DAMP DAY WITH BRIGHTNESS

It was another cool day today, with dark skies and dampness everywhere, but at least no rain. The only real brightness was in my small apartment before sunrise as I sat by the lamp listening to a meditation tape and minding what was happening: my lungs doing their reliable rising and falling, the pendulum clock ticking, a few early birds brightening the morning darkness with songs. There was brightness, too, in my classroom, as always – the lights, the sunlight from the windows, and two vases of tall flowers, and of course the friendly students who smile much more easily than they frown.