platypuss* and *Plane Jane* in Flushing. To get to Flushing, my brother would drop me off there, and then he would head to Beaver Tattoos to get his skin beavered on. It was a fool-proof plan indeed. The ride to Flushing gave my brother and I a chance to talk and bond. We talked about “NBC Dateline: To Catch A Predator” as well as the human psyche. Suddenly, the “maintenance required” light came on in the car. “Oh fuck” I thought, “Here we go.” My brother immediately starts to freak out and says a whole bunch of stuff that I do not completely recall. One thing that I remember verbatim is “I swear we are going to die.” The whole ambience inside the car suddenly changed. Did he just promise the lord that it was due time for us to meet our maker? Yes, I know, everyone dies eventually, but the context of the quote led me to believe that death was quickly approaching.
As I pondered my imminent demise, I was fortunate enough to have my mind diverted in another direction. “I don’t feel so good… I think it was your omelet… OH GOD” said my brother. Well, this was a new dilemma. Usually it is me with the irritable bowels. You would think I would know what to do by now but despite all my vast experience in this area, all I could say was “Okay, just calm down… and… uh... hey what does that sign say over there?” There is no shortcut solution, one simply must dominate the crippling power of fear with sheer force of will.
Well, because he was late for his beaver appointment among other reasons, my brother dropped me off quite a few blocks from Main Street. “All part of the journey” I said to myself. “I am being tested right now.” I was also given the task of disposing of some Netflix envelopes in a mailbox. I asked a kind elderly woman where the nearest mailbox was right before I realized that there was one right down the street from me. “Buddha is testing me… I will not break nor will I falter, no matter how much of a dumbass I look.”
I knew *Platypuss* had an appointment with a certain doctor, and she would contact me when she was done with that and ready to go, so I planned for a stay at the Flushing library to pass the time. I immersed myself in “Death by Sudoku” by Kaye Morgan until *Platypuss* called me. I quickly rushed into the car and met *Plane Jane* for the first time, and she was not happy. I was immediately thrust with the responsibility of taking care of “Mo,” the last of many goldfish that had been given to *Plane Jane*. I do things like this all the time (you know, carry goldfish), but Mo had particular meaning to me because, well, it was my way of repaying them for a ride to enlightenment, you know, aside from being in the presence of my wondrously good looks and adoringly vibrant personality.
(All of Mo’s (short for Nemo) brothers and sisters and friends died, and *Plane Jane*’s mom suggested that she release Mo into the wild in the monastery grounds, a suggestion which *Plane Jane* begrudgingly took to heart.)
We suddenly stopped and *Platypuss* jumped out of the car, in the process somehow hyperextending her left chest bone. Apparently she was reaching for her wallet (something she has never done before) and managed to dislocate every ventricular bone. I think she’ll be okay. Apparently *Platypuss* did not go to the doctor yet because she was doing laundry, which left me and *Plane Jane* to frolic around because *Platypuss* had no concept of time.
We went to Red Mango and then went to some place to get *Platypuss* a vegetarian noodle dish because she has rules about eating animals. During this time, *Plane Jane* and I got to bond and I poured my Buddhist-related heart out to her. I told her all about my golden first year of Buddhist camp, the collapse of Buddhism in my mind, and the journey to the dark side from weak-minded fellows and lasses. I explained how I was sad that my long-time buddy *Blackheart* would not be at camp and just how emotionally fragile I was at that moment. After quite some talking, we finally got around to going to the doctor’s where *Platypuss* was Beyonce in a thong (ASSED OUT). We had some fun with that before she woke up.
Keep in mind that I’ve been holding Mo close to the chest the whole time during these escapades. At one point, the water level in his plastic bowl started to concern us, so I went on a trek to find the restroom. It was a very long and arduous trek filled with confusion and symptoms of “no idea where the restroom is.” I eventually had to ask a young lady where the restroom was while I looked frustrated carrying around a fishbowl. I am positive the situation did not look good at all. I must have also looked like a complete dumbass too because my young helper lady started to explain where the bathroom was… and then suddenly stopped explaining and said “Just follow me” as if I was too stupid to listen to directions. Yeah? Well I wasn’t too stupid to fill up a fish bowl. Actually I was. I got water all, over, the place. And then I had to pee and I let the fish bowl stay on the sink as I kept watch while peeing.
And then I continued adding water (it was a tough process because the air holes we poked were too tiny).
And then off we went! As we drove, we wondered whether we would make it in time for dinner, so we decided to take matters into our own hands… SHAKE SHACK. It was very good except for the cup (yes, a literal cup) of ketchup that *Platypuss* got me which somehow fell over in the car. No worries! I do velly good job clean up!
We finally get to the monastery and first thing’s first; we have to let Mo go. This was hilarious because *Platypuss* had to urinate EXTREMELY badly and we were taking our sweet time finding a nice place to release Mo. We finally did in a very grand ceremony, the video of which you can find pretty much anywhere, so I won’t bother linking it here. Second thing’s second, we had to find a place for *Platypuss* to pissypiss. Yeah, you guessed it, she squatted down in a random bush and let loose. It was actually quite a quick wizzywhiz, which only further cements the fact that she is a DRAMA QUEEN.
Next thing’s next. It was time to check in. Being very devout Buddhists, *Platypuss* and *Plane Jane* had registered weeks in advance. Me being the jackass that I am, had not registered at all. So they get all their stuff taken care of and then it is my turn. I tell the earth-demon behind the table that I did not register. “Why?” she asks in Mandarin. Oh no, I thought, this is not going to turn out well. I said something along the lines of “… I just didn’t!” and the lady (let’s call her *Stoneface* (the first of many stonefaces)) is not happy. She goes on about how everything has already been planned and it would not be fair to the other campers who had registered in advance. “So what you’re saying is… it’s not okay for me to stay here?” “NOT OKAY!” It was at this point that I realized we were dealing with a real-life bitch here. She said that she would talk to the nun in charge to see if there was anything that could be done. She left for a few minutes and then came back with one answer for me; “No.” We all began to argue with her. *Platypuss* and *Plane Jane* said that we had driven a long way to get here and that I come here every year (both of which are not entirely true). *Plane Jane* seemed especially passionate in her anger over the situation; I liked it!
I tried to offer some rational arguments against *Stoneface*; I knew that the only real problem about my registering late was the sleeping situation (there might be no room for a latecomer like me) so I said I could just sleep in the car. Then *Stoneface* brought up the food situation and how all the food has already been allotted to a certain number of campers. I countered saying that if food was a problem, I could just pay for the food (I know that non-campers pay something like $5 a plate if they want to eat). *Plane Jane* even offered to share her food with me, an idea which *Stoneface* did NOT like at ALL. Alas, the end answer was still “No.”
Well, I was left with no other option. I was looking for enlightenment; I was desperate. We barged into the Great Buddha Hall and I cornered the first nun I saw. I explained to her my situation. I guess this is why you have “public relations” people to deal with people like me, and people who work in the back office. The nun said it was okay for me to stay, and I am absolutely sure that she said that because she was too nice to tell me to fuck off. That is why it is important to have warmongers like *Stoneface* working the registration table and making sure people follow the rules; monks and nuns are too nice! Oh well, disaster averted!
I went to drop off my belongings in the boys dormitory, hoping that later on I would find out that there would be room for me to sleep. I then headed to KuanYin Hall where the youth group was (I am in the youth group). I walked in very awkwardly (kwokwardly) as some people looked up at the geeky kid walking into the room. There I saw some familiar faces and old friends. I saw my old buddy and told him my situation, and he gave me 411 on what was going on. Apparently, the youth group had been e-mailed some homework to do, and since I had never registered, I never received an e-mail. Okay, what the FUCK? HOMEWORK??? You have got to be kidding me; this is a five day camp and we are getting homework? Today was not off to a good start at all, but I can play by the rules. The youth group had broken out into groups to discuss the homework, so I just joined a group and tried to fit in. Our homework involved research into the Buddhist teachings. Needless to say, I was very happy when this homework discussion session ended. We had a little break before we were scheduled to go to a lake and perform our icebreakers.
As I got up, I noticed *Platypuss* talking to all her old friends. “Good!” I thought; just like one big happy family. Then I noticed *Plane Jane* sitting there looking dejected, upset, alone, and generally just very unhappy. “Oh no,” I thought, please, not now. Yes, you guessed it, this depressing image triggered my motherly instinct; it kicked right in, and it hurt.
So, the deal with *Plane Jane* was that this was her first year at camp, she is a Christian, and this is an entirely new experience for her. She decided to go just to see what it was like, and it was entirely possible that she would end up hating the entire experience. She was basically counting on her sister *Platypuss* to keep her company and make things fun. Well, it didn’t look like *Plane Jane* was having too much fun sitting and staring at the carpet. I walked over and asked her “Hey, why don’t you get your sister to introduce you to all her friends?” She continued staring at the finely made carpet and expressed discontent without uttering a word. Okay, maybe a few words were uttered. Obviously, she was not having a good time. I did not want the Buddha to hear what I would say next so I asked her to come outside with me. There, we ran into my favorite monk, whom we shall call *JAX*. I told *Plane Jane* that this was the president of BAUS but she seemed to not be able to give one flying horse shit. She just seemed very unhappy as if she was in deep thought with eyebrows furrowed. To try to break the kwokwardness, I began talking to *JAX* and informed him that I have a picture of us where we are both smiling. He smiled and said something like “Ah yes, okay!” Oh god, could this get any worse? I think I then told him that I had to urinate and that I would see him later.
From there, *Plane Jane* and I walked to the benches and told her; “Look, I just want you to know that Buddhist camp isn’t about the lectures, okay? It’s never been about the lectures. That shit back there with the homework? Fuck that! In all the years I’ve been here I never had to do homework. What the fuck was that? Look, I don’t come here for the damn lectures. Buddhist camp has always been about the people. The people are what make this fun. So just draw comics during the lectures, make some friends, hang out, and you’ll have fun, okay?” She seemed to buy this, so my motherly instinct relaxed.
Later on, we went to a lake to do our icebreakers and I mentioned my love of pho. That is all, in regards to that.
Before we went to sleep, I and my newfound friend *PunkSmashRoyale* bonded over our ranting stories. I told him about *Stoneface* and my near-missing of enlightenment and he ranted to me about how he was extremely pissed off that he was being treated like he was twelve years old and being told that he should not be out at night. We sought privacy in his car and bonded over stories and talked about life. From outside of the car, it must have looked like the homo-est thing there could possibly be, but from the inside, it was nothing but bro-bonding.
That night, as I tried to sleep, well, I couldn’t. Snoring kept me awake. At first it was as if two snorers were very politely arguing with each other, with one snore stopping right before the next snore started; no interrupting. Somehow it evolved into synchronized snoring, where the snores would all start and end at the same time. It was one of the worst night’s sleeps I ever had. I remember falling asleep around 12:00 AM and then waking up around 12:40 AM and not being able to sleep again. And then I remember waking up at 4:30 AM somehow. Suchness is life.
Day 2:
Day 2 started off like any other, except we woke up at 5:30 AM for morning service and meditation. This day was a really fun day because I got to bug nuns and monks for stickers. See, the deal was that the family group (little kids) and the youth group (my kind) were supposed to bow to the monks and nuns and greet them and ask them for stickers. The little kids were also supposed to ask the youth campers for stickers too (if the youth campers had any to give). So in summary, youth campers asked the monks and nuns for stickers so that they could have something to give to the little kids. The little kids were supposed to ask the youth campers, monks, and nuns for stickers to redeem for cool prizes (probably candy).
This was certainly a challenge I would not back down from; asking for stickers? Baby, that is easy-peasy, don’t-be-sleazy. It was certainly a difficult task though, not physically, but mentally. It took a lot of trial and error to get things right and even if you did everything right, you could walk away empty –sticker-handed. For example, the first time I tried to acquire a sticker, I asked a nun “so… I am supposed to… get a sticker from you?” She responded “YOU GREET ME POLITELY FIRST, AND THEN I GIVE STICKER TO YOU!” Immediately I bowed and said “SIFU NI HAOOOOOO!” Ah, very good. She went to a back room to get some stickers, but apparently there were none left. Rejection. You see what I mean?
Later on in the day, at the end of a lecture, I went up to the lecturing monk, greeted him politely, and then asked him if he had any stickers. He had no idea what I was talking about. I finally got my first sticker at the end of another lecture, but even this sticker was tainted with bootleggedness. I was one of the last ones to ask for a sticker since I was at the back of the line. By the time it was my turn, the monk had no more stickers left and a counselor took pity on me and gave me the one he got. Thanks buddy!
Another time, I interrupted a monk who was deep in conversation with a seemingly nice lady. I bowed and did the usual shindig and he was about to give me a sticker when the lady stopped him. I had no idea what was going on. The two of them talked for a little bit, (and I can only assume they were talking about stickers) and the monk was about to hand me the sticker again; it was so close to touching my sticker receiving area… and the woman stopped him again! Apparently, he did not have a lot of stickers and he was supposed to save them for the little kids. Well, time for me to walk away kwokwardly.
Yet, another time I ambushed the oldest nun in the monastery in the dining area. She had no idea what I was talking about either. Another kwokward walk into the sunset. But I digress.
So Day 2 was fun because we got to play with the little kids. They had three-legged races, sack races, blind-folded guiding, and team cheers. I was lucky enough to bond with the “Tickle Me Centaurs” who had a lot of team spirit and feisty attitude.
The above is me being a cheerleader and reminding my teammate what direction he needs to focus on going.
Yeah, not one job in the world that is more useless.
One thing that one little girl did that I found hilariously adorable is that she asked *Double-O-Lovin’* (one of my fellow youth campers) to take off her sunglasses. She took it off and the little girl clapped and said “Yay! You’re pretty!” I guess sunglasses are very good at hiding prettiness. However, one thing that bothered me a little is that whenever I said the team name “Tickle Me Centaurs”, one girl would always reach out and tickle me. I’d be like “what the hell are you doing?” and she would say “you said to tickle you!” It was very unsettling.
During this entire mingling time, I noticed that the “Tickle Me Centaurs” were eyeing my stickers. I had managed to get five stickers through the various and vastly numerous shameless acts I undertook in partaking. I told a little girl that I would give her two stickers if she could do a one armed pushup; she fell on the grass almost instantaneously. That was funny in a sick way. As the youth-family activities came to a close, it was time for me to distribute my stickers. I had no use for them and I wanted them to go to good use. Alas, six kids came up to me for stickers and I only had five… one little boy was the last one in and the odd one out. I promised that little boy that the next sticker I got would be his. I was very heartbroken at this point.
Later on in the day, *Platypuss*, *Plane Jane*, *PunkSmashRoyale* (from now on, let’s collectively call this group the *Walnut Manifesto*) and I decided to walk to the next town. What started off as a walk became a jog, as the next town did not seem very close at all. Nope, we never did make it to the next town, but *Platypuss* did find a nice hiking stick which she used as a spear. She actually has pretty good aim and when she threw it, she hit the ground perfectly on target. We also took some nice pictures and had a nice adventure walking through somebody’s driveway. Yes, when we jog, we go crazy. Somehow along the way of jogging, *Platypuss* got invited by a friend to the Hamptons. Apparently this guy was having a weekend party and it was a HUGE sausage fest, and he needed some ladies to even things out. For two days, the *Walnut Manifesto* contemplated and seriously considered going. I for one wanted to add more sausage into the hot dog fiesta because I think it is hilarious when guys are expecting some POONTANG and instead a bunch of jackasses like me show up. We were so ready to leave that night and go, but we never got an address so this meant another twilight sleeping next to a bunch of Buddhists.
We ended up missing a class that night due to our extended jog, which is bad. On the plus side, that night’s sleep was very good. I got used to the snoring and it slowly merged in as the background noise of my slumber.
Day 3:
For some odd reason, Day 3 started off an awfully lot like Day 2. There may have been many reasons for this but let’s not get into that.
One thing I was looking forward to on Day 3 was the lake trip. Apparently, all the campers and counselors and I guess some monks and nuns were going to go to the lake and there were going to be a lot of fun activities planned for us. Unfortunately, there were torrential rain storms that precluded the lake trip from existing. So instead of doing the alternative plan of hanging around in the Great Buddha Hall playing games or watching performances, the *Walnut Manifesto* decided to drive over to the next town. I thought we were just trying to have some fun but apparently the true origin of this journey off the monastery grounds was a tampon run. Yes, *Platypuss* and *Plane Jane* needed tampons. Wow, we REALLY know how to have fun. So we go into the store, and *Plane Jane* can’t find any tampons. I ask the cashier if he sells tampons and he says “… What? Tam… pons?”
It was at this point that I realized the cashier was a little foreign; he probably spoke Spanish from the looks of it. (*Plane Jane* said something along the lines of “oh my god…” to me as if I was a jackass for asking for tampons. Let me ask you, the reader, am I a jackass for inquiring about the availability of tampons within the vicinity?). I tried to explain to the cashier what I was looking for; “you know… tampons… what girls use… down there…” and he said “OH!” and he pointed to behind the counter. Ah, disaster averted once again. We got some Tampax (which I hear is not a very good brand) and we were off on our merry way.
In the car we had some good laughs, one of which involved *Plane Jane* being headbutted. Let’s explain this a little, see, there was this one very portly fellow who always seemed to have his butt crack showing. He (let’s call him… *Winkle-me Plumbcrack*) was also the main snorer and bane of my nightly existence. I always seemed to notice his butt crack and I told *PunkSmashRoyale* this. I didn’t want to say this to anybody else because I didn’t want people to think I was actively searching for old man shit crack. It just so happens that sometimes when a lecture is boring, your eyes wander around the room and then suddenly “WHOA! That’s a butt crack!”
(Imagine that, except far more enormous, much older, much hairier, much fuzzier, and with a penis.)
People have to understand that exposed hairy old man butt crack isn’t something that I intend to look for, it is just something that pops out at you in the course of observing the world. Like; “Ah, it is a beautiful day today. Look at those clouds HOLY CRAP that’s a butt crack.” Anyhoo, I admitted my eyes have been directed there on more than one occasion.
Back on track now, so apparently during morning service, as people were getting up, somebody headbutted *Plane Jane* right on her butt (how’s that for a coincidence, a literal head to butt!), causing her to tumble forward and almost falling into *Winkle-me Plumbcrack*’s exposed butt crack. We then concocted a hilarious situation in which she literally fell inside the butt crack and drowned in the sweaty feces. The newspapers would report that *Plane Jane* was missing and had simply disappeared because that would be what the monastery had told the authorities. However, the monastery knew exactly what the true origin of her demise was. They just deemed the truth to be too embarrassing to be put forth in the written word of the media. We must have been sick to find that situation completely awe-inspiringly hilarious.
Day 3 was also the day we would start preparing for Bodhi Night, which was the following night. Bodhi Night is basically a night of performances by the campers, counselors, and volunteers. These performances involve Buddhism in some way and are usually focused on the theme of the camp that year (this year the theme was eradicating suffering). The other three members of the *Walnut Manifesto* wanted to leave again either to have some drinks, or go to the Hamptons. We had so many goals involving the OUTSIDE of the monastery that it was hard to keep track. I let them know that Bodhi Night needed me and I would not be joining them on their excursions. Just as they were about to leave on their trek to alcohol and sinnery, they get intercepted by the counselors. It was an awkward situation that ended up with all the youth campers sitting and talking and shouting out ideas for Bodhi Night. Although I was semi-into-it, the other members of the *Walnut Manifesto* were not. *Plane Jane* was reading a book, *PunkSmashRoyale* was doing God knows what, but *Platypuss* seemed to be having a blast chatting up a guy we shall call *Spider Monkey*.
One by one the *Walnut Manifesto* left until it was just me. For some odd reason, *Spider Monkey* started conversing with me. “I should have went with them. I think they are going to Applebee’s. Do you have a car? If I found out where they went, can you drive there? I heard them say they were going to an Applebee’s. I could really go for a piece of meat right now.” Me, being the ignorant encouraging free spirit that I am, told *Spider Monkey* to go out and look for them and have a blast. He did and came back dejected; apparently he could not find them. He started up once again; “I’m pretty sure they went to Applebee’s. I heard them talking about it. They said they were going to Applebee’s. Can you drive? If I had the address could you drive there?” I kept on telling him no, and that I had no idea if they were going to an Applebee’s or not. I asked him if he wanted *Platypuss*’s number so he could call and see where they are but then he started having second thoughts. “I need to ask my parents first. I think my sister will be mad at me if I leave. I think if I tell my parents they’ll be okay with it. My sister will be mad though.” I was starting to get a little upset and just a TEENSY bit irritated here; not at *Spider Monkey* but at *Platypuss*. If she had simply took him along when she left or given him her contact information, I would not be in this hounded situation right now.
That night, *PunkSmashRoyale*, *Plane Jane*, and I watched “Green Lantern.” It sucked really bad. Some scenes were taking straight from Superman, it was very predictable, corny, and just plain sucked. Don’t watch it.
Day 4:
Ah, the supposed last day of my enlightenment journey. We had another triple header of lectures and let me tell you; thank god for papers and writing instruments. I don’t know how I would have been able to get through those lectures without drawing comics and doodles.
Anyhoo, on this day we did a lot of rehearsing for Bodhi Night. I played the part of a bratty little kid and also played a few voices. It was a night of great performances. My favorite parts were when the MCs told the sifus in the back to raise the roof, and one particular scene in a skit that the family campers performed. In the scene, a bunch of people were on the journey to find something and got really motivated and said “Let’s do this!” and then they just stood there doing nothing for a few seconds. They must have forgotten their lines or what to do next or maybe they are comical geniuses. Either way it was quite a riot.
With the performances over, I eagerly awaited to go home. See, one of the reasons I came up here with *Platypuss* and *Plane Jane* was because they were going to leave early (right after Bodhi Night) and I did not want to stay the entire camp. I wanted to leave early too! However, right after the performances ended, they come to me and tell me that their parents and brother had come up to the monastery. What was going to happen, was that the five of them would drive back down to civilization that night in the dad’s car, and the OTHER brother that was still left in camp would drive back down in the car I had rode up in, tomorrow. My new plan was now to drive back with my brother the next day (tomorrow). My dreams were dashed; yet another night searching for enlightenment; it was a fruitless dream.
Good thing there were fireworks to lighten the mood. I really do not know how the monastery could afford so many fireworks, and even if they could, it was still way too much. I would have been more than satisfied halfway through the fireworks show. There was also a bonfire in which we danced around and played games such as “make that shape.”
(The above is us making a bridge.)
(The above is us making "the Buddha in the Great Buddha Hall.")
Before the night started, I got a feeling, that tonight’s gonna be a Bodhi Night, that tonight’s gonna be a Bodhi Night, feeling. Woohoooooo; it was a good night.
Day 5:
There was no morning service on Day 5, so I was very happy to sleep in until 6 AM. I was going to sleep some more and skip breakfast but I ultimately decided to get out of bed and eat breakfast. Luckily, as I later found out, there was no working meditation that day so that meant no toilet cleaning for me; hurray! We went to the closing ceremony which I must say had a real piece of crap embedded within it. There was a slideshow shown that was made by this guy, and it was meant to showcase the entire camping experience. That sounds good in theory, but it was just way too damn long. He kept on showing the same pictures over and over again, and if they weren’t the same exact pictures they were pretty damn seemular. They weren’t even in chronological order, and it was SO DAMN LONG. The lack of chronological order was especially bothersome to me, because there would be pictures of night-time activities and I'd be thinking "Oh good, day 3 of this crappy slideshow is almost over" and then we'd see some day-time activities pictures, and I would be thinking "WHAT THE FUCK? THIS IS SO HODGEPODGE" It totally fucked with my expectations. And it was SO DAMN LONG. Even the monks were getting impatient, and they make a living OUT OF BEING PATIENT. During this shitshow, my brother and I texted about how shitty it was. That’s how shitty it was.
My brother was happy that I was leaving with him because this meant that I could drive him to school so that would save him time from looking for parking around school or going back home and coming back out. On the ride back to civilization, we bonded yet again, this time over our camp experiences. I told him about all the comics I drew and we shared anger over the traffic. He climbed into the backseat to get dressed. Maybe the day wasn’t so bad after all. Though I had not found enlightenment, I had an enjoyable experience and built connections with several people, even if they lasted for only a second.
Day 9:
Day 9 was not an official Buddhist camp day, but it was a day that affected me greatly. During camp, I had always noticed this young kid, maybe around 10 years old or even less. His name is Jeffrey and he always wore a baseball cap and always seemed to have somebody attending to him. For example, somebody would always be walking with him, and I remember one time somebody holding his hands and clapping for him. Obviously, from an outside perspective, there was something not right with him. Still, from what I had seen, he seemed like a very nice smiling child with a happy-go-lucky attitude. It was on this day 9 that I remembered to ask my brother what was up with this dude.
“He has brain cancer. He’ll probably live until next year.” I guess this is where the enlightenment comes in. I was never one to follow all these rules that people make up for religions. I much prefer *JAX*’s lectures. He encourages us to learn and not waste time on silly things that don’t matter or should not matter. Hearing this news about Jeffrey really put things into perspective.
Thinking about his situation brought a great sorrow in my heart. He seemed like such a nice person and I now hold a deep regret within myself for not talking to him and getting to know him a little bit more. Maybe there was something I could have done to bring a smile to his face; I wish I could have done something, anything. As cliché as it sounds, these heart-wrenching “stories” serve as a reminder to all of us to not take life for granted. Learn, create value, and most importantly, don’t waste your time looking at crappy poorly-put-together slideshows that has “obviously not thought out at all” inherent in its design.
It is difficult for me to explain the magnitude of emotion I felt when I first heard the news. Jeffrey, I hope I see you again next year. Cheers.
Though I never met you, you have had a profound impact on my life. For that, I am thankful. Rest in peace.
9/5/2011
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