Susan Moon is a writer and teacher and for many years was the editor of "Turning Wheel," the Journal of socially-engaged Buddhism. She is the author of The Life and Letters of Tofu Roshi, a humorous book about an imaginary Zen master, and editor of Not Turning Away: The Practice of Engaged Buddhism. Her most recent book is This Is Getting Old: Zen Thoughts on Aging with Dignity and Humor. Her short stories and essays have been published widely.
As I get older and the time I have left shrinks, I find the opportunity to enter deep time. We have infinite time in the present moment.
It is this passing of time too, that makes creativity possible. Readings on time and memory from my book, This Is Getting Old.
A talk about aspects of Buddhist practice that have helped me in my writing life: gratitude for this human birth, appreciation of form, sense of being held in Indra's Net, curiosity, willingness to look at what's difficult, seeing that what appear to be obstacles are often the path itself, the life, the art itself.
My practice is generated by my longing for connection. A longing that has been with me since childhood.
Dharma and creative work both help us marry small self and big self.
The practice is to step forward, over and over, into our own Buddha nature, to express it and give it away. The world is a better place for having its stories told.
