I am meditating on a deck above the beach looking east into the vastness of the Atlantic Ocean. My beach shack is on a tiny island a few hundred miles from the mainland. The wind off the sea is a strong twenty knots and the salt spray floats across the waters and settles on everything a salty mist. The churning waters are a milky blue opaque and the whitecaps run clear to the horizon. Swimming in the chop with only a mask and snorkel is like a sensory deprivation tank. You cannot see anything but the milky water, which acts as a mirror reflecting your thoughts, and there is nothing but the vast sea surrounding you with neutral buoyancy. Breathe deeply and inhale fresh clean air. There is life in every breath. This is the life of a Zen Buddhist. This is bushido the life of the warrior. So breathe deep and be grateful for the gift of life and all it entails as the sunset turns blood red.

Satoru