Flowering Branch

Two days ago while walking to the Jewel Tree at the pier I found a flowering branch of yellow flowers at my feet. I decided the branch would make nice offering so I carried it with me, along with the usual rice offering. 

Today I walked to the Jewel Tree and when I arrived I was surprised to see that my flower offering was still in its place beneath the tree. When I dropped the rice I noticed that the Pink Angel had also made an offering, most likely yesterday morning - small pink and white flower petals arranged in an oval, with cherry tomatoes, a whole kiwi, and an exotic fruit which I did not know the name of. She had decided to allow my yellow flower offering to remain in its place and make her offering on the right hand side of the tree. The day was cold and windy, gray and white. I gazed at the tree and lake and dismal sky and made my wish, which for the past month has remained unchanged.

Summer Rain

I left a friend's house nearing dusk tonight, walking my way through the heart of the city, streets empty of people and filled with cars bopping and thumping the asphalt. Heavy gray clouds were rolling in from the northwest and two blocks from my home it started to rain. I entered the building lobby slightly misted and when I reached the elevator bank a beautiful woman turned to face me and blessed me with her radiant smile. We entered the lift and noticing my state of wetness said to me smilingly "it's a refreshing night." I agreed, replying "I was on a long walk and it started to rain at the tail end so I was lucky." She paused a few seconds and then her body expressed a languid pose straight from a dream and she spoke as if her mind was jogging way in the past, "I just love a summer rain."

 

Distance

A treat this week, somehow the ability to run "distance" rather than sprints occurred the past two days, 2 miles yesterday and 4 miles today. Francis has never run more than a mile, so this was quite a thrilling experience to feel the fatigue slowly building in the legs, sweat stinging the eyes, and the exceptional inner glow which radiated post-run. 

Easy

Walked to the Jewel Tree today and the only thing remaining from the cake offering was a few scattered rose petals. In the colder months an offering from the Pink Angel would last as long as a week, so I feel fortunate that I was witness to this latest one. 

I then walked to the track and was feeling quite good, even strong, and did something which I normally don't do, which is end the workout while still feeling fresh. The point of all the running and muscle exercises is to bring to the edge of exhaustion both body and mind, then there is a chance that a wave of euphoric relaxation will settle into me, and there is nothing quite like it. It creates powerful memories which bring me happiness in future days. Today, though, I just wanted to take it easy and enjoy my surprisingly good fitness. 

After the track workout I walked to the market to get bread, carrots, and garlic, had a good lunch and took a long nap. When I woke I was feeling energetic and somewhat fresh so I decided to walk to the hill adjacent McCormick Place. The hills at the Island are now overgrown with weeds and wild grass and the birds which have nests on the hills have become aggressive. On the walk to the hill I thought of running Blackwell Hill in the 1980's with the sun setting and the moon rising. I also thought of the euphoric running days while in Thailand and drinking chocolate milk on the steps of the 7-11. 

I ran 5 reps on the hill and decided to stop while still fresh so that the 3 mile walk home would not be toilsome. I stopped at the market and bought a chocolate milk and drank it on the bench outside the store as the sun was setting. More memories arrived, the hot summer days of childhood and sneaking into the seminary grounds and sitting alone on a bench with a view of a large green field filled with yellow dandelion flowers while hundreds of yellow and white butterflies flew freely about and then walking up Calvary Hill and marveling at the scenes of the crucifixion and death of Jesus. I pondered the nature of these thoughts, what is a memory, what is the past, and did anything actually happen if no one is around to remember?

When I got home I ate a larger than normal meal knowing that tomorrow my energy would suffer and this is a good thing because it will force me to stay home and rest. Today was a good day, a day of enjoying my health, of not pushing too hard, relaxing, smiling, and remembering. Easy.

Cake

I woke at 4:30am and thoughts of the Pink Angel filled my mind so I knew what I had to do. I dressed quickly and walked to the Pier as the sun was breaking the horizon. When I reached the Jewel Tree I saw a fresh offering from the Pink Angel so I knew she was at the Tree just moments before I arrived. I made my mental offerings and then walked to the Tree to offer rice. I looked closely at the offering from the Pink Angel, it looked like a cake made by a French pastry chef - 15 inches by 10 inches, the outer rim made of red rose petals 3 inches wide and 3 inches high, the inner ring composed of white and yellow flower heads. The sweetness was scattered artfully in red, pomegranate seeds, strawberries, cherries, and topped with the usual fairy dust, colored white instead of the usual gold. At the top end of the cake were two sliced, bright orange cantaloupe. I was grateful the Pink Angel had called me out of sleep to witness such an offering because the loose rose petals would surely soon be scattered about the grounds. As I gazed at the tree, blue lake and sky, a woman passed and remarked to me about the offering which was bright in our eyes like the rising sun. I nodded in agreement and told her it was truly amazing. 

 

Later in the day my energy was high so I decided to donate a large number of books to the free library box located at the track. I made three trips for a total walking distance of six miles. Each time I arrived with a fresh batch someone was browsing my offerings and walking away with a book in hand.

Necropolis

The day after the intense track session which I posted about in the Heat entry, I walked to the Jewel Tree to make the usual offering and then decided to walk to the Ukrainian Village to locate the residence of my grandparents and mother in the late 1940's. They lived on Superior Street and my plan was to simply walk west on Superior but that plan went bust when the street ended at the North Branch of the Chicago River. I crossed the river and attempted to rejoin Superior but was unable to locate the street and after walking two miles turned around in defeat. When I returned home I realized the ten mile walk had worn me out considerably and since then I have not done much. I did do a track session yesterday but it was an easy one and on the walk home a recurring quad injury resurfaced.

Two days ago I stopped at the library to return a dharma book and I decided to get new books, the two I chose were My Stripes Were Earned In Hell and Necropolis. I chose them at random based on intuition and subject matter. Last night I began reading My Stripes Were Earned In Hell and inside the book was a library receipt left by the patron who last had the book. I glanced at the receipt and two books were checked out by this patron on July 18, 2017, My Stripes Were Earned In Hell and... Necropolis.  That is some mighty strange synchronicity!

Heat

The days are becoming warmer and this allows my old body to run easier. Today was another day that really should not happen, ran a track session with the following sprint distances - 100m/250m/100m/400m/100m/500m/100m/650m/100m/800m/100m and then back down - 650m/100m/500m/100m/400m/100m/250m/100m/100m. 

Two days ago I ran a short track session and a beautiful brown skinned child, I had the impression he was a recent arrival from South America, was attracted to my presence, we connected with our eyes, and especially our smiles, his smile was spectacular, and he began to mimic what I was doing, trying to follow me on my sprints and when I was doing muscle exercises on the bars he had his older brother lift him onto the bars so he could try himself.What a joy! And a tiny Asian child, female, also became attracted to my presence, she tried to run and when I was soaking myself with water, cooling down in the heat, she passed and gazed up at my face and then blessed me with an incredibly special smile. Perhaps because my body is declining, going backwards and transforming into a child's body, and also my mind which thinks of my school yard days, running, playing ball, and these children see something they can relate with, someone out playing, just because it is fun and feels good. 

The dream I had last week, where I was robbed and almost beaten while relaxing on a park bench, has had an impact on my mind, how it relates moment to moment with external reality. When confronted with possible aggression or danger, the images of myself relaxing while being attacked, smiling, rises into my consciousness and attempts to pull the defensive ego out of the scene, to just let the body rest like a piece of wood or stone. No reaction to the sensory field, just relax, man, relax.

Floating

I woke up this morning feeling rejuvenated from yesterday's long day of exercise so I decided to take it easy with a light track workout. As I walked to the Jewel Tree at the pier I realized my legs were not sore so I ended up doing a full track workout. When I returned home I decided to attempt another circuit of hills at the Island. On the walk to the Island my shoulders were tense so I knew it was going to be a slog. What kept me motivated was the thought of drinking chocolate milk on the bench outside the market, which I would only do if I could complete the hill circuit. At the island I was attacked by a red winged blackbird, which did not surprise me because it also attacked me yesterday. After completing the circuit I relaxed at the beach for an hour. The walk to the market was, as usual, the most difficult part of the day due to fatigue, but when I sat on the market bench drinking the milk a heavy relaxation permeated my mind and body. I thought of my childhood summers when I would play ball games from sun up to sun down, a skinny kid with boundless energy, and now that I am an old man I am returning to that childish mode of existence, filled with energy and an expansive sensation of freedom, the body so light it at times creates an illusion of floating above the ground. 

Relaxed

 A day not supposed to happen, six hours on my feet, running, walking, exercising, energy strong and steady, mind and body trying to find the sweet spot of relaxation while confronting the external world. Will the Jinn appear or no? What about the Great Protector? Which karma will I be required to reap? I am too ignorant to know the answers so I keep quiet and remind myself that I know nothing whatsoever, just flowing from moment to moment, trying to relax, not to panic, smiling at the face of death. 

A mild day, cool in the morning so I wore a long sleeved shirt and sweats for the track running, doing a one-way ladder, 120m/250m/120m/400m/120m/500m/120m/650m. I stood in the grass happy and smiling after completing the 650m sprint, wondering if I should push ahead and reverse the ladder. I had the energy and strength to do so but decided to save it for the Island hills. I walked home to change into fresh clothing and then walked to the hill, the concert still going on so I entered the Island via the harbor path and ran a single circuit of hills followed by a mile run to the beach at distance pace which I have not attempted in a long while due to knee soreness. At the beach I saw many concert-goers dressed in unusual costumes, the women showing a lot of flesh. All of the running and walking achieved its aim, I sat on a boulder near the water, smiling, happy, wondering how it's possible that my body can feel healthy and strong while at the same time degrading into old age and death. I thought of my runs in Sanur, Bali, the sweat, water, heat, and the old man I would sometimes see running shirtless like a demigod. I stopped at the market on the way home and treated myself to a chocolate milk, drinking it slowly on a bench, soaked in late afternoon sun, exhausted, strong, relaxed.

Offerings

Yesterday was mildly warm so I did the usual track workout with extended sprint distances. I recalled the track workouts I did when training for 5k's, one was called The Ladder, where distance is increased and then decreased. I decided to try it because my legs were feeling strong after a two day break. The track runs I am doing these days are more intense than 15 years ago because immediately after a sprint I do a set of muscle exercises with no time for oxygen recovery. The distances were 120m/120m/120m/240m/120m/400m/120m/500m/120m/400m/120m/240m/120m/120m, which are the longest sprint distances I have done so far this year. 

After the track I walked to the beach and sat on the log. A large pine cone appeared at my feet and I decided to offer it to the Jewel Tree even though I had already offered rice to the Jewel Tree earlier in the day. 

When I got home I surprisingly still had good energy and my legs did not feel sore so I decided to walk to the island hill and run repeats. When I arrived at the entrance to the island a security crew turned me away due to a music concert so I entered through the harbor pathway which tacked on an extra mile of walking. To get to the hill I had to cross two other hills so I decided to do a circuit which totaled 10 hills plus running the flat dirt path which circles the island. On the walk home I felt the usual shoulder and back stiffness so I massaged my shoulders as I walked and decided to treat myself to a chocolate milk. I sat on a bench outside the market and slowly drank the milk, which made me think of my days in Chiang Mai when I would sit outside the 7/11 drinking chocolate milk after a tough running day. 

This morning I felt surprisingly fresh so I decided to do a light track workout, along the way I stopped at the Jewel Tree and was happy to see an offering from the Pink Angel - heavy and large yellow flower heads surrounded by small blue flowers, in the middle of the flower circle were two bananas forming an X and a cluster of Ranier cherries scattered artfully amongst the flowers. Placed atop this splendid offering was the pine cone I had offered yesterday, which made me smile. I offered my rice and then walked to the track where I did pleasantly light exercises while getting drenched in a cool rain.