We had a big, and potentially contentious, meeting at work today. We have spent a great deal of money on the web project, and we are seeing significant results on that investment. But, as with many large projects, there have been omissions and mistakes made on both sides, and we were meeting to discuss the route to resolution.
Now, when there are big bucks at stake, emotions can become inflamed and tempers frayed, but at what cost? Our software partners want to continue doing business with us. We want to resolve the many little issues that have made their way into the live site. So we both have much to gain, and more to lose, if the talking stops and the bun fight begins.
Although my colleagues, and a couple of the partners know about my Buddhist leanings, none of them are active participants. So it was hugely rewarding to find that the meeting was brimming with wisdom, courage and compassion from both sides. We covered most of the points of conflict in a calm and mature manner, and although there is a deal of fine detail to be resolved, the day went better than any of us anticipated.
The passing of the close friend, of a close friend, led me to seek out a Buddhist poem about death, from the Buddhist viewpoint. 
Following on from yesterday’s post about passing on the good news of Buddhism, this is a parable about the rich man, the poor man and the hidden gem …
There was once an old lady who cried all the time. Her elder daughter was married to an umbrella merchant while the younger daughter was the wife of a noodle vendor. On sunny days, she worried, “Oh no! The weather is so nice and sunny. No one is going to buy any umbrellas. What will happen if the shop has to be closed?” These worries made her sad. She just could not help but cry. When it rained, she would cry for the younger daughter. She thought, “Oh no! My younger daughter is married to a noodle vendor. You cannot dry noodles without the sun. Now there will be no noodles to sell. What should we do?” As a result, the old lady lived in sorrow everyday. Whether sunny or rainy, she grieved for one of her daughters. Her neighbours could not console her and jokingly called her “the crying lady.”
Once upon a time, there was a general who was leading his army into battle against an enemy ten times the size of his own.
A man once came to see the Buddha to get help with his problems. After the man had told the Buddha one of his problems and asked for help, the Buddha replied: “I cannot help you get rid of that problem.”
One morning, after he had finished his practice, an old man opened his eyes to see a scorpion floating helplessly in the water. As the scorpion was washed closer to the tree, the old man quickly stretched himself out on one of the long roots that branched out into the river and reached out to rescue the drowning creature.
Genetic engineering has been around for some time, but 
The Search For Enlightenment 
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