Friday
Aversion. Anger. Fear.
Today I walked the three or four blocks from my house to the SPIN garden.
That’s Tyler, putting the first layer in one of the new raised beds. Yesterday I got an email from him, again thanking me for a donation and telling about the new shed and tools they have. Today he greeted me by name, a surprise. Fred came along, and Reuben was on his way. The indoor staff is off for Good Friday.
This photo is from October 2020. My wife is racing to get the overnight shelter open by December 1. Last year somebody died in the cold.
Aversion. Anger. Fear.
“Dvesja/dosa, or aversion, is one of the three poisons—or unwholesome roots—representing a mental state of aggression, irritation, and ill-will toward unwanted people, situations, or sensations. It acts as a burning force that causes intense suffering and, in the wheel of life, is symbolized by a snake.”
There was a snake in the first garden. There was no mention of a snake in the resurrection garden.
I do not want to tell this story.
2021 Covid. Also, unfaced fears, to which I responded with fury. The beginning of the end of a treasured marriage.
Last night Peter cut off the ear of the ICE Priest’s servant. Jesus told him to put up his sword, and healed the ear.
Aside from dropping off some donations, I haven’t been to SPIN in almost six years. I also have not been furiously angry since then.
“One unkind tirade or one willful snap judgment can ruin our relation with another person for a whole day, or maybe a whole year. Nothing pays off like restraint of tongue and pen. We must avoid quick-tempered criticism and furious, power-driven argument.” Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.. Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions (p. 91). (Function). Kindle Edition. Or maybe a whole lifetime.
René Girard says Jesus’ death on a cross revealed the lie of the scapegoat ‘solution’ that solves nothing. (Peter Thiel’s artificial theology lies.)
Some say that Jesus’ facing his ripe karma has done it for all of us. Saved by the blood!
I would say that he showed the way, and is with us on it.
Are you there?
Yes.