Stupidity or Courage?
Sometimes I can’t tell if what I’m doing is an act of courage or plain stupidity. As a PEG tuber, eating is no longer a joy but a chore, shadowed by the concerns of others. And yet, knowing I was fortunate and grateful to be invited to the 90th Birthday Celebration of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in India this September, perhaps thanks to my contributions volunteering for the Asia Teachings for almost the past 10 years, I find myself at a crossroads. Traveling with my condition is inconvenient, risky, and bound to be complicated. Logically, the challenges are obvious. But a few questions rise from my heart: Do I really want to let this body’s limitations chain me to safety? Do I want to miss the chance to meet the Dalai Lama, knowing time waits for no one? Joseph Campbell once wrote, “If the path before you is clear, you’re probably on someone else’s.” My path is not clear. It is uncertain, messy, and perhaps reckless—but maybe that is exactly what makes it mine. The math is ...
