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“Learning to let go should be learned before learning to get. Life should be touched, not strangled. You’ve got to relax, let it happen at times, and let others move forward with it.” ~ Ray Bradbury

Though he may often refer to God in his stories, Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles (as well as, 600 or so other odd stories) when interviewed on the occasion of his 90th birthday had this to say,

“I’m a Zen Buddhist if I would describe myself. I don’t think about what I do. I do it. That’s Buddhism. I jump off the cliff and build my wings on the way down.”

It’s one of my most favorite quotes regarding Buddhism, life, and the truest form of living. Not thinking, rather doing, and figuring it all out ‘on the way down.’

I have faced many challenges in my life. Some, a little more recent than those which have gone before them.

Nevertheless, with each new day—and, no matter how I may feel—I smile in the biggest and most special sort of ways. For you see, these days, I am smiling because I am grateful—grateful to simply greet and embrace each and every single one of my days.

And though, my mobility may be just a bit wobbly at times…like the bird, my wings are formed each time I leap from ‘life’s cliff’ and always before my feet hit the ground.

I take great comfort in this, most gentle ‘knowing’—this understanding, that no matter what, I’ll be, always, okay.

Namaste, my most beautiful friends—and remember, sometimes you’ve got to ‘leap’ in order to ‘fly.’

Bonus: Best Beginner Buddhist Books:

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Ed: Kate Bartolotta