dharma bum

Through and within what I’ll refer to as “my practice”, I have been spending a fair amount of time these last few weeks, six or seven, thinking about my life – self and soul, inclinations and fact-of-the-matter history, hows and whens and whys of the way I am. This process, this path taken, has been energetic and gentle, wildly focused and generous. Thinking about it, I’ve given more of my precious time in this world to staring into a mirror the last two, maybe three, years than all of it added together the other 72. It’s what has shown up in this life of mine. What’s come to fetch me.

This is a quote from the author Joyce Johnson in her Introduction to Jack Kerouac’s ‘Desolation Angels’: “I think he always fantasized that in some new destination he might find a balance between his craving for novelty and companionship and the reclusive side of his nature.” I’ve read those words before, probably a few times as “Angels” is my favorite Kerouac book, and I read it a few minutes ago. It swept me up and carried me right here, to the keyboard.