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Thursday, November 3, 2011

Watching Sunrise with Buddha

iPhone marimba alarm at 5:40.


Coffee arrived at 5:45.

Dressed in long sleeves and caffeinated by 6:15.

Cool sand snuck into our Keen sandals as we walked to meet our rides.


"What's his name?" 

"Buddha." 

Smiling.  Of course it would be.

I stepped on the stool and swung my leg over his hump.

The saddle wasn’t so bad.

“Buddha old.”

Yes, I could tell. 

He took his time. 

He walked a little too close to the edge of the hills.  Silently I thought, “Please don’t take me with you Buddha if you’re ready to move on.”
The camel guide’s striped turban turned and guided him once again back on the trail.

The top of the dunes.

As the sky turned pink, the other camels and riders looked East. 

Buddha looked around.    Pausing longer at the streaks of orange and blinding yellow sun.

His eyelashes were so long.  His harnesses bright with color and shells.

Distractions. 

“Watch the sun.”  

“Stay in the moment.”  

“You’re like 60 miles from Pakistan and this is your chance to meditate here.  Your camel’s named Buddha for Christ’s sake.   Use the sun to help you focus,” my voice said.

Buddha looked around again.  What was he looking for?  Food?  Water?

And then I realized what was distracting him from the sunrise.   

Poo.  He shat.

Can’t blame him for that being a little distracting and if he’s old he may not quite function the way he once used to especially with some girl riding on his back.

Suddenly he was more calm and turned his head back toward the sun.



My sunrise lesson from Buddha. 
Sometimes sh@# can distract you from some of the most beautiful things around you.  Once you realize that it’s just sh@# and nothing else, you can get back to appreciating the beauty again.




Buddha and sunrise




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