Zeal for life

I am constantly reminded of how awesome life is. I am also regularly awestruck with surprising and magical experiences. I find it sad when I get into a conversation with someone who is zealous about anything other than living. Life doesn’t require me to understand how you perceive the Heart sutra –so I don’t care. Life doesn’t need me to give up my weekend to attend a rally. Life has never argued my need to believe in a savior in order to enter a heavenly place. I like life; it’s what I worship.
I loved to read outside when I was a kid, in a tree, in the grass, in a canoe or while I walked. I read the Bible- several versions, and the Torah outside when I was a kid, I read the life of Siddhartha, and many other religious tomes. These were great for preserving feathers or flowers, clover, and cool leaves. But what happened to me while I was outside; those lessons are awe inspiring and educational.
Many times I heard a Rabi read from the Torah, and then we all had the most wonderful food and wine and dancing. I went to Mass more times than I can count, but it was architecture, stained glass and pageantry that I remember. I have read the sutras and Holy Scripture only to find that sitting silently for hours in contemplation can only help if I practice the lessons in the world of life because the lessons are about experiencing life and living.
So I get out there and I live. I preach life. Experience is my teacher and practicing and refining how well I live is rewarding and fun. So when someone starts quoting scripture to me about what I should do and how I should live, I just smile and listen. Because Life is a collection of experiences, and dreams that allow us to understand our surroundings and hopefully control who we are and where we are. I am zealous about life. I tell people to put down the book about someone else’s life and go live your own. How long does it take to read the basic rules? 8,10,12 whatever the number of rules you prescribe to –read-em, know-em, live em! The book of life has unlimited pages –hopefully your chapter will not keep referencing other books that you thought would tell you how to live.