A Bowl of Rice
“We need not climb the mountain to see into the valley.
All things to be seen can be found in a simple shared bowl of rice.”
--Leo Buscaglia (The Way of the Bull), p. 159
A number of years ago Mr. Buscaglia took a wonderful journey through Asia assimilating Oriental traditions into his understanding about life’s mysteries. In the Orient the bull symbolically represents life. Another way to title the book could be The Way of Life.
When Buscaglia reached the mountains of Nepal he saw splendid views of valleys below. A number of years ago I was privileged to climb a glacier in Norway and gaze across the farms in the valley. Visual images of Nicaragua's mountains, the Columbia icefields in Canada, a village in El Salvador and a boy's school outside Kigali, Rwanda are all part of my life experiences. Like Mr. Buscaglia, I have mental pictures of natural beauty. But I must agree with Leo that the really important aspects of my travels are the times spent with fellow travelers enjoying a cup of coffee or a nice dinner, listening to the stories about their journey through the mountains and valleys of life. Fellowship with one another allows us to travel through life feeling the strength of companionship.
At our home we have a little saying we practice in all our relationships. It goes like this: “The purpose in life is not to see through each other but to see each other through.” Enjoy sharing life with others today, maybe in sharing stories while sipping a cup of coffee.
--Ben Keckler
10.13.10
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