I was recently reminded of how life is, …
Was asked to pick up a pebble and to hold onto it. Like an event or something that happens to our lives.
Then asked to hold onto the pebble tighter. And soon there was pain.
So, the pain wasn’t from the pebble but from how we hold onto the pebble.
And so in life when things happen, we hold onto the pebble, the event.
The suffering comes from how we choose to hold onto it.
When I finally let go of the pebble, relief from the pain.

So, I don’t know what everyone has gone thru. But, I do hope you can find a way to let it go
And free yourselves from suffering from it. Maybe even to overcome the pebble.
Whatever we did at the time was something that we did cause it was what we knew was best at the time.
Chasing and regret of past events are using today’s eyes to judge the past.
It does us no good to hang onto it.

It just maybe a good time to let go and say good bye to the past.

Hello Alessa,

Nice to hear from you. Yeah, my daughter’s spine is still curved about 40 degrees which is very bad. It is very noticeable when she bends over or sits crouched over. I bought a gravity bench so she could have time stretching her back a bit but she refuses to use it. The brace she didn’t want to wear to school as it would prohibit her for her regular routines. Doctor kept saying she needs more time in the brace. Personally I don’t believe it helped. It made breathing harder for her and the discomfort mad sleeping harder. It was lose lose. So, when her bones finally set, around age 17, she didn’t need the brace anymore. Idiopathic, they called it. Meaning there is no known reason. Still hurt my heart to see this. I try to focus on the positive with her. This way to keep her focus on the good things in life. Oh, loved the story. And I hope the kitty tree is a hit.

Hello Peter,

Just mentioned you and wondered how you have been. That was very creative continuing the story. Shows how we see the world is colored by our thoughts. Quite enjoyed your story. Thanks. Being able to laugh at one’s own foolishness is a great attribute. If I was able to do that then I would be laughing all the time. I am such a fool.

Tommy

Hello Alessa,

Thanks for the post. Seems like Anita is avoiding me and haven’t heard from peter in a while. All is quiet on the forum???

Anyway, it is important to get the correct assessment. That will help in planning anything he might need in the future. It hurts as a parent to find out my child wasn’t as bright as … And would have issues. Then compounded when we learn she has scoliosis. Got to keep an eye out for physical changes. Since she is a girl I .. just didn’t want to .. be too close to her physically. So, it wasn’t until she had a physical due to school rules that we found out her spine was curved. Body braces until she got older and her bones set in place. Wasn’t an easy time for her. This could have been spotted by watching her spine as she bends over forward to touch her toes. We can see it curve. It really makes me feel like a failure. Then she got into college and those math courses simply were about stuff I never had. Yeah, Felt really dumb. But thanks to YouTube.com, I learned and helped to explain a little bit to my daughter.

Oh, yeah, the kidney stones, when I didn’t drink a lot of water, the kidney stone seems to stop moving and so no pain. But, when I did drink lots of water, it moved and there was so much pain. But, had to drink more water to get it out. The pain is enough to have me bent over and immobile. This all started with a dull ache where the kidneys are at. Went to the hospital ER. Sat there from 9 am to about two pm before the in take nurse got to me. Then another two more hours before a doctor stopped by. Got a CT scan with an injection to provide contrast. Told it was a kidney stone. About 3 to 5 mm. Told to take Tylenol and drink lots of water. Finally got home by 7pm. It has been a few days and I think it has passed. Not sure when. The hospital get me a net to pee thru to catch the stone but I don’t carry it when I go out. Wife wants me to do an ultrasound to make sure it is gone.

I am having pain from kidney stones. I have had three before. Each time was told to drink more water to help flush out the stone. The pain really does deter practice. But, it really is what the heart that decides what one does next.

Experience the truth about ourselves is Kensho or Satori. It is receiving the transmission. It is learning the truth of ourselves, enlightenment. It is the path to end suffering by learning the truth of life. Some will say that this life is an illusion. That has to come from a place where one sees the difference between what is real and what is subjective.

Liked, “Just trying your best to deal with what is in the best way you can at the time. 🩵”
Kids grow and we adapt to their growth. Stuff happens and we just try to do our best with what we got.
I feel terrible that I can’t do more to help my child. But, just live life as best we can.

Hey Roberta,

Thanks for your posts. It really is a tough thing to be able to separate pain from mental suffering. When sick and coughing, it feels like suffering. The hurt rings thru the body. Only sometimes can I feel that separation from the body to what I believe feels like me. I have heard of tasks given to novices to go into the cold and sit in meditation. They produce heat and do not feel the cold. I don’t know if this is some sort of power or prajna. Or maybe some sort of mental training. But, truth is that one may understand there is a difference in feeling pain and the mental suffering. But, the ability to actually control the difference in oneself?? I do not know.

Is it as simple as knowing there is pain and not to let the mind ruminate the pain and turn it into suffering? Or is there something more to separating the pain and the truth of one’s nature? Is it just the thoughts or is there something more? IDK.

There are stories of amazing things which masters have exhibited. I do not know if they are true. But, it is clear that I wish to learn more. And I am willing to listen to anyone who has the truth behind their words. I have met a few people who definitely showed their enlightened nature. You know from their manner and from their words. It just reaches inside and you know. It can’t be faked. Some know things and spout it out from simple learning. But, the truth doesn’t come from that place. So you know.

I dream too much. And am very tired now. Sorry for my rambling. Yes, I know I am rambling and yet I continue. So why hit submit? Because the three truths can not remain hidden. The sun, the moon and one’s nature. I thank all who have chosen to reply to this thread.

Roberta,

Got to say that your post has got me thinking. The orange seed is the cause. The condition is the soil, water and warmth. The effect is the sprouting of the seed. The consequence is the fruit from the tree. The cycle completes when the fruit produces the seed. So, then how does this relate to the Four Noble Truths? How can I use this information to understand the path to liberation from suffering? I am remembering many summer nights feeling the cool breeze on my face. Time spent sitting in quiet. Then when not quiet, pondering how not to suffer old age and pain. The calm and the peace of the moment was like the surface of the lake. The suffering of pain was the waves rippling out from the disturbance. I don’t have answers. Just more questions.

Well, maybe I spend too much time in thoughts.