Two nights in Bangkok

There was this song , one night in Bangkok and it is mend to be a pop song with a sexy tone but my trip to Bangkok was for two days and it was to meet another BiL, who is seriously sick. As I have expected, it was an image which I dread to see and it re-cap the memories of my MiL, who have passed away since.  I was shocked and speechless as the conversation about his health went on among my relatives. I sat there quietly and try to steady my feelings and my thoughts. He has lost 20 kgs and his condition is deteriorating. I could only utter a. few words of encouragement and asked him to be positive to face the process of the battle ahead. I hope the best for him and wish that he will win over the big "C".

As I lay back to think, I reflect back to Ajahn Brahm's advise that if we are physically sick, it need not mean that we should be mentally sick. In other words, we have to control our thoughts and actions and learn to dance in the rain, It is a difficult thing to do but his advise makes sense. Why do we need to torture ourself mentally if we are already physically sick? These are two separate part of our body and need not need to be linked together.

 There was this short story of a lady with joint pains and it was very painful for her to walk but she continue her life as usual and later she commented that it is very painful  but she do not want the joint pain to control her life. She  and her Doctor have done what needs to be done but it cannot be cured, it is beyond her control and if it is beyond her control, she have to live on with the best that she can. This analogy tells us that we do not need to cry in the rain.

Yes, we cannot do anything about it as well except to pray  for my BiL and encourage him to be positive and preserve his energy and let the Doctors take care of him  while also leave everything to our creator, if there is a creator. In time like this, we always hope for a miracle but again, the appropriate measures need to be done as well.

Well, it bring us to the fact that everything is impermanent, ever changing  and evolving around us. One day, it could be sunshine and another day, it could be raining.  With a simple twist of fate, life will change. There is the reason, in Buddhist teaching, we always say , the past is gone, the future is uncertain and what we have is the present moment, Lets focus our attention on the present moment and live life to its fullest, It may be even more precious and fruitful if we can focus on our each step or each breath. Impossible is nothing, so lets move in small steps to make ourselves more aware and conscious. If we cannot help others, lets not do harm to them and we pray for sick and needly including my BiL.

Namaste.....