So last week I went to a friends funeral. I’ve known him for over ten years and I didn’t even know he was a Buddist. When I walked into his service there was about thirty minutes of chanting. My chest was vibrating and I felt the urge to join in and chant right along but I had no clue what they were saying. It was beautiful though. I know my friend would have been proud. Another old friend came with his wife to see our mutual aquaintence off into the beyond. We were so close for many years. I hadn’t seen him much for the past year or more. His face had grown a bit older but the man was still there that I thought so highly of for so many years. An odd feeling of whos next came over me. Would it be me or one of my friends. Would it be a family member. It took a couple of days for the numb feelings to subside and for life’s busy bee behavior to kick back in. I am reminded of the fact that life is short and lessons should be learned the first time and not after multiple times, when possible. Things are going really good for me these days except for the fact that as soon as I started getting back into the rat race and smiling again… well…my cat passed away and I stayed up until almost midnight burying him in the back yard. He was a member of the family and will be missed. I think sometime soon I will find a quiet place and come up with my own chant. I will hum and ryme and vibrate a good rant for kitty, for all those who are struggling today. For the things that God sees when he looks at our vast predicaments, our vicissitude.