Curious Children.

[CK732]

I live with some serious Zen masters. I asked my 9 year old the other day if he could talk without his foot. We laughed very hard over this made up Koan as we investigated the Koan together. My 5 year old just wrote it off as "that's Buddha talk." I presented the "can you talk without your foot?" Koan to my wife and she did not answer me. I asked "well, what's your answer?" She said she had not been listening and just kept going about her business.



Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_

[emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23] I think your wife answered you without answering [emoji6][emoji122]🏼[emoji122]🏼[emoji122]🏼

Kids are awesome [emoji4]

Metta

Gassho

Clarisse Sat2Day


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[Getchi]

Hi!

Sorry to have been so quiet lately, but this thread has drawn me out again.

My oldest is 4. I love her questions and the way she never quit just accepts the answer, there is always another question.

Several times now she has woken up at either 11pm or 4am, which are my usual sitting times, and sat with me silently. The first time she asked me what im doing, I told her I was sitting quietly to see what happens.

Her "best" time so far is about 9 mins. She constantly comes up with amazing conversations, like how Thor is a god and a superhero and that means he must be very busy

I learn alot from her, yet she never teaches me anything


Geoff.
A student.

[CK732]

Hi!

Sorry to have been so quiet lately, but this thread has drawn me out again.

My oldest is 4. I love her questions and the way she never quit just accepts the answer, there is always another question.

Several times now she has woken up at either 11pm or 4am, which are my usual sitting times, and sat with me silently. The first time she asked me what im doing, I told her I was sitting quietly to see what happens.

Her "best" time so far is about 9 mins. She constantly comes up with amazing conversations, like how Thor is a god and a superhero and that means he must be very busy

I learn alot from her, yet she never teaches me anything


Geoff.
A student.

She's awesome [emoji4]

Metta

Gassho

Clarisse Sat2Day


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Jishin]

Hi,

I like to play zen with my kids. On the way to school today I asked my 9 year old what "road" meant. He answered other than "no road" he had "no idea."

Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_

[CK732]

Hi,

I like to play zen with my kids. On the way to school today I asked my 9 year old what "road" meant. He answered other than "no road" he had "no idea."

Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_

[emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23] he's awesome!! Haha!

Clarisse Sat2Day


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[Jakuden]

Hilarious, Jishin! Sounds like your son already "gets it" and has a great sense of humor to boot. This is such a fun thread. My kids have passed the age where they want me to teach them anything, but of course they still watch, whether they admit it or not. And now I am humbly doing the learning, because impermanence and separation are what teens are all about!

My daughter did somehow find monks wandering around on Minecraft today, some of them wearing Rakusus! Who knew?

Gassho,
Sierra
SatToday

[Jishin]

Hi Sierra,

I am the only weird one in my family who is not Christian. My kids go to church twice per week and I don't interfere with their Christian education. But they also know that there is another way of thinking. The 9 year old knows how to give zen answers which are correct but has trouble explaining zen logic. He gets it though. He is a good sport. The five year old can not abstract well so just writes me off as "talking Buddha" but is very intrigued when I play zen word games with my 9 year old.

I am blessed to have such a forgiving wife and in-laws.

Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_

[Jakuden]

Same here. I am sure that my poor MIL prays for myself and my children's souls regularly since they are not baptized. But my husband's family have always been wonderful to me regardless.

Gassho,
Sierra
SatToday

[Jishin]

I live in the Bible Belt and patients sometimes inquire about my belief system. I have replied "Buddha loves you too" in response to "Jesus loves you." I have also said "I will pray for you too" in response to "I will pray for you" from a patient.

Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_

[CK732]

My daughter did somehow find monks wandering around on Minecraft today, some of them wearing Rakusus! Who knew?

Gassho,
Sierra
SatToday

Monks in Mind Craft! That's hilarious!! [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

Sierra,

Teens are a great lesson for all of us, and if you as a parent survives them, there's a prize once they turn 19. They will become your best friend.

I love and hate teens [emoji4]

I live in the Bible Belt and patients sometimes inquire about my belief system. I have replied "Buddha loves you too" in response to "Jesus loves you." I have also said "I will pray for you too" in response to "I will pray for you" from a patient.

Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_

Jishin,

That is soo Christian. I don't live in the Bible Belt but I've gotten the "I worry about you" because someone thought they needed to "save my soul" so I would respond to them that I worry about them too, hahahaha (it's true I did worry about them because ignorance is a frightening thing when religion is involved). Only my close family members knows what I'm doing now but I expect some pretty interesting comments coming my way once everyone knows.

I started reading the Bible at five years old with children's Bibles and as I grew up there wasn't too many people especially in my family who could keep up with me. So when someone would try to save me and start speaking Bible the only offense they could use was my interpretation was incorrect and I needed to learn from their pastor [emoji15]

Last night my fave ten year old said that she wanted to meditate with me but she couldn't keep her eyes open long enough. So I'm going to add a ten minute meditation early evening just for her [emoji1] I can't speak zen yet because I'm still learning it myself and I'll only confuse her more [emoji4]

Gassho

Clarisse Sat2Day



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[Gukan]

I have found very helpful the idea that 'doing what needs to be done' (in this case in parenting) can in itself be, or is, zazen. My two are generally quite good with regards to giving me some space for sitting (and sometimes sit with me), but of course every now and then someone needs something pronto, or forgets. I always felt I was doing something wrong when practising vipassana if I responded, as if I'd broken my meditative state, but also felt guilty if I didn't respond. Since coming further into zazen I have felt more able to just remind them I am sitting for a few minutes without feeling I've 'failed' the session.

My youngest asked me yesterday to sew a rakusu for his beloved cloth penguin. I had absolutely no idea what the correct response to that one was... :-D

Gassho,
Libby

about to sit

[Jundo]

My youngest asked me yesterday to sew a rakusu for his beloved cloth penguin. I had absolutely no idea what the correct response to that one was... :-D

Gassho,
Libby

about to sit

I believe it would be perfectly fine. I have never known a cloth penguin to break a Precept.

Gassho, J

SatToday

[Jishin]

I had absolutely no idea

Wow! Your youngest is already expounding the Dharma.

Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_

[CK732]

My youngest asked me yesterday to sew a rakusu for his beloved cloth penguin.

Gassho,
Libby

about to sit

Libby,

That is soo cute!! How can you NOT make one for the penguin [emoji4]

Awesome[emoji177]

Gassho

Clarisse Sat2Day


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Joyo]

I have found very helpful the idea that 'doing what needs to be done' (in this case in parenting) can in itself be, or is, zazen. My two are generally quite good with regards to giving me some space for sitting (and sometimes sit with me), but of course every now and then someone needs something pronto, or forgets. I always felt I was doing something wrong when practising vipassana if I responded, as if I'd broken my meditative state, but also felt guilty if I didn't respond. Since coming further into zazen I have felt more able to just remind them I am sitting for a few minutes without feeling I've 'failed' the session.

My youngest asked me yesterday to sew a rakusu for his beloved cloth penguin. I had absolutely no idea what the correct response to that one was... :-D

Gassho,
Libby

about to sit

Hi Libby, that is so cute with the penguin!! I always felt like my kids' interruptions were breaking my sitting up or wrecking it somehow too. But then I read in the book Buddhism for Mothers, that the interruptions should be viewed as part of our meditation, you just simply flow from sitting, to helping your child, to sitting again. That really helped me =)

Gassho,
Joyo
oops, about to sit as well.........