More about the tree

I have decided not to cut down my frontyard pine tree. The offer was to pay for cutting it down and replace it with a suitable tree in an advanced state of growth (you can buy them at about 3 metres tall). The pine is not an Australian native and everyone knows that pine needles can be a pain. So whilst it was a difficult request to deal with it was put in the most attractive way by the new owner. It was still a hard decision as I have lived with that tree for more than 20 years and it is much older than that. When you buy a house it takes years to get to know not just the house and its foibles but also the garden if you are lucky enough to inherit one. And the seasons, and the birds and other wildlife (which unfortunately includes rats).
In recent years I have seen the suburb change, as you do. Houses have been bulldozed to make way for flats/units, some of which are 2 storey. In the process trees and shrubs have also been cleared. There is a vacant block up the road that has a beautiful old gum at the front. It cannot be removed because it is 'significant' - that is, the trunk 1 metre above ground is 2 metres in girth or more. I am wondering if it will survive the building process and how much it will be respected. Some of the work is pretty rough on the surrounds whether intentional or just the outcome of big machines.
We all live in changing times and suburbs, and many want both worlds - a nice environment but one that doesn't impinge on their lifestyles (in the form of having to pick up leaves, trim branches and the other inconveniences of nature). We are all so busy that the old ways, when home owners used to enjoy doing things around their property on the weekends and saw it as part of their role, are dying. Now we want patios and home entertainment that is more clinical, and doesn't rely on nature for comfort. (My pine tree provides valuable shade in summer as I don't have air conditioning. This is 'significant' - last year we had 10 days of over 40 degrees centigrade heat.) However, one day this conflict between lifestyle and the environment will have to change. It may be too late by the time it happens, that is my concern.

'I own a tree'

There is an ad on prime time TV that shows a guy standing in his backyard with his partner, looking up at a tree and saying 'I own a tree. I've never owned a tree before.' I hate ads but that particular ad I had a soft spot for, as although the guy was obviously a new home owner, it was the tree he related to (OK it was an ad and it worked).
Well now that is significant for me. Because I own a tree. A big pine tree in the front yard on the western side. Perhaps 30 feet tall, maybe more. Big. The canopy is half over my roof and half over the next property. At the moment there is no house on that property. But there will be. And I had a call from the new owner, a nice bloke, proposing that I cut down my tree so that their cars will not have pine cones and resin dropped on them while they are in the drive.
So what do I do? I would never cut down that tree left to my own choice. All right, it does put a lot of stuff in the gutters which is an ongoing problem, and no doubt affects the rainwater that goes into my two tanks on that side of the house. I don't drink that rainwater - not yet, but if it gets dry enough over the next few years I may. But sulphur crested cockatoos and Major Mitchells flock into that tree (and the one on the other side). There are 50 to 100 of them. They swoop in, usually early in the morning, and then they quietly chew. If you go outside you can see glimpses of their whiteness and hear some crunching noises but that is all. After a while you can hear a pelting noise - that is them dropping the chewed pine cones onto the roof and ground. This routine can go on for an hour. Then all at once they fly from their different positions in the tree as if a gun has gone off. They squawk and scream and fly off. It is a racket. When you look around you can see bits of pine cone everywhere - strewn on the footpaths, in the garden, on the verandah roof (and in the gutters, sigh). It is a treat not just for them but for me. And a laugh.
I guess some of us love trees and the shade and natural unpredicatable events they bring, and some of us love cars.

It's over till it starts again

As the weeks roll by in 7-day lots, this phrase 'It's over till it starts again' seems an apt epithet (what a tongue twister!). I work 4 days a week in a workplace, and when Thursday is over there is a 3-day space of time before Monday. When you are old (if you are lucky enought to get there) and you look back over your whole life (if that is what you do), is this how it appears - as chunks of time organised over 1-week periods? I used to be able to account for every year of my adult life, and probably still could. Partly because I did a lot of applying for jobs and structured my life according to what year I had done what. Lately the structure has been more 'project-based' (eg it took me 7 years to do a Masters degree).
Which approach slows life down, which is what it would be really nice to do? Or is there a completely different way of 'measuring' life? The answer in buddhist or meditational terms would be to take each moment as it comes. This removes the routine-like aspect of time.
As usual I started this post with a different sense of where it would go. That is writing for you. Not sure now what I was really trying to say...except that I was excited that this was a 6-word description of my current life.

Steps to happiness

The following notes are adapted from Meditations from the Tantras, a thin book with some very 'river deep, mountain high' advice.

What causes 'human suffering' in the mind (this has to be distinguished from starvation, thirst and other basic needs)?

• ignorance or unawareness of reality
• the ego
• likes or attractions towards objects
• dislikes or repulsion towards objects
• the strong aversion or fear of death

How to remove these causes?
Slowly and systematically reduce them:

1. Continuously practise self awareness to attain a calm and tranquil state
   
2. Find out these deeper problems by practising antar mouna meditation. Make a mental or written record of what is revealed during the practice
   
3. Brood over their manifestations and realise that they do indeed bring about unhappiness and suffering (deeply)
   
4. Use auto suggestion and reprogramming (best time is after meditational practices, on waking or before sleeping):
   replace mentally disturbing thoughts with their opposites
   repeat the auto suggestion with intensity and feeling for a few minutes
   believe in the auto suggestion whole heartedly
   
5. Make the mind stronger so that it is less influenced by external events by slowly developing detachment to everything and every person.
   Identify yourself with the centre of consciousness rather than the body-mind. What we think is our present state of consciousness and not the subtle essence of life itself - the body and mind are only instruments of action, perception and thought.
   Be a witness - you are not your mind, thoughts, body etc. Practise this intellectually
   
6. Recognise that 'this too will pass' - thoughts and emotions are temporary
   
7. Consciously will the body to become whole, strong and balanced.
8. At the same time as 2 and 3, practise:
   self restraints - non violence, truth, honesty, sexual control, non possessiveness
   observances - purity, contentment, austerity, self study, self surrender
   

Cars the death of us

Another tragic news story but with a more personal bent as one of the victims is the son of someone I know. There have been 9 deaths in 9 days on South Australian roads - the latest news release. This is turning out to be a year of high road deaths. Ads and other efforts have not made a difference so what will? We have a lot of drag racing in South Australia and no doubt the whole of Australia. The culprits are generally young people who don't think much about death and don't think they will die. This time (and it is not the first) an innocent person unfortunate enough to be on the road at the same time was killed and his girlfriend seriously injured. Wrong place wrong time. But that is not enough. We can't accept these events and dismiss them as 'tragic'. We shouldn't get over them. It is surely time to do something about the car manufacturing industry and other players in this game. The sides of Australian roads are littered with flowers - stobie poles and trees wear them, markers indicate death and serious injury.
So for a start, what is hard about addressing the speed that cars can go at? Any car you buy has a speedometer that goes to 200 or more kph. Perhaps making cars specifically for the racing industry that can go faster (ie special circumstances). When are we going to get a politician who takes this up as a main issue? We have a 'no pokies' politician. What about a 'no fast cars' politician. My mind cannot think clearly about other measures but this is a start. Cars are the enemy. If we can't get rid of them let's get them back under our control. The Australian scifi movie The cars that ate Paris I have often thought was revolutionary. A remake reality movie will be The cars that ate Australia.

Gary Synder poem - pure and simple

I love this poem by Gary Snyder, especially the last 3 lines. It encapsulates everything we should be trying to do with our lives and lifestyles:

For the Children

The rising hills, the slopes,
of statistics
lie before us.
the steep climb
of everything, going up,
up, as we all
go down.

In the next century
or the one beyond that,
they say,
are valleys, pastures,
we can meet there in peace
if we make it.

To climb these coming crests
one word to you, to
you and your children:

stay together
learn the flowers
go light

— Gary Snyder, from Turtle Island

'Islands of understanding in an endless sea of mystery'

I love this quote. It is from Ian Lowe's book A big fix, and actually refers to our understanding of the complex natural systems of the Earth. On the other hand, I can relate to it totally, not because I live on an island (Australia) but because life has always been a mystery to me - the way society works, the way people communicate. And when there have been islands of understanding, they have been 'inexpressible', as Rilke says. In a way I have wandered 'lonely as a cloud' through life, unable to 'get it'.
Someone told me once 'don't take life so seriously'. Is that the answer, or is it that we don't take life seriously enough? But trying to grasp or understand life just makes it more elusive. And that also brings in the reality question. Now I have ground to a halt.
So what do I understand about life after all these years? That it is important, and so is death. That all living things are important. That all living things feel. That caring is crucial to happy living but can also make living painful. That belonging is a human need that helps us survive emotionally. (This also probably applies to other living things in a more life-and-death way). That life is a gift it is tragic to waste. As Vipassana says 'May I be happy, may all beings be happy.' The image is by Rex Ray

A balanced view

Interesting isn't it, that there is still debate about global warming? Isn't it great that we live in democracies where this can happen? That we can talk about something while the cows keep farting until we are blue in the face - from not being able to breathe.
Barry Brook on the radio the other day was asked about the importance of having a 'balanced' view about global warming - making sure that all opinions were represented. Interestingly he works at Adelaide University with a colleague who is getting lots of publicity on the other side of the debate - Professor Ian Plimer - who does not deny global warming but sees environmental changes as 'inevitable and unavoidable' (sorry, this is a Wikipedia quote rather than the real thing - time issue). They are both working for the same institution. Presumably there have been no punchouts in the corridors or staff bar. That is the nature of academia - civilised.
It's hard to argue calmly and rationally about something as potentially divisive and life threatening as global warming. It is probably upstaging terrorism at the moment and the media/business moguls are recognising this by calling it the new terrorism (this from an American site called Green is the new red.
Anyway Barry pretty much said (from memory) that you can only present a balanced view up to a point. At that point, the view tips in favour of one or the other side, usually through evidence. Which is saying that time will tell. This is unfortunate, as we don't have time and the debate has been raging for at least 40 years. Perhaps that will be seen as humankind's biggest downfall in the annals of whatever civilisation follows us (unlikely that one will but still) - 'Them humans talked too much.'
It's likely that the Western world is divided into three main camps: those who deny global warming altogether (throw in those who think it will take generations/hundreds of years); those who think it's nothing to do with us (which to me is a cop out as it means we Westerners can keep on keeping on); and those who believe (as I do) that we are responsible for speeding up what is probably a natural process (and aren't there the graphs to prove it?), and we could therefore do lots about it. As someone has said: 'We don't want to have to say sorry to our grandchildren.' So let's stop being reasonable and democratic and recognise that harsh methods are required. We need a Churchill!

Giving back to the earth

I went to a talk recently about breathing. I am interested in breathing (apart from the obvious reason of staying alive). Anyway, the speaker talked about a technique where you breathe in energy from the earth through your feet, take it up through your body and then breathe it out through the top of your head. A common enough breathing exercise that I have come across at other talks and workshops.
But now I think - haven't we taken enough energy from the earth already? How about giving some energy back to the earth? At a yoga weekend once, we were introduced to an exercise where we imagined breathing in all the 'black' of the world (ie negativity, impurities etc) and converting it to 'white' (positivity, goodness, purity etc), then breathing it out into the world again. Many people at the workshop objected to this exercise. It was not a good PR tool. But I think the so-called 'new age' too often has a 'what's in it for me' approach that is about more of the same - not giving but taking.
So let's focus on what we can give back to this ailing world of ours, be it energy, love, or just plain old respect.